Take Five With Kali. Z. Fasteau

AAJ Staff

Contributor since 1995

Various staff members.

Recent articles (1,149 total)

Published: September 9, 2010

Meet Kali. Z. Fasteau:
Kali. Z. Fasteau is from a musical family, playing piano, cello, flute, and voice since early childhood in Paris and New York. Her piano teacher, for eight years, was Olga Heifetz.

She started improvising at age 14. She received post-grad degrees studying the music of Asia, Africa, 20th Century Europe and jazz. Then she traveled for more than 14 years, living in 18 countries: India (1981-83), Turkey (1976-77), Nepal, Morocco, Senegal, Congo, Italy, Holland, France, Denmark, Belgium, Switzerland, Finland, Haiti, Zimbabwe, Niger, Mali, Yugoslavia, Germany, Greece, and America, performing in many music festivals and concerts, national radio and TV, film soundtracks, and university programs.

Kali's recording and performing associates include: Donald Rafael Garrett, Kidd Jordan Kidd Jordan
b.1935
saxophone , Archie Shepp Archie Shepp
b.1937
saxophone , Beaver Harris Beaver Harris
b.1936 , Rashied Ali Rashied Ali
1935 - 2009
drums , William Parker William Parker
b.1952
bass, acoustic , Oliver Lake Oliver Lake
b.1942
saxophone , Sirone Sirone
1940 - 2009
bass, acoustic , Joseph Jarman Joseph Jarman
b.1937
saxophone , Joe McPhee Joe McPhee
b.1939
reeds , Hamid Drake Hamid Drake
b.1955
percussion , Bobby Few Bobby Few
b.1935
piano , Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali
b.1936
drums , Noah Howard Noah Howard
1943 - 2010
sax, alto , Sabir Mateen Sabir Mateen
b.1951
multi-instrumentalist , Roy Campbell Roy Campbell
b.1952
trumpet and many others.

Kali. led her ensemble playing her original compositions at New York's Town Hall, Lincoln Center and Guggenheim Museum, as well as the Museum of Modern Art in Paris, Museum Theatre in Madras, India, Boston Center for the Arts, Vision Festival, Kerava Jazz Festival, JVC Festival, Harare International Arts Festival (Zimbabwe), Pisa Jazz Festival, Istanbul Jazz Festival, Livorno Jazz Festival, and hundreds of others worldwide.

Instrument(s):
Soprano sax, nai and kaval flutes, voice, viola, drum set, piano, mizmar, keyboards, cello, sanza.

Teachers and/or influences?
Donald Rafael Garrett (recorded four albums with John Coltrane John Coltrane
1926 - 1967
saxophone (Om, Kulu Se Mama, Live in Seattle and Selflessness) was my main mentor, musical partner and first husband.

Other musicians who inspired me: John and Alice Coltrane Alice Coltrane
1937 - 2007
piano , Yusef Lateef Yusef Lateef
b.1920
reeds , Betty Carter Betty Carter
1930 - 1998
vocal , Miriam Makeba Miriam Makeba
1932 - 2008
vocal , Nancy Wilson Nancy Wilson
b.1937
vocal , Eric Dolphy Eric Dolphy
1928 - 1964
reeds , Albert Ayler Albert Ayler
1936 - 1970
sax, tenor , Archie Shepp, Bobby Timmons Bobby Timmons
1935 - 1974
piano , Thelonious Monk Thelonious Monk
1917 - 1982
piano , Erroll Garner Erroll Garner
1921 - 1977
piano , Aretha Franklin Aretha Franklin

vocal , Nina Simone Nina Simone
1933 - 2003
piano , all the soul artists, so so many greats—too many to list.

I knew I wanted to be a musician when...
The revelation came to me while gazing over the Pacific Ocean and realizing that creating beautiful sounds is the greatest joy and privilege of my life.

Your sound and approach to music:
"Music lives in a multidimensional sphere, encompassing all possible sounds... high and low, soft and loud, slow and fast, rough and smooth, legato and staccato. The essence of creating music is combining these yin and yang parameters of sound so as to enhance their distinctive qualities moving through time. This joining of opposites expresses the joyful unity of life." (c) Kali. Z. Fasteau

Your favorite recording in your discography and why?
Selected Discography: Kali. Z. Fasteau: Animal Grace;
Kali. Z. Fasteau/Kidd Jordan: Live at the Kerava Jazz Festival: Finland;
Kali. Z. Fasteau/Kidd Jordan: People of the Ninth: New Orleans & the Hurricane 2005;
Kali. Z. Fasteau: Making Waves;
Kali. Z. Fasteau: Oneness;
Kali. Z Fasteau: Vivid;
Kali. Z. Fasteau/Rafael Garrett: Memoirs of a Dream;
Kali. Z. Fasteau: Comraderie;
Kali. Z. Fasteau: Sensual Hearing
Kali. Z. Fasteau: Prophecy: The Whale & the Elephant Trade Notes on the State of the World;
Kali. Z. Fasteau: Worlds Beyond Words.

What do you think is the most important thing you are contributing musically?
An original and unique meld of the powerful spontaneous energy of seminal free jazz with sonorities of African, Indian and Middle Eastern music. Embodying grace and energy flowing freely in live comprovisation.

Photo Credit
Courtesy of Kali. Z. Fasteau