Sean Imboden: The Freedom of Jazz

An American saxophonist and composer, Sean Imboden has released three albums as a leader, and continues to cultivate new discoveries using the jazz form.  The language of jazz is Imboden's chosen musical expression, enabling him to design abstract landscapes that he envisions in his mind, giving voice to the sounds in his head.

"I like the freedom of jazz music," he professes, "and that as a jazz musician you are encouraged to be yourself. When you learn the music, you study other players and their musical personalities, but only as a means to an end, which is to fully embrace your personal, unique sound and style." 

He considers, "I like that the term 'jazz' now encompasses a broad range of sound and styles, and I like that the term has become more difficult to define. We need artists to think outside the box and not be scared to sound different than what has come before." 

"I like that by studying jazz music intensely," he precipitates, "it has allowed me to collaborate with many different musicians in many different styles. Jazz is so intricate, and you need such a depth of harmonic, melodic, and rhythmic expertise to do it well. Once you can play jazz well, you can blend in with groups of so many different genres. I've been able to play Broadway, rock, classical, pop, folk, and gospel."

His most recent offering is Communal Heart, which he recorded with the Sean Imboden Large Ensemble, an 18-piece orchestra.  The offering is his first with this ensemble.  He describes the impetus that spurred him to work with a large ensemble, "It was a combination of knowing I loved big band music, along with the confidence that I could put together a really good band from our pool of talent here in Indy [Indianapolis]."

He praises, "Once the band got going, I began to realize the compositional and orchestrational power that a big band wields. It's so much fun, and incredibly fulfilling, to write a piece of music and have it played by these incredible musicians. I'm very lucky that these musicians are willing to practice and rehearse anything I give them, with little to no complaining," he beams. 

"The longer the band works together," he determined, "the better it gets, so I hope we can keep it going. We recorded our second album a couple of months ago, and I'm working on the music for our third album now."

He explains how he chose the title Communal Heart, citing, "There were two aspects that led me to choose this title. One, I noticed a strong sense of community and fellowship every time the band got together for a rehearsal or a gig. Secondly, we received a lot of support in the form of Kickstarter donations for our first album from the Indianapolis community of music fans."

He underscores, "Most of these supporters heard us play live a few years leading up to the recording, and were willing to chip in financially to help us make this happen. I really felt the love within the band and our city as a whole, so I felt like Communal Heart was a fitting name. I'm not sure if/how the title reflects the music, but I like to think that the feeling of community comes through when you listen."

The track "Dance of Inquiry" from Communal Heart is a tender piece that demonstrates Imboden's sensitivity.  He reveals about the composition, "This is a piece I originally wrote for a trio I was leading for a bit, with saxophone, guitar, and bass. I like the idea of having pieces that are mostly through-composed, but with specific areas reserved for improvisation."

He recalls, "I vaguely remember coming up with this chord progression on the piano, then building the melody on top. We performed this piece a few times with the trio, and I liked the composition enough to expand it into the big band version. I even did a full orchestra version of this piece for a performance last summer, which I also hope to record at some point."

Working with a large ensemble is rooted in Imboden's formative years, playing in school bands.  He recounts, "Growing up and playing music in the public school system, as someone with an interest in jazz, means you will spend a lot of time playing in big bands. Ever since 9th grade all the way through grad school, I was consistently rehearsing and performing with my school jazz ensembles."

He reflects, "I played so many great charts over the years, and listened to so many big band albums, that I grew to have a strong connection with this type of music. I'm someone who is always thinking ahead to the next project, so after the first small group album, the juices were flowing for what I could do next."

Imboden's first small group came together on first album as a leader, A Dreamer's Journey.  Joining him on the recording is Steve Allee on piano along with several musicians who accompanied him on Communal Heart, which includes John Raymond on trumpet and flugelhorn, Joel Tucker on guitar, Nick Tucker on bass, and Cassius Goens on drums.

Imboden shares, "These are all Indianapolis (or near-Indy) musicians that I've met over the past few years on various gigs and musical circles."

"I put this band for this album together a couple of years before launching the big band," he recollects. "I wanted to try out some music I had written, and book a few gigs as a leader. We played a handful of performances around Indianapolis, and eventually went into the studio when we were ready."

"The Indy jazz community is relatively small," he observes, "yet quite strong (as you can hear!). So once you're living in this area a bit, and you're serious about playing music, you'll eventually meet everyone and play with everyone. I'm really glad we have such a wealth of talented and dedicated musicians here. They're so much fun to play with, and the fact that they're willing to work on projects with me is really great."

"As far as the inspiration for the music," he regards, "when I compose, I'm almost never thinking about concrete things in the world, like a person, place or thing. Typically, I try to get lost in the abstract world of sound, and mess around on piano for a while until an idea I like comes to me. It could be anything - a melody, rhythm, bass line, harmonic progression, etc."

"Then," he steers, "I'll try to develop the idea and see where it wants to go. As far as the particular inspiration behind any one idea, it's difficult to say, since my brain usually stays in the abstract space the entire time I'm writing."

"My guess," he discerns, "is that all of my life experiences and all of the music I've heard throughout my life mix around in my subconscious, and new ideas are eventually concocted and want to be released into the world. It definitely doesn't feel like I'm creating the ideas, but rather just the vessel through which they travel. Sometimes they come out quickly and fully formed, other times I have to kind of coax them out and craft them into something decent."

His followup effort, One Moment, shows bassist Nick Tucker once again working with him along with Mike Rodriguez on trumpet and flugelhorn, Evan Main on piano, and Kenny Phelps on drums.  Imboden touts proudly, "These are some of my favorite musicians on the planet (not just Indianapolis!)."

He remembers, "I was aware of Mike Rodriguez, and had heard him play with the Maria Schneider Jazz Orchestra a few times. When I was thinking of a guest artist to perform with my big band, I reached out to Mike, and thankfully he said yes even though we had never met. Since he was going to be in town for that performance, I asked if he would also be willing to do a small group recording session."

"Evan Main," he points out, "now a New York City resident, used to live in Indiana and we played a lot of gigs together. He's an incredible young pianist, and so I decided to bring him back for this session."

"Nick Tucker and Kenny Phelps," he highlights, "are two Indy musicians that I've played a lot with over the years, so I knew they would be great for this album."

He imparts, "The title of the album, One Moment, comes from the idea that all of these musicians came together on one day for the recording session, and had never played together or even rehearsed as a full band beforehand. With this being the case, I tried to keep the tunes relatively simple and workable for a 1-day session without rehearsal."

"I'm really happy with how it turned out," he endorses, "and I hope to put together many more small group sessions in the future."

Bringing musicians together to play his compositions is an endeavor that evolved over time.  Sean Imboden's start as a recording artist and performer began as a supporting musician.  

He discusses his transition into becoming a leader, predicating, "The main push to become a leader was the desire to spread my creative wings. I've had many enjoyable experiences as a supporting musician, but most of the work during the first half of my career was in a commercial setting, primarily with Broadway touring shows."

"I chose to stop playing those shows," he gleans, "because I was feeling very unfulfilled artistically, and wanted to pursue my own path and see what I could make happen. I knew I would regret it if I didn't at least give it a try, so I went for it."

"Also," he deduces, "for the most part, I wasn't ever really challenged musically while being a supporting musician. I felt like I wasn't growing in those situations, and one of the things I love about music is the continual growth and self-discovery you experience when you are forced outside of your comfort zone."

He attests, "Having the experience of being a supporting musician is crucial to being a good leader. When I'm putting my band together, I know exactly what needs to be done to make it a great experience for each of the musicians, which will in turn make for a great performance or recording session."

"As a sideman," he assesses, "I've been on plenty of gigs that are well-organized and polished, and I've seen the opposite. I take those perspectives into my role as a leader. From just a logistical standpoint, it's important that my musical charts are easy to follow, prepared early, and rehearsed thoroughly. I make sure the musicians have all of the details for the rehearsals and gigs well in advance. I also want to always be sure to pay the musicians as well as I can. Each of these little details go towards making a high-quality end result." 

"From an interpersonal standpoint," he weighs, "I want to listen closely to what the musicians have to say, and always consider their feedback carefully. I want to be clear with instruction and be level-headed while maintaining a positive attitude. There are plenty of elements that can cause a band to fail, but I believe most of them are within my control, so I try to be mindful of these aspects."

Making the decision to be a leader bolsters his choice to write original work, as he prompts, "I started composing original music about ten years ago. I was, and still am, playing in a quartet called Tucker Brothers. Joel (guitarist) and Nick (bassist) were bringing in original tunes, and so I started to see if I could write some originals as well." 

He proclaims, "These initial tunes became the beginning of what would be the first music for the Sean Imboden Large Ensemble. Much like improvising, I like the freedom to explore and be myself while composing. With a piece of music, you can make it anything you imagine it to be, which is really exciting to me."

"I love to try to push boundaries," he declares, "not only within jazz, but just in terms of what can work in general with music. I'm very influenced and inspired by non-jazz music as well, everything from Rachmaninoff to Radio Head to Jimi Hendrix, and I like to be open and let those influences seep into my jazz compositions. I think being open to blending genres and styles is one of the ways we can continue to discover and create new, fresh, exciting music."

He acknowledges, "The list of jazz artists that have inspired me is very long. If I think about saxophonists in particular, a few that stand out are Cannonball Adderley, John Coltrane, Michael Brecker, Chris Potter, Branford Marsalis, and David Sanchez. Some jazz composers that have inspired me are Maria Schneider, Duke Ellington, Claus Ogerman, and Dave Holland."

Sean Imboden's penchant for diversity in the artists he admires and the abstract expressions he shapes was a driving force for him to choose to play the saxophone.  He chronicles, "I started playing saxophone in 8th grade, a couple of years after beginning on the clarinet in 6th grade." 

"My father is a woodwind player," he discloses, "and he started me with clarinet lessons the summer before 6th grade. He helped me get good instruments and equipment, along with giving me great instruction, which made it really easy to begin."

He extols, "I had a great middle school band director, and once I got into high school, the music program was really strong, and I became heavily immersed in music."

"I was able to continue to play clarinet in the wind ensemble and orchestra," he furnishes, "and saxophone in the jazz band. The older students in jazz band gave me CDs to check out - Cannonball Adderley, Joshua Redman, Charles Mingus, etc, and I was hooked."

He extracts, "I like the diversity of sound you can get with a saxophone, as well as the ability to play a melody in a really effective way. One of my college professors called the tenor saxophone the 'king of the instruments' because it can play loud/soft/high/low/fast/slow unlike any other instrument. You have such a broad range of possibilities with the tenor - it can coo like a lamb or roar like a lion."

"I also like that it can fit into many different situations," he establishes, "it can be a featured instrument and play all of the melodies and solos, but it also sounds great in a background horn section. The saxophone has the ability to blend well with so many instruments - you can put it in unison with guitar or trombone, unison/octaves with trumpet, or as a solo instrument with a full orchestra. The possibilities are endless!"

Endless is the element that may most attract Sean Imboden to the saxophone and to playing jazz.  He illuminates, "I'm always striving to grow as a musician - it's one of the main things that keeps music interesting to me. I always want to learn something new, or be able to play something better, or compose something more effectively." 

He draws out, "What I've noticed is that as I improve at something, I see a newer, more refined set of details that need attention. It's like cracking open a door little by little, each inch the door opens you see more of the landscape. That's what it feels like to me. Specifically as a composer, the more I write, the more clear my arrangements and orchestrations have become."

"Everything in a piece should serve a purpose," he philosophizes, "with nothing being superfluous. I've also gotten better at giving the overall piece the shape I want it to have. As far as the saxophone, sound and (again) clarity of ideas is key. I've gotten a lot better at listening to the band as a whole while I'm improvising, and playing what is needed in each specific moment."

"As a leader," he projects, "I'm still very much working on that one, but I would say I've grown to see the bigger picture. I try not to let a minor scheduling squabble or other trivial event get in the way of the larger vision. I understand there will be bumps in the road, they're just part of the territory. I try to be a leader that inspires the younger generation. In general, I'm grateful to have something I'm passionate about that I can dedicate my life to, and I hope to inspire others as well."

When Imboden is not working on his music, he provides, "I like to read, hike, cook, bake, play chess, exercise, do yoga, and tend to my vegetable garden. I have to be careful with hobbies because I tend to go all-in on the things I do, and they can suck up all my time if I let them," he chortles.

A craftsman of abstract soundscapes, a beacon for large ensembles, and a jazz practitioner that others of his ilk look up to, Sean Imboden enjoys both learning from others and teaching others.  Drawn to the element of the endless possibilities that the saxophone and jazz offer him, Imboden has found freedom in his chosen profession.


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