Damien Pacheco

Most of y'all might not know I had 2 Godmothers, Gladys and Kathleen. We lost Gladys years ago, and I am thankful that I got to say goodbye to her properly. I seldom speak Spanish, which is my own damn fault, but I was able to muster enough to get the sentiment across back then. She spoke English as a primary language, mind you, but for some ancestral reason, I always default to my roots when English doesn't quite cut it, even if my words are choppy and broken. Kathleen passed last year, and while I also got to say goodbye, I had some unfinished business. When her own mother passed, she requested I play Danny Boy at the funeral. I did, but in turn, I developed dread for the day I'd have to play it for her at her own. The day never came. No funeral. Such were her wishes. I live a mile from her old house. Pass it every day. Yesterday I ran past and I saw people in the home, the new owners I suppose, and the finality hit me. 5 minutes ago, chops still taxed from a lot of long tones this morning and residual heavy gig fatigue, I felt the need to play her off to wherever she's gone. I just needed to say that last goodbye.

Despite the thumbnail, there's nothing indifferent about today's quick transcribe of Thad Jones' solo on the iconic April In Paris. Every trumpet player knows of the solo if they played any big band at all, but if y'all are like me, you may know it, but not KNOW it. I decided to change that today. I'm an absolute mess because #springcleaning is afoot (the boxes behind me do NOT live there...), but I had to get some horn in. Gonna be at the @jalcnyc Gala tonight and I'd feel like a slacker if I didn't take care of some business this morning. . . #aprilinparis #jazztrumpet #thadjones #countbasie

It might look like I'm playing piano, but nah, I just decided to take the melody out for a stroll on vocals. I do this once in a while too, sing, that is. If ya need a jazz standard crooned out once in a blue moon, I may just have ya covered.

So, little known fact, but I do actually sorta play the flute. I picked it up in high school for kicks and, after taking a few lessons from @ronaprea on it, kept at it for the love of the sport. I seldom play flute publicly, but it does happen from time to time. And yes, Ron, this is the same flute you sold me all those years ago. I hope I've done it some justice on Ladybird.

Nothing like a @vinylrevivalbandny show @89northmusic and let's be real, this video was made 10x better by a certain somebody in the background. You might know him. . . . @michael.accurso.9

This is Mark Egan's bass introduction on April Joy by #patmetheny I had a little personal challenge for myself to listen to all the tunes in the Real Book that I hadn't heard or at least properly checked out. I heard this and immediately was drawn. I have a lot more work to do on the tune, but this was a good start.

Normally, I would simply tag @swensena and call it a day as he requested this specifically, but I have to shout out @faddis_jon because without him, I would have never met the inimitable #clarkterry but as per Andrew's request, I sure as heck tried. Through Jon, I had a chance to sit at the feet of the master 3 times - twice privately in the green room of @bluenotenyc where I learned doodle tonguing and the art of plunger work, and once at Clark's home with some of the SUNY Purchase trumpet students. Clark never taught me Mumbles. He didn't have to. All of us trumpet-folk know it and maybe have tried it. I am nowhere near as eloquent as the master, but I like to think he'd smile at this. Imitation is, after all, the greatest form of flattery, but in this case, it is also honoring a legacy. If I recall only one thing about Clark, it was his humor and joy. You couldn't help but smile around him. His stories were as legendary as his laughter and his playing. Mumbles!

Just for fun... seriously. Don't try this at home... or do.

I have a picture of @faddis_jon on my wall. You would be able to see it if not for my big hair, but it is in frame and I look at it everyday and I STILL hear Jon's voice guiding me. I know many who have studied with him hold him in that same regard. Jon was and is generous with his time, especially with the next generation. I point that picture out to my students too, so that they know their lineage. I'd like to think it was from my first lesson with him, but it was likely my second or third as I look a bit more mature than the 12 years I had when I met him. At some point near the end of my freshman year at #sunypurchase he challenged me with Cherokee and at the time, I was not nearly ready, but I wanted to be. Clifford Brown's solo was the call and after a LOT of struggle I got that one down, but it didn't wholly translate to me being able to play over the darn tune. I think I've gotten better. It's probably helping that I'm currently working on Charlie Parker's solo on Koko, but that's a video for another day. This was just 1 of 2 choruses I played at the end of today's practice session just for kicks and content. After the sadness and despair I have felt these past few days regarding the state of our union, I decided to play. I usually write when in a mood, but I needed to get some fire in my belly out. Bridge still caught me for a second. All good beasts have teeth and I got nipped, but I think I held my own. Music heals. Sending out positive vibes in a time where every ounce of my being wants to curl up and scream. This is my protest. You can't keep me down.

In case you ever wonder how seriously I take myself and my practice on any given day... #whistlewhileyouwork #idothisforaliving #playingaround #itakemyjobseriously

In a world where I often preach to my trumpet students to learn to be chameleons in order to work, I balance that by reminding them not to neglect the things that draw them (or repel them...) to give them a clue as to who they are artistically. Even though I can fit many types of situations, I know where my core is. It's something I got from Hal Galper - when something grabs you, pay attention. This solo grabbed me, but I love the story of how I got to this one. You see, folks are often surprised by my lack of awareness of tunes they might know and love, considering that I'm a musician. I suck at music trivia, btw. When this situation arises, I always flip the script and name things that they have no idea about. Why? There's too much music for us to know it all and thank God for that. If I don't know what you're talking about, it's a golden opportunity for me to have that uniquely fresh experience of being exposed to new art (to me) for the first time. Even in Jazz, which is the genre I most associate with, I learn new things. Just the other day, @bruceontrumpet hipped me to Duke Pearson's Prarie Dog album via his new YouTube series To Be Or Not To Bop! P.s. Hi Bruce, hope life is treating you well and I love the content! Back to story. @chrmcbride was doing a long form interview and, as you do on long car rides, you listen to that sort of thing. He mentioned how one way of getting gigs was finding an artist you dug, learning the rep, going to shows, and sitting in and nailing it. He talked about the #artblakey repertoire, and how that rep is also the rep Wayne Shorter, Lee Morgan, Gigi Gryce, Horace Silver, and many others. That's about as solid advice and perspective as you can get y'all, so Mr. McBride, if you actually read this - thank you and I hope to share the stage with you at some point. So I got to thinking... when is the last time I sat down and really checked out the Messengers? It had been a good long while, and so, I went to work. This isn't thebfinished product, but it's enough to share. Now, I give YOU the chance to do some digging. What's the tune, and who is the solo by? I DID give quite a few clues... Comment your answers below!

This stairway and I have been seeing a lot of each other lately. Not complaining. The acoustics are choice. @birdlandjazz with the Birdland Big Band tonight. Good way to end the year methinks.