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to the Concert Chronicles
Discover the finest concerts of 2024 in Basel, showcasing a rich array of classical music, jazz, baroque, and contemporary performances.
Explore the vibrant cultural scene at venues like Theater Basel and other iconic halls, offering events for tonight and today.
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ÁLVARO OCÓN, JAZZ TRUMPET
Why did you decide to come to Basel?
When I finished my bachelor studies in Barcelona (ESMUC), I thought about applying to a master's program in Europe to continue studying in a different environment. At that time, some friends were already studying in Basel and had spoken very highly of the school (JazzCampus). But what attracted me the most from the beginning was that that year, the campus had added the American trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire to its faculty, an idol for me and one of the most influential figures in current jazz. This weighed heavily in my decision to come and study here... not to mention the incredible lineup of professors the school had back then; Mark Turner, Jeff Ballard, Brad Mehldau, Guillermo Klein, Larry Grenadier, Jorge Rossy... After two years here, I also have to highlight that the level of the students is very high, which also helps a lot in getting involved and staying motivated.
After all these years, do you want to stay living here in Basel or do you see yourself returning to Spain or another country?
The truth is that the jazz scene in Basel is nothing like that of big cities like Paris, Barcelona, Berlin, or New York, that's for sure; it's a very small city where the jazz school is relatively new, so we still have to work quite a bit to have more places to play for the large density of jazz musicians here. However, I believe that this city is ready and eager to support (through foundations, for example) the proposals that emerge from all of us, and this is something I consider very valuable; there are many larger cities that lack the necessary infrastructure and management to schedule good concerts with decent working conditions, which makes it very difficult to make a living from gigs. Furthermore, the quality of life here is very good, and coming from Barcelona (seeing how the cost of living is rising), I consider staying in Switzerland could be a good option. I don't know if it's forever, but maybe for a few years. I also have to acknowledge that I feel very good musically, surrounded by friends whom I greatly admire musically and who fit very well with the style that interests me. I think the musical level is really high, and this helps me a lot to stay connected and study hard.
What do you like most about Basel?
Honestly, I'm increasingly enjoying the level and lifestyle here. I came from living five years in a city like Barcelona, much larger, frantic, and noisy, and the contrast was very strong at first. But over time, I'm realizing that it fits much better with my way of being; I'm from Castejón de Sos, a village in the Pyrenees (Huesca, Spain) with 600 inhabitants, and obviously Basel is much more similar to the feeling of a village that I've had for most of my life.
It's a very easy city to manage, everything is very well connected, and it takes very little time to get from one place to another. Another aspect I like is the tranquility and the pace of the city. I really appreciate that there isn't constant stress like in big cities.
Besides all this, visually, I really like the old town of the city, the cathedral square, or the river. I think the Rhine is a really positive aspect of the city.
How do you see the evolution of Jazz in recent years? From your point of view, what has changed? Do you like the new direction it's taking?
As I explained earlier, I believe that us students at the school must work and push to expand the scene. There are many students (the school attracts more and more musicians) in the city, in addition to all the jazz musicians in Basel's scene who were already established or who have been living here for a long time, and this means that, although there are several places to play in the city, there are not enough to support all this density of musicians.
Still, I think we are pushing the venues a lot to schedule live music, and there are more and more places that are trying to schedule some jazz sets in different formats (jam sessions, concerts, entertainment for events, or in restaurants). There are also more and more jazz competitions and other types of events that, although I don't like them much as a concept, keep the musical activity of the projects alive.
Stylistically, I think the audience is very open to listening to very different proposals, and this is a very important and enriching detail for me. I believe that there are many cities that, although they are much larger, do not give as much credit to styles that may not be traditionally popular.
We would like to know a little more about Álvaro. What was Álvaro like as a child? Any detail that can give us an idea of how and who Álvaro is and was?
From what I remember and what I've been told, I've always been quite introverted since I was a child, without being shy but rather isolated in my own world, although fortunately, I never had any problems making good friends and relating to people. I was never part of the "popular" group, so to speak, nor did I have leadership characteristics, but for some reason, my peers respected me, and I have the feeling that they have always appreciated me since I was little. This has helped me a lot because despite valuing my alone time, with music or playing basketball, I never had to make great efforts to fit in. I didn't have a mobile phone or social media until I arrived in Barcelona at 18, so it's true that my way of relating to people, especially during adolescence, I think it was different; right in the peak of smartphones and social networks like Facebook, Tuenti, or Twitter, it was sometimes challenging not to follow the trend.
I understand that you're also a composer and have seen your compositions performed. How do you perceive this interdisciplinary approach that musicians of our generation experience?
I started composing when I was young, just for fun, without any pretension, and gradually it has become an essential tool for me to express myself, to connect with other musicians, or to create my personal projects. It's true that in the world of jazz, it's often assumed that the roles of performer and composer go hand in hand (although it doesn't always have to be that way). In fact, improvisation could be thought of as composition in the moment. But it's true that nowadays this interdisciplinary approach can generate some stress in musicians because it requires investing a lot of time both with the instrument and with composition. Many composition teachers talk about composition as another instrument, which must be practiced as much as any other. This often means there aren't enough hours in the day, and we have to sacrifice many hours with the instrument. I don't consider this to be a problem for me since I enjoy composing, and as I explained earlier, I see it as something essential and rewarding for me. However, what does begin to weigh heavily over time when we talk about this interdisciplinary approach that musicians experience is all the amount of work involved in production and managing the artist's professional life: nowadays, in addition to being performers and composers, we are bookers, managers, editors, programmers (often to organize our own concerts), administrators... and a wide range of disciplines that are impossible to fully cover and to which we have to dedicate a few hours a day to have a minimal impact on the scene.
When did you decide to specialize in Jazz and why? What triggered this decision?
I started playing Jazz when I was 10 because my father loved it and encouraged me to try it when a Jazz teacher came to the school. We had combo classes and sometimes improvisation. Over time, this teacher brought together another trumpeter (Milena Casado) and me with a group of young people from a larger town in the area who wanted to play Jazz. With this group, we had the opportunity to perform on several occasions, which helped us a lot to gain experience at a very young age. It's a period I remember with a lot of affection. Most of them (Román Cubelos, Gabriel Mata, Nico Mellon, Alejandro Esperanza...) are professional musicians today, and we are still very close friends. Finally, in high school, I decided to prepare for the entrance exams to the conservatory with my trumpet teacher in Huesca. I had always had a love/hate relationship with the trumpet because when I was young, I was more interested in basketball than music, and instead, my father and my trumpet teachers put a lot of pressure on me to continue studying and focusing on the trumpet. Finally, when they gave up on the case, it was really when I felt a true interest and special motivation to study music and dedicate myself to it.
Who or what would you say have been your biggest influences?
My musical influences have changed over the years. When I was young, I loved Blues and Rock, and I didn't even like trumpet players. I listened a lot to B.B. King, Albert Collins, Eric Clapton, Buddy Guy, Robert Johnson, Albert King, Freddie King, and other Blues artists. Around that time, I started listening to Jazz, and it caught my attention. I remember my first Jazz concert was Sonny Rollins at the Palau de la Música in Barcelona, and it was truly impactful for me. In general, I think my biggest influences have been B.B. King, Miles Davis, Kenny Dorham, Ambrose Akinmusire, Pat Metheny, Michael Brecker, Art Blakey, or Joe Henderson, although I also consider that I have many influences from Pop and modern American music.
What is your next project?
During these past two years in Basel, I've had the opportunity to study with some of the most influential Jazz artists of the current scene. Additionally, I've encountered incredible peers whom I admire and respect immensely both musically and personally. I've always placed great importance on the personal factor when considering my project and who inspires me to compose. I understand that composition and performance must be closely linked, and I love imagining certain people playing the music I write. In this case, my next project is a quintet formed by incredible musicians from the Basel scene, with whom we have recorded a debut album that we hope will be released in the coming months (we're finalizing some dates in Spain and Switzerland to present the project in November). I feel truly fortunate to have Fernando Brox (flute), Iannis Obiols (piano), Iago Fernández (drums), and Nadav Erlich (double bass) in this project, as they are musicians who have influenced me greatly during this time and who captivated me from the first day I heard them play. The project consists of a series of compositions in the form of portraits of each band member, with some interludes that complete the album.
Outside of the musical world, what would surprise our readers to know about you that no one knows?
Well, besides music, I love basketball, as I've explained before. Although lately, I don't have much time to practice it, and I've somewhat forgotten about it, I've spent a lot of time training and trying to improve in this sport. The truth is, I would like to pick it up again in the not-so-distant future.
