Talking with Charlie

Bass-clarinettist Gareth Davis asked Roland Dahinden to write something for his quartet, with Koen Kaptijn, Dario Calderone and Peppe Garcia. Dahinden responded with an "imaginary talk" with Charlie Parker, one of his musical heroes, captured in a score involving graphic as well as more conventional elements. "I took a piece of paper and started to talk to him [Parker] one to one- and compose. Phrases, and graphical stuff." The resulting performance, says Dahinden, was "an intense and wonderful interplay between the musicians themselves and me as the conductor." Dahinden is an improvising trombonist who works frequently with pianist Hildegard Kleeb. When asked if he views himself primarily as an improviser or a composer he says "For me, sometimes composing is the better tool, and sometimes improvising is. One big difference is that when I compose, others are playing the music."