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AlbumREVIEWS: 'My Favorite Things' byJoey Alexander
In recent months, there has been lack of nuance to commentaries about Joey Alexander â that 12-year-old Indonesian jazz pianist who took the world by storm at Jazz at Lincoln Center last year
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In recent months, there has been lack of nuance to commentaries about Joey Alexander ' that 12-year-old Indonesian jazz pianist who took the world by storm at Jazz at Lincoln Center last year.
Barely a single paragraph published does not use the word 'prodigy', at which one may ask, 'does his age really matter?' Does this focus on his age distract from the one thing people should be talking about when they talk about a musician? Conversely, if Joey Alexander was just a pair of hands, would the world be paying this much attention?
My response to the first question is: Yes, his age does matter. The long answer would be: If Joey's young age helped to boost his profile and in turn introduce us to his music ' music that exists in a famously difficult genre ' then it does matter how old he is.
'My Favorite Things', Joey's debut album released on Motéma Music in May, is proof of that. Its songs are a laundry list of jazz classics written or otherwise popularized by the genre's beloved pioneers.
It opens with 'Giant Steps', a ridiculously neat composition ' with three key changes ' from John Coltrane. If you're into jazz, then the mention of Coltrane's name shouldn't surprise you. But when someone covers him, and they do a decent job at that, then it should surprise you a lot. As far as all this goes, no, Joey's age is no longer the most important thing about him; his skills are.
'My Favorite Things' suggests that Joey trusts his ears more than sheet music ' he did after all learn to play one of Thelonius Monk's signatures, 'Well, You Needn't', by ear at the age of 6. Alternating between the original versions and Joey's helped bring me to this conclusion.
'It Might As Well Be Spring' sounds groovy in Joey's version, but it sounds eerie in Frank Sinatra's. And Joey's 'Giant Steps' is six minutes longer than Coltrane's, giving listeners a glimpse of his sprawling nature.
Backed by bassist Russell Hall, drummer Sammy Miller and trumpeter Alphonso Horne, 'My Favorite Things' is not a 100 percent covers album; Joey arranged the original composition 'Ma Blues', inspired by legendary pianist Bobby Timmons' classic 'Moanin''.
Common wisdom has it that jazz is difficult and many names have proved that: Davis, Coleman, Metheny, Monk, Coltrane, etc. Many have tried to revolutionize it making it in many ways no longer like it was ' and not yet like it will be.
Joey, on the other hand, tries to keep his music organic. He's not a ringleader yet, but there is no clear indication that he longs to be one. And it doesn't matter; 'My Favorite Things' is impressive because of what Joey and all of the musicians above have in common ' their ability to make difficult music sound exciting.
In an age where Indonesian jazz is enjoying the sweet smell of resurgence with numerous location-themed festivals such as Jazz Gunung (Mountain Jazz) or Jazz Pantai (Beach Jazz) starting to gain traction, it would be an outright shame if Joey's music fell into the 'novelty' basket.
For all the hype surrounding it, 'My Favorite Things' is an addition to the jazz resurgence that both jazz purists and regular listeners can ' and should ' be proud of. Because, the reason why there aren't a lot of young people making music like Joey Alexander is because there aren't a lot of people making music like Joey Alexander.
