NU DECO ENSEMBLE + AARON PARKS INTERVIEW

Innovative hybrid orchestra Nu Deco Ensemble and acclaimed jazz pianist Aaron Parks have shared an incredible collaboration together that brings home the joy of live music again on the recently released EP Nu Deco Ensemble + Aaron Parks: Live from Miami.

Nu Deco Ensemble is a Miami-based, contemporary hybrid orchestra (called “a chamber orchestra for the 21st century” by The New York Times) whose work has included collaborations with Wyclef Jean, Tune-Yards, PJ Morton, Macy Gray, Jacob Collier, Ben Folds and others. The Ensemble has reimagined versions of tracks by artists including Daft Punk, Outkast and classic rock artists as well as new music from some of today’s most exciting living composers.

Nu Deco was founded by conductor Jacomo Bairos (who has led orchestras including the Boston Pops, San Francisco and St. Louis Symphonies) and composer/arranger/producer Sam Hyken (a composer commissioned by orchestras and artists including Angelique Kidjo, Bad Bunny, Tank and the Bangas, and many others) — two of classical music’s most in-demand and adventurous figures.

Pianist Aaron Parks is a forward-thinking jazz musician who came to the public's attention during his time with trumpeter Terence Blanchard. At the Manhattan School of Music, he studied with noted pianist Kenny Barron and received several competitive accolades, including being named the 2001 Cole Porter Fellow of the American Pianists Association. At age 18 he joined Blanchard's ensemble and subsequently recorded four albums with the veteran trumpeter, including 2003's Bounce, 2005's Flow, the soundtrack to the 2006 Spike Lee film Inside Man, and Blanchard's 2007 Grammy-winning opus A Tale of God's Will (A Requiem for Katrina). Besides playing with Blanchard, Parks has performed with a variety of artists including trumpeter Christian Scott, drummer Kendrick Scott, vocalist Gretchen Parlato, and others.

In this group interview conducted via email, Sam, Jacomo, and Aaron talk about what it was like to collaborate and play together for this distinctive project.

Interview by Interlocutor Magazine

Sam and Jacomo, how did you both come to discover Aaron Parks and his work, and what was the initial impetus for collaborating with him musically? Was working on a recorded live performance with him part of the plan from the start?

SAM: We were introduced to Aaron’s music through one of Nu Deco’s keyboard players and composers Jason Matthews, and we were fortunate enough to meet him soon after when he attended one of our concerts in Miami.

We soon after fell in love with his music and knew quickly how well it would translate into an orchestral collaboration. The week with Aaron was incredibly special, and both pushed and elevated our ensemble members. Our second night of this concert series was one of those incredible musical moments you wish you could bottle, with this sentiment being shared by all of the performers and team. We knew that we had to share this particular performance with the world, which became this EP.

Aaron, when did you become aware of Nu Deco Ensemble's innovative work? What attracted you to working with them? Have you collaborated with an orchestra before this?

I first became aware of Nu Deco through my friend Jason Matthews, who invited me to come hear a concert of theirs in Miami while I was visiting town a few years ago. Immediately, I was struck by the wide variety in their repertoire and how great their rhythm felt – very uncommon for an orchestra to have such a deep commitment to groove. I had never collaborated with an orchestra playing my music before; the closest I’d come with playing arrangements of some of my tunes was in a big band setting.

Nu Deco Ensemble has been called a “hybrid orchestra.” For those unfamiliar with this term, what does it mean, and in what ways do all three of you think that your work on the performance on the album Nu Deco Ensemble + Aaron Parks: Live from Miami fits this definition or even expands on it?

JACOMO: Sam and I dreamed of creating an ensemble that had no boundaries, limitations, or ceiling on its artistic creativity. We have always felt that the Orchestra institution which we love so much can be the ultimate vehicle for artistic and musical expression. We are not the first to believe this as many composers and conductors throughout history have tried to add, create new instruments, as well as develop new formats of what the orchestra can be.

For us, the hybrid model simply means we are adding 21st century instruments that you wouldn’t normally see in the typical symphonic orchestral setting, such as synthesizers, guitars, drums sets, electronic instruments like the theremin, drum pads, DJs, and basses – all can have a place in the ensemble in creating new sound word and pallets to discover.

This way, no composition is off limits, and we can perform Gershwin, Copland, and living composers as well as groove with PJ Morton, Jacob Collier and Kimbra – in the end, [we’re] creating a new more technicolor sound world for audiences to experience new music, living composers, reimagined classics, and music by contemporary artists they know and love. This hybrid model allows us to connect with more music lovers who may have never discovered the Orchestra before and now get to hear one of humanity's greatest musical endeavors in a whole new and relevant way.

For our Aaron Parks collaboration, infusing these instruments allowed Aaron’s original music to seamlessly be fleshed out in even more dynamic ways, and it gave us no barriers or confines around the genius of Aaron’s creativity.

For all of you, what was the process like of taking Aaron’s compositions and expanding them into full orchestrations? What were some challenges of creating these translations and also what were some unexpected surprises?

SAM: Arranging and orchestrating Aaron’s music was incredibly satisfying, as not only is his music absolute genius, but also as a collaborator, he has the wonderful combination of clarity of vision while also allowing the freedom to bring my own ideas and voice to his music. The challenge is always finding that delicate balance of the right amount of orchestration; when to maximize the 30 people on stage and when to let the music breathe in its original form.

One aspect I really appreciate about Aaron is his intentionality behind his chord voicings and how it translated into the orchestration. An unexpected surprise ended up being our inclusion of a “conductor’s solo” in “Chronos,” where Jacomo was given different elements and events within the ensemble to control, making sure the arrangement is never exactly the same two times.

AARON: For me, it was a process full of surprises, a discovering of many colorful possibilities hidden in my songs that I wouldn’t have even imagined. One moment that comes to mind: there’s a climactic section in “Siren” that I think of as the “shipwreck” to which Sam added some lightning-bolt lines for strings and woodwinds which really take it to another level. And the outro on “Chronos” (where the drums have a bit of a feature) is so dreamy and luscious with all the additional orchestral timbres. Yum.

How do you all think the pandemic has impacted the reception of Nu Deco Ensemble + Aaron Parks: Live from Miami, in the context of bringing a sense of the joy of live music again to listeners who may not have had a chance to experience it over the last year and half?

JACOMO: I think we all crave connection and we all deeply feel the healing, transformative and enriching qualities music brings to our lives. This show was special and magical for us in that Aaron’s artistry brought the artistic level of the entire ensemble to a new higher and more sophisticated realm. While the live in-person concert experience was extremely impactful for all of us in that room, the next best thing was to capture it at the highest levels of quality and intention with hopes to one day share it with others.

While we all pivoted to connecting with online captured experiences during covid, it is with great hope for us that people feel and can sense the joy of the musicians on stage and are able to hear the recording in its full technicolor version. We spent great efforts to mix, master and produce the highest levels of audio content to match the excitement the musicians brought to this performance, in order to the best we could to give a listener a similar experience to what others felt in the hall.

AARON: [It’s] hard to say. All I can do is hope that the joy and spirit of adventure that we had in the making of this music is able to come through.

The album has been well-received, and many have called it a unique expansion on the sounds of both Nu Deco and Aaron Parks. Have you all considered or discussed working together on any future projects (i.e. more live performances and/or recordings?)

SAM: We discussed working together again as soon as the performance ended! One idea that we are excited about and have discussed is commissioning Aaron for a brand new work for Nu Deco. We know he would create something spectacular, and certainly would not be surprised if that became our next recording project with him!

JACOMO: I think we are just scratching the surface of this collaborative partner and our relationship with Aaron. I personally hope this is the first of many albums and connections we can make where we allow his artistry to shine with us as his musical sandbox, to simply create more beauty and art to share. The commissioning idea is certainly this next step and it is with great hope we get that done sooner rather than later!

AARON: We’ve certainly talked about doing something more together; I’d love to come back and reimagine more of my pieces, as well as potentially write something specifically for the orchestra. Feels like we were just scratching the surface of which we might be capable of together.

Nu Deco Ensemble + Aaron Parks: Live from Miami is available now.

Nu Deco Ensemble photos by Alex Markow. Aaron Parks photo by Deneka Peniston.

Check out all of our other interviews with innovative musicians and bands