To say that Mark Rapp is simply an artist who blends contemporary jazz music with traditional genre ideals would be doing him a huge disservice. He thinks outside the box, pushes the creative boundaries, and looks for new ways to enhance his compositions. For instance with his song “1st Minute, 1st Round,” Rapp plays the didgeridoo, an instrument first used by the aboriginal people of Australia. Being an enthusiast when it comes to the didgeridoo I was pleasantly surprised at how Rapp seems to have lifted the instrument beyond its usual application to produce a deep, heavy drone. Set against the backdrop of the other instruments, in his ensemble the didgeridoo takes on a faintly melodic attitude. 
Rapp explains how he uses the didgeridoo during his live performances, “We us it to lay down a vibe and foundation, then we blow. It is completely free, improvised and in the moment. There really is no structure, except that we are trying to build a tune with some high points and low points. We definitely experiment live, and on the spot, but always maintaining some sort of accessibility. (It may) have a backbeat to it, or start off simple, then we develop it and go along for the ride.”
Rapp first picked up the didgeridoo when he was living in New Orleans. He joined a group called the New World Funk Ensemble. The band had written a new composition that called for a didgeridoo to be played. Rapp picks up the story from here, “I didn’t know what it (the didgeridoo) was, but they (the band) introduced me to it. A guy in New Orleans who makes didgeridoos out of PVC pipe, made one for me that was in the right key for the song. He taught me the basic technique and gave me a couple of CDs to listen to so I could hear how it sounded, and how people played it. It took the better part of a week for me to get a handle on it. (Laughing he says) I remember on the first gig, I had to jam on it for seven or eight minutes. I made it through the first tune, but I was just so exhausted and my abs were burning. I was blowing way too hard.”
“I really just taught myself how to play it (the didgeridoo) I have never really studied how the aboriginal people approach the instrument or the folklore behind it. I just had fun with the instrument. I notice when I am playing gigs in jazz clubs, people can get (blasé) about other instruments, but when you bring out the didgeridoo it is a whole other world. Everyone lights up, and is fascinated by it. What I like to do is put some beats on it, put some rhythms on it, put it through a wah-wah pedal and give it some effects. You put it through the mic, which converts it to a digital signal, and once you have a digital signal, you can do anything that you want with it,” says Rapp.
Rapp’s musical influences have come from several sources. Several years ago, he would sit in with the alternative/ southern rock group Sister Hazel, when the Floridians were touring in Rapp’s native South Carolina. Other artists that he has shared the stage with include, Branford Marsalis, Darius Rucker and Hootie and the Blowfish.
“I think anytime that you sit in with another musician, on any type of music, it pulls you out of your comfort zone. I think that is what life is all about. It is about trying new things. It makes you a more well rounded musician. When you are dealing with other musicians and songwriters it really forces you to simplify and not play with so many notes. (You learn) to play with a sense of color and expression. You learn how just a few notes can enhance the music, and make the experience two thousand times better. When you take that knowledge and experience into a jazz tune, you begin to understand that you don’t have to play all these licks and crazy things. It gets into what Miles Davis kept on preaching, simplify, simplify. If you listen to a lot of his stuff, he is not playing a lot of (complicated) music. He is playing simple notes and then taking a break. Then he plays a couple of more notes. That is how we communicate, we say something, we pause, you say something back, and pause. I think that is a little truer to life.”
Obviously, there are a lot of music fans out there who agree with Rapp’s observations because on August 7th in New York City at Joe’s Pub, he unleashed his still untitled debut CD. The venue was sold out, and would be concertgoers were turned away at the door. At the end of the evening, Rapp and his band consisting of James Reynolds (piano), Derek Bronston (guitar), bassist Rene Hart, Gintas Janusonis and of course Rapp on trumpet and didgeridoo, received a standing ovation from the appreciative audience.
The album is comprised of sixteen tracks, which were recorded over two weekends. Rapp did not hold back on this CD, employing the services of Grammy Award winning producer Jason Olaine (John Scofield, Roy Hargrove) and sound engineer Robert “L.B.” Dorsey (Beyoncé).
Rapp says he was able to cross over the lines of traditional jazz, yet still was able to retain the integrity of jazz music. “There are hip hop influences, not so much that you lose the organic nature of jazz music. We approached it as half-jazz and half-hip hop. We recorded it in jazz fashion, in terms of running the tunes and doing the takes.
On October 10, fans in New York City will have the opportunity to hear Rapp and his band present selections from his still to be named CD, at the Triad Theater. On September 16th, Rapp and his ensemble will play two sets of their own material and backup Bradford Marsalis for a third set, at Southern Exposure 2007, on Main Street in downtown Greenville, South Carolina.
Top photo by Josh Stafford and bottom photo by Shawn Bell ©
Interview by Joe Montague ©
September 2007
