Down and Dirty Strings: ....

Down and Dirty Strings: Composer/Guitarist Jason Seed Unites Classical Players, Jazz Freedom, and Imaginary Folk Music on In the Gallery

“Learn what you can, then get out of your own way and create!”

Or so exclaims Jason Seed, composer and guitarist, whose work might quote Black Sabbath or Bill Frisell in the middle of a Piazzolla-inspired almost-tango (“Tangoesque”), who can win an Independent Music Award in the Jam Band category or write pieces for major U.S. symphonies to celebrate Eastern European composers. With a background in jazz (one of his mentors was trombonist and symphonic jazz composer David Baker), Seed has turned his hand to chamber music, bringing together players from top Midwestern orchestras intent on diving into something new—and wildly pleasurable.

The playful, intriguing results are audible on Jason Seed Stringtet’s In the Gallery (release: July 2, 2013), as skillful technique and compositional complexity never overshadow Seed’s idiosyncratic but welcoming sound. With string quartet, Seed’s own guitar, and guest contributions from global musicians like the Chinese pipa player Yang Wei, In the Gallery feels catchy and familiar, novel and provocative by turns.

“This music often finds itself straddling the world between folk and classical music,” reflects Seed. “But it’s folk music that comes not from a formal geographic or cultural area, but from my own brain.”

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Bittersweet, free-flowing cello lines (the dark, rich tones and elegant ornamentation of “Ishtar”), mixed meters, and lighthearted, folksy flourishes set Seed’s wide-ranging work apart from straight-ahead jazz, contemporary classical, or acoustic instrumental music, while managing to respect all of the above. Seed creates pieces from the least likely materials—an instrumental cue in a cheesy vintage horror film, for example—as well as from Western music greats, be they Kodaly or Thelonious Monk. His sound works in a variety of contexts, and he has headed unconventional big bands (his prog-rock and jazz-powered Jason Seed Elixir Ensemble), composed classical pieces, and scored many a PBS documentary.

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