Rob Shepherd

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I can't remember a time I didn't listen to jazz. I grew up in Central Massachusetts listening to WICN's jazz broadcasts- and often also Eric Jackson's Eric in the Evening on WGBH- before bed each night. The first album I ever purchased was a Duke Ellington compilation. In hindsight, it was probably not something most 8 year olds would buy. As I grew older, I played saxophone for a long time, including in various jazz bands. While I no longer play so frequently, I still stay very attached to the music. I have attended hundreds of concerts and have met many amazing musicians over the years. The most memorable performances include those by Ornette Coleman, a number of Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock duets/quartets, Sonny Rollins, Jim Hall, Dave Brubeck, Pharoah Sanders, John Zorn, Anthony Braxton, and John McLaughlin on his final US tour. My advice to new listeners is that once you find something you like, look into the other music by artists on the song/record and their own work. Many of the recordings I've grown to love over the years I first encountered because I liked the leader's sideperson role on another recording. Another great piece of advice is to always keep an open mind and not expect to understand or even like everything at first. Over the years, the music that ended up most impacting me was that which I didn't hit me at first. Only, time after time of trying to "get it" ultimately opened up my eyes to their brilliance.

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