A Personal Look
by Chris DiGirolamo
This month we continue our conversation with members of the Brooklyn Jazz Underground. Last month we spoke with drummer Sunny Jain, and in the getting to know them mode we decided to pose the same Q&A to drummer Ted Poor.
InsideCx: Tell us about your background.
TP: I was born in Canandaigua, New York, and we lived in nearby Rochester until I was 11 years old. My parents tell me that they took me to see Horace Silver's band play an outdoor concert in Rochester and that I was glued to the drummer. I went home and made a drum set out of oatmeal cans and wooden spoons. When I was 4 years old, a neighbor gave us an old drum set that he had in his attic. My father used to play drums in college and he got back into playing as I showed more and more interest. We moved to Honeoye Falls, a small town about 20 miles from Rochester, in the summer of 1992, before I entered sixth grade. I met Fred Sturm, who was then a professor of jazz studies at the Eastman School of Music. I ended up playing in the middle school jazz ensemble with his son Ike, who plays bass. After our first concert, Fred gave me the name of Rich Thompson, the drum teacher at Eastman. I began studying with Rich that year.
InsideCx: Where did you study drums?
TP: I was really fortunate to hook up with Rich at such an early age. He was an amazing teacher who gave me all the right tools to be a successful drummer. He exposed me to all the traditions and fundamentals of jazz drumming but also supported my explorations of music and drumming with an open mind. I studied with Rich from middle school through high and then throughout my four years at the Eastman School of Music, where I received a BM in 2003.
InsideCx: Tell us about your involvement with the Brooklyn Jazz Underground.
TP: I joined BJU in part to motivate myself toward being more active as a leader of my own groups. Over the past few years I've put together a few different bands, but the only regular band of mine has been my trio, Third Wheel, with guitarist Ben Monder and trumpeter Ralph Alessi. This trio is musically based on free improvisation, where the composed material is treated as a vehicle for the improvisation. Ben and Ralph are both virtuosi instrumentalists and virtuosi improvisers and itbs always a thrill to play with them. I'm continually writing music for a variety of different ensembles. It's been very difficult for me to concentrate my energy on one thing, and so my efforts to lead bands have been spread kind of thin. However, I'm excited that with the resources of BJU I'll be able to get my projects off the ground a little easier.
InsideCx: What are your hopes for the BJU's future?
TP: I hope that BJU continues to become a known entity that ultimately will carry some weight in the industry. The goal of the group is to make it easier for each member to get their own projects out there. I am hopeful that as we each become more active as leaders, BJU will begin to establish lasting relationships with supporters of creative music all over the world.
Product Review
Pro Mark Sticks is packaging six commemorative sets of sticks for six of the Rush tours over the past 30 years. Each package contains stickers with images from Neil Peartbs 30th anniversary drum kit, as well as a numbered ticket corresponding to a series of winning numbers at www.promark.com/neil. The matching number will receive a number of gifts to choose from. These gorgeous sticks with a great feel will definitely fall in the collector zone.
