An Interview with Marcello Pellitteri

Rick Holland, JR247 Marcello great to have you here at JR247. Thanks for joining us.

You’re becoming one of the busiest drummers in NYC, can you tell us what your up to lately?

Marcello Pellitteri: I just came back from a European tour with New York Voices, the Grammy Winner jazz vocal group. Shortly before I played at the Jakarta Jazz Festival in Indonesia with Indonesian star violinist Luluk Purwanto. With those 2 groups I recently recorded their upcoming albums, which should come out sometime next summer. In the City I recently collaborated with the groups of tenor man Donny McCaslin and guitarist Ben Monder.

JR247 : Tell us about your early days in Sicily, when your you were younger and already working as a studio musician.

MP: In my early days, while living in Sicily, I had the fortune to work occasionally for the National TV, RAI, and steadily for a few private TV stations, doing weekly programs with some of the more established commercial/pop Italian artists. I had also the pleasure to work with one of the most renown Italian jazz pianists, Enrico Pieranunzi, and with the former Phil Woods pianist, Mike Melillo.

JR247: You’re now teaching at the Berklee School. Tell us what you really like about the education at Berklee?

MP: I have been teaching at Berklee for 20 years now! Yeah, time flies…! in those 20 years I have seen how Berklee remains one of the world leaders in music education by providing state of the art facilities/equipment, and where students have the opportunity to study with some of the top performers in the world. Students from any corner of the world have the opportunity to create and learn in a very stimulating musical environment, where they can exchange experiences, form a network of people sharing the same interests and develop long time lasting friendships. Kinda like you and I.

JR247: What are some things you emphasize in your teaching?

MP: I teach drums, ensembles and performance ear-training. The principal art of the teacher is to awaken and stimulate the joy in creation and knowledge. Teaching is a profession in which I am privileged to touch the lives of my students and in turn be touched by them. I am always trying to give every student a chance to further their education and reach their full potential. In my classes I emphasize the fact that music is a language. And when you learn a language, before being able to speak it properly, you have to be able to hear it first. That means you have to listen. Listening is a form of love.

Life is about change, and Jazz keeps changing his appearance and sound accordingly to the moment in time when it happens. So, if somebody is not playing like they used to in the 50’s or 60’s, doesn’t mean that he or she is not playing jazz.

MP: In today’s world, where technology is predominant, it has become important for them to know about computer applications that can help to better express their individual musical knowledge and creative ideas.

JR247: What are some recordings you’ve done of late, that we should be aware of?

MP: Like I said, the next New York Voices CD will be out sometime next summer. Also Luluk Purwanto’s CD will be out next year. Another group I recorded with is 3Play +, which includes musicians from the Boston area: pianist Josh Rosen and bassist Lello Molinari (co-leaders), plus trumpeter Phil Grenadier are the main columns of this band. In our latest recording we also had tenorist George Garzone and guitarist Mick Goodrick. I just finished recording also with a new comer singer from Portland, OR, Carri Bella. If you wanna know about something already available out there, I can suggest “Chrysalys” by bassist Bruno Raberg (Orbis Music),voted 10 best of year 2004 by a European music magazine; “Joyous Future” (IDOS) by pianist Dave Kikoski; “My Marilyn” (Enja) by saxophonist David Klein, featuring Mulgrew Miller; “Pas An Dour” (Naife) by Celtic Tales, featuring Michael Brecker; and “Live The Life” (Mack Avenue Records) by singer Ilona Knopfler, featuring Paquito D’Rivera and Sean Jones.

JR247: I’ve noticed you work with singers, currently the New York Voices. What kind of adjustments do you make when working with vocalists?

MP: Dynamics are something that you really have to control when playing with vocalists. And at the same time you have to keep the intensity strong. Paying attention to the lyrics can also suggest how to play. I personally love brushes, but that doesn’t mean that I use them only to play soft. I like to lay down a strong groove with brushes, as well as playing softly with sticks. As an inspiration, I always think of two examples: the time when I saw Bill Evans in Italy, a few months before he passed, with Joe La Barbera on drums who played all night with brushes; and when I saw the Keith Jarrett Trio with Jack DeJohnette’s fast paced intense playing, caressing the drums with his sticks.

JR247: You’re also involved with pop artists the Gypsy Kings. Tell us how you got involved, and some of the highlights working with them.

MP: That was quite an experience, because it showed me a different scene from the jazz one. We were playing large outdoor venues as well as big theaters (like for instance Radio City Music Hall in NYC). I got involved thru their managing agent who, together with the newly appointed musical director and long time friend bassist Gildas Boclé, asked me if I was interested in preparing for an audition for the vacant drums chair in their band. I accepted the task. I confess I wasn’t familiar with their repertoire, and since they don’t have any written charts, I was given the complete collection of their recordings, with many (and I mean A LOT!!) songs to learn in less than 2 weeks.

I closed myself in my apartment and practiced 8 hours a day, preparing a few written notes to help me remember particular intros and endings. They flew me to the south of France, where they are based, to do the audition. It went so well, that they told me to get ready for the tour which would have started in a couple of weeks. Consequently, we had some rehearsals where I learned that song forms were not set in stone, because they liked to extend certain sections of some tunes. So I had to be flexible and try to catch instrumental or vocal cues. My role was all about keeping time playing the hard driving, yet simple rhumba/flamenco grooves that would make anybody dance. It was unbelievable to see a multitude of people at every concert partying like crazy to the rhythm of their songs. We always had women getting on stage, dancing wildly. I remember one night in El Paso there must have been a dozen or more dancing women scattered all over the stage. Another night in Detroit, I had a girl climbing on the raiser where my drums was set up, and she started dancing right behind me. Many times security had to intervene to try to avoid accidents.

JR247: Marcello, you have such a variety of playing experiences. Even within the Jazz area, it’s very expansive. Tell us some of the advantages of playing in such diverse musical climates.

MP: Every group I collaborate with presents a different kind of musical challenges, which I welcome with great pleasure. And this variety keeps the music exciting and my attitude towards it very positive. Thru several different experiences I managed to expand my musical horizons, blending elements of different musical cultures within my own playing.

JR247: How do you see State of Jazz currently? What needs to improve? And what are some of the many values of this music in your opinion?

MP: Elvin Jones once said: “Jazz was, is and always will be”. And I think he was right. Jazz today is still alive, although it presents itself in different ways that sometimes are disliked, rejected and highly criticized. Life is about change, and Jazz keeps changing his appearance and sound accordingly to the moment in time when it happens. So, if somebody is not playing like they used to in the 50’s or 60’s, doesn’t mean that he or she is not playing jazz. I welcome all the new influences that shape today’s jazz scene, although I might not like all of them. No one should forget or ignore the great masters of the tradition. There are more and more jazz schools opening up around the world. In music schools, such as Berklee College where I have been teaching for the past 20 years, more and more students from all over show their interest for jazz. Today you can create your music with a computer. As long as this music swings, grooves and has an element of improvisation (what I call the Louis Armstrong factor) in it, it’s jazz to me. Not the classic one of course, yet still jazz. And I think one of the strongest values this music has in today’s troubled world is the ability to bring together people from different backgrounds. Communicating. And thru the listening element (remember?) we learn about each other’s differences and yet we are ONE into the music. Togetherness. Diversities becoming Oneness.

JR247: Who are some of the musicians that really inspire you in today’s scene?

MP: Paul Motian and Roy Haynes more than anybody else. They have been around for so long and yet they don’t sound dated. They are as fresh and modern as they can be.

JR247: Marcello, I’ve always loved your ‘sound’. You play so melodically, with a great groove. How important is ‘sound’ to you? Does your choice of equipment help your conception?

MP: Oh, man! Sound is a never ending quest. It’s the most important thing, because it’s your “voice”. It’s what makes you unique, recognizable. Equipment helps towards getting your sound. But touch is what’s more important. Two drummers can play the same drums set and sound completely different. Their touch would set them apart.

JR247: How often are you traveling? How does this work with your teaching up in Boston?

MP: I would say that I might be out on the road about half of the year. When my performing schedule conflicts with my Berklee teaching, I either send a sub to my classes or I make them up. I always give the students the option of choosing what they prefer. In any case they always get what they are supposed to receive. And more. Because I bring them my own experience, from the stage to the classroom. And they highly appreciate that.

JR247: What are things outside music that are important to you?

MP: My family. I have been married for 20 years, I have an almost 16 y.o. daughter. Sometime I have had the opportunity to bring them along where I play. Like the time when I played 3 days in Orlando, FL, with the Gypsy Kings. Or sometime here in the Northeastern States when I had a weekend somewhere where we could all drive. I had my wife with me in Athens for 2 weeks, when I played there during the Olympics in 2004. She also came last year to Indonesia while I was there for a month playing in and around Jakarta.

Another thing I love are motorcycles. I own a Ducati, and driving it makes me feel as good as playing. It’s something I can’t explain, a sensation of freedom, a feeling of belonging to the surrounding environment, connecting with it. Which is different than when driving a car. In the car you watch the scenery you drive thru, on a bike you are part of it.

One more thing is food. Having grown up in Italy, I appreciate good cooking, taking time to flavor what I eat in no rush. Eating is an experience. Good food, good wine and good friends around a table. That’s priceless.

JR247: Maybe redundant question (from above), but you’ve been married for a while now. Can you talk to how important family is to you?

MP: As I said earlier, I have been married 20 years. I have been knowing my wife for longer than that… 26 years!! I still have my mom in Italy. I speak with her 2/3 times a week. I try to see her as much as I can. That means, depending on my tour schedule, once/twice a year. My daughter is my reason for living.

I have great friends who are family to me. I call them “adopted cousins”. Family defines who you are. It’s your own micro-cosmos where, if harmony reigns, you can have hope for harmony outside of it. Family is what gives you strength, encouragement, support when you most need it.

Unconditionally.


JR247: Marcello, thanks for joining us at JR247!!

MP: My absolute pleasure, Rick!