Meet Mark Small | Musician & Educator

We had the good fortune of connecting with Mark Small and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Mark, how do you think about risk?
As a musician who performs many different styles of music which largely incorporate improvisation, risk is constantly present on many levels. From a purely musical standpoint, improvising is creating new compositions on the spot in front of an audience. In a way, it’s like walking a tight rope. The rope may be familiar just like the musical elements that I use but the environment is different, the audience is different, the way that I interact with the band can send me to different places. The risk that you may not create a musically satisfying performance, or even that you do but the audience doesn’t agree, is present at every performance. It can be exhilarating in a way that performing the same written music night after night might not be for myself. If I zoom out a little, the risk of bringing a band on a tour where some audiences respond but others don’t is ever present. It’s a different world than knowing that if you just do your job, you’ll go back to work tomorrow at the same place. There’s very little security in it which has it’s drawback but can also drive you to exciting places that comfortable situations don’t inspire you to explore. If I zoom out even more, I’ve had life situations that required a certain amount of risk. Touring with a band that is a stable situation financially and logistically may be nice but I found myself at one point with little creative input and no incentive to improve at my craft. Playing the same thing night after night the same way for me wasn’t inspiring. It didn’t feel like I was connecting with people on the same intimate level as performing improvised music for smaller audiences. I took a big risk at one point and quit something that was really comfortable to pursue a different path that was unknown. I’m glad I made the choice and it was empowering to known that I could make the tough choice rather than the safe one. For me, I feel risk makes life interesting and keeps you focused on what’s ahead rather than thinking about what you might have done. There’s no other musical art form that I’ve pursued that embodies risk as much as the act of improvising.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’m a musician who loves to improvise and create in the moment with others. Collaboration is a huge part of what I do and the projects I do are all across the spectrum of where music fits. Highlights of my musical career are fulfilling my early dream of one day playing with the Village Vanguard Orchestra. For those who don’t know, the Village Vanguard has been one of the centers of some of the most important recordings in jazz history. Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bill Evans, Elvin Jones, are among some of the most notable artists who have graced the stage. The Village Vanguard Orchestra began as the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra, becoming an institution playing every Monday night. I was fortunate to get the opportunity to play with the band on many occasions once I had moved to NYC. I’ve been incredibly fortunate to tour the world, playing with a variety of bands and musical styles, from Darcy James Argue’s highly acclaimed band “Secret Society” to Warner Records star Michael Buble. Music has always been the easier part because I believe that even if it’s hard work, its always easier doing what you love. For someone else, practicing as much as I have might seem like impossible work if they didn’t love it. What I struggle with is the business of music and that has always been the challenge when striving to be successful. I’ve had to work hard at keeping up with changes to technology as well as trying to fit what I do with improvisation into a world where simple sells. Developing a story through music and getting peoples attention can be difficult when forces are making impressions faster everyday and making choices even easier and quicker to flip through. You have to work harder to make an impression to compete while trying to stay true to the substance of what you do. I find substance isn’t always a priority for most ‘content’ created today but I never want to lose that aspect of my work. I’ll always strive to find those around me that I can create meaningful projects while trying to improve my business acumen to make sure that these project find an audience. Hopefully you’ll continue to see me as a part of projects from live performance, studio recordings, dance and visual arts collaborations, etc.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
This is easy since I’ve had the opportunity to do this a few times. We’d definitely go biking at Shark Valley and kayak off Crandon Park or the bay side of Miami Beach. I’d take them to Lucali for pizza to show that you can get NYC pizza in Miami. I’d take them to Lagniappe for wine and to see some of Miami’s best bands. Maybe over to Broken Shaker or Sweet Liberty on Miami Beach for a drink. We’d probably visit the Perez Museum or the Bass Museum to see if there are any good exhibits. A good walk on South Beach, maybe a crepe at A La Foile Cafe into an evening at Betsy Hotel for a cocktail and exploring the south beach neighborhood. I like a little pool at Lost Weekend as well. Topping it off with a shake at 11th street diner (my old neighborhood).

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I’d like to dedicate my shoutout to bassist Dave Santoro. I’ve had a lot of incredible teachers through my years of studying music but he’s probably taken me the furthest from the time I met him at the beginning of my undergraduate studies until I finished. He exposed me to a lot of the music I’m still inspired by from Wayne Shorter to Ligeti. More than this, he taught me HOW to practice which changed everything for me. I used to think that as long as I was practicing, I’d get better and that the more I practiced, the better I’d get. I’ve since heard a phrase that embodies what Dave was doing for me. Some people say “Practice makes perfect” but the phrase “Perfect practice makes perfect” really sums up how I see Dave’s teaching. He taught me to design practice that I could assess if I was able to accomplish the concept I was working on. It’s not enough to just try to do something over and over till you get it. You really have to practice the right way to build lasting retention of the concept so that you can use it at a moments notice. This was one aspect that created ‘meaningful’ practice for me. I’m forever thankful to him for this as well as connecting me to other teachers like Jerry Bergonzi who expanded on this as well as Dick Oatts who showed me entirely different ways of looking at music.

Website: www.smallmusic.com

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Image Credits
amanda kowalski