The London-based saxophonist and composer Nubya Garcia talks with NPR's Ailsa Chang about the diverse sounds on her new album Odyssey. It's her first time writing for and conducting strings.
Transcript
AILSA CHANG, HOST:
The saxophonist Nubya Garcia gets asked about it all the time. What is it like to be a woman in the jazz world?
NUBYA GARCIA: Yes, it's male-dominated. I will also say that there is a really beautiful part of this community that is women. And I think if people looked, like, a little bit, they would see that.
(SOUNDBITE OF NUBYA GARCIA SONG, "SET IT FREE (FEAT. RICHIE)")
CHANG: That community that she's a part of is the London jazz scene. In recent years, musicians there have attracted a wave of international attention. And Nubya Garcia, who was born and raised in London, is one of its leading stars.
(SOUNDBITE OF NUBYA GARCIA SONG, "SET IT FREE (FEAT. RICHIE)")
CHANG: Garcia's new album "Odyssey" features a range of female artists she's admired from a distance and has known personally.
GARCIA: I never dreamed that I would be able to collaborate with some of my favorites, to bring in Esperanza Spalding and Georgia Anne Muldrow alongside Richie. I've known Richie since she was, like, 13, 14, and I was about 16.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "SET IT FREE (FEAT. RICHIE)")
GARCIA: (Singing) Here I am. I'm like no other.
CHANG: Over the years, Nubya Garcia has made a name for herself as a tenor saxophonist and band leader who can seamlessly fold in ideas from across genres. And on this album, she took on a new challenge - writing and arranging and conducting for strings.
(SOUNDBITE OF NUBYA GARCIA'S "WATER'S PATH")
GARCIA: Really beautiful, challenging experience but incredibly fulfilling. I can't wait to do more.
CHANG: You conducted the Chineke! Orchestra. I was just wondering. Like, why did you want to work with them specifically for this album? Tell me more about this group.
GARCIA: I've known about them for ages and ages, and I wanted to work with them specifically because they are one of the only/maybe the only Black and ethnic minority orchestra - majority orchestra in Europe and the U.K.
(SOUNDBITE OF NUBYA GARCIA'S "WATER'S PATH")
GARCIA: I wanted to feel like the orchestra that I had with me also represented something that was important to me, which is, obviously, diversity within music. And I think in the classical world and in the classical spaces, it's even harder to see that. And also, musically, I just love the breadth of music that they work on. So, yeah, I wanted to work with them for those reasons.
CHANG: After envisioning working with them for years and years, what did it feel like in reality to finally have that moment arrive? Did anything surprise you?
GARCIA: I mean, it was very surreal. It was nerve-wracking conducting. I haven't conducted before, but I also know the role that I need to fill in that capacity, which is different to that of - in some ways, different to that of a band leader.
CHANG: Yeah.
(SOUNDBITE OF NUBYA GARCIA'S "CLARITY")
GARCIA: It's one of those transcendent moments where you think of something. You dream of something. And then the road is long. The process is long. But it was very poignant. It was very moving to, like, be, like, oh, my goodness. I'm here. You know, the school is done.
CHANG: Yeah.
GARCIA: And I am very proud of getting it done but not only getting it done, feeling incredibly proud of - like, I like it. You know?
CHANG: Yeah. You actually are proud of the product.
GARCIA: Like, I'm proud of how it sounds. I couldn't think of anything else that I wanted to do. That's how I know when things are done. You know? It reached where I wanted it to reach for me. It makes me feel something when I listen to it.
(SOUNDBITE OF NUBYA GARCIA'S "CLARITY")
CHANG: Well, you know, I have to say, listening to this album, it has moments that feel almost like classical music.
(SOUNDBITE OF NUBYA GARCIA'S "ODYSSEY (OUTERLUDE)")
CHANG: And then there are moments that feel like jazz that I want to sway to.
(SOUNDBITE OF NUBYA GARCIA'S "IN OTHER WORDS, LIVING")
CHANG: And then there's also this, like, laidback, reggae vibe.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "TRIUMPHANCE")
GARCIA: (Singing) Your journey is yours, full of many twists and turns.
CHANG: How would you describe the sound on this record? - because I don't think I know how to encapsulate it.
GARCIA: I think that's a good thing. I don't think any of us needs to encapsulate it (laughter).
CHANG: Yeah.
GARCIA: I think I describe it as hopefully captivating and resonating music that takes you somewhere. I wanted it to feel epic and cinematic and not be too over-concerned about where it's placed. I just wanted to feel like I could make whatever I wanted to make.
(SOUNDBITE OF NUBYA GARCIA SONG, "TRIUMPHANCE")
CHANG: I saw something that one of your childhood music teachers said to you. It stayed with me because I loved it so much. Nikki Yeoh used to say to you, you are what you listen to. And it made me think about what I fill my ears with and how much that shapes me. So do those words still ring true for you today - you are what you listen to?
GARCIA: Yeah, 100%. That's your musical language. For me, in my own journey, that has been very much my source of inspiration, my source of wonder, my curiosity. Like, that is everything as a creative.
(SOUNDBITE OF NUBYA GARCIA'S "ODYSSEY")
GARCIA: I can definitely look back through ages and eras. And I definitely remember, like, oh, this period, I was really listening to Joe Henderson. Oh, this period, I was really listening to Wayne Shorter. Oh, and this - and so on and so on. And I think that's a really beautiful thing to realize, like, a beautiful way to look back on and see your pathway of inspiration and how that has developed into your own voice, like, my own voice.
(SOUNDBITE OF NUBYA GARCIA'S "ODYSSEY")
CHANG: Saxophonist and composer Nubya Garcia. Her new album is called "Odyssey." Thank you so much for spending this time with us.
GARCIA: Thank you so much for having me, and I really enjoyed it.
CHANG: Likewise.
(SOUNDBITE OF NUBYA GARCIA'S "ODYSSEY")
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