Take Five With Quentin Angus

Meet Quentin Angus:
Australian-born guitarist Quentin Angus is a name to remember. He has performed in Japan, USA, Australia, Europe and New Zealand, including Jazz Hoeilaart (Belgium), and the Adelaide International Guitar Festival. Angus has released one album as a band leader, Retrieval Structure, in 2011, and several as a side man, including recording/ performing with John Abercrombie, Bob Mintzer and Wolfgang Muthspiel

Instrument(s):
Guitar.

Teachers and/or influences?
John Abercrombie, Gilad Hekselman, John Riley. Dhafer Youssef, Mike Moreno, Shapeshifter.

I knew I wanted to be a musician when...
I first saw my mother play the piano when I was four.

Your sound and approach to music:
My main goal is to create original music that is looking forward, merging different genres with the goal of creating innovative music that will last the test of time. Having said this, the music I create is still based around the jazz tradition and what has come before.

Your teaching approach:
Building skills and knowledge base so that the student can eventually become self sufficient and improve themselves without the guidance of a teacher.

Your dream band:
Aaron Parks, Will Vinson, Kendrick Scott, Linda May Han Oh.

Road story: Your best or worst experience:
Arriving in Belgium the day of my performance and after checking in my guitar to find the G-string tuning key to be broken. After getting that fixed, I plugged in my pedal board without changing from 115 volts to 225 volts and fried my power board. Luckily, 30mins before the performance, I borrowed one from one of the other groups who was performing at the festival.

Favorite venue:
Smalls.

Your favorite recording in your discography and why?
Retrieval Structure, as it is my first album as a bandleader, features entirely original compositions and some of my favorite musicians.

The first Jazz album I bought was:
The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery.

What do you think is the most important thing you are contributing musically?
Original music that is looking forward, not backward

Did you know...
I used to compose hip hop and drum 'n' bass, and skateboarded for many years

CDs you are listening to now:
Mike Moreno, First In Mind;
Gilad Hekselman, Hearts Wide Open;
Avishai Cohen - Trumpet, Seven Seas.

Desert Island picks:
Wes Montgomery, The Incredible jazz guitar of Wes Montgomery;
Avishai Cohen, Continuo;
Avishai Cohen, Gently Disturbed;
Hilltop Hoods, The Hard Road Restrung;
Stan Getz, Stan Getz with the Oscar Peterson Trio.

How would you describe the state of jazz today?
Musically and artistically there are some amazing things going on in jazz today. There are more and more innovative musicians emerging constantly. Although some musicians are stuck in the trenches, the music is moving in new, interesting directions. The main hurdle for contemporary jazz musicians today is to regain the audience base jazz once had.

What are some of the essential requirements to keep jazz alive and growing?
Looking forward and keeping the music relevant to current times. Jazz has always been a reflection of and a reaction to the surroundings of that time. Categorizing jazz as a "thing" to imitate and repeat in performance loses audience bases. We need to look forward and innovate, an essential part of what jazz is.

What is in the near future?
Australian release of debut album,Retrieval Structure, in Dec '11 —Jan '12.

USA Release- TBA

By Day:
Masters student under John Abercrombie at Purchase College.

If I weren't a jazz musician, I would be a:
Astronomer, or physicist.


Photo Credit
Courtesy of Quentin Bryan Angus