YOU WOULD THINK THAT BEING MARRIED TO FAMED GUITARIST MICHAEL STERN WOULD BE AN INTIMIDATING FACTOR FOR GUITARIST LENI STERN. BUT, THE FORMIDABLE WOMAN HAS CARVED OUT HER OWN PERSONAL AND MUSICAL NICHE, AND HAS BECOME ONE OF THE LEADERS IN EXPOUNDING AND EXPLORING THE SOUNDS OF WEST AFRICAN MOODS FROM MALI AND SENEGAL.
INITIALLY AN ACTRESS, MS. STERN CHANGED COURSE AND BECAME KNOWN FOR HER WORK IN JAZZ AND ROCK CIRCLES. EVENTUALLY, AS SHE STATES IN THIS INTERVIEW, SHE FELL IN LOVE WITH THE EXOTIC SOUNDS OF THE SAHEL DESERT, AND HER MOST RECENT ALBUMS, 3 AND SABANI, ARE AN IMPRESSIVE MIX OF ACCESSIBLE JAZZ AND MUSINGS FROM THE CARAVAN.
WE RECENTLY HAD A CHANCE TO CHAT WITH MS. STERN, WHO GAVE INSIGHT TO HER LIFE, MUSIC, MARRIAGE AND INSPIRATON.
YOU’VE BEEN MARRIED 37 YEARS, WHICH IS REMARKABLE IN THIS DAY AND AGE. WHAT IS THE SECRET TO MAKE A MARRIAGE WORK, ESPECIALLY WITH BOTH OF YOU IN THE SAME PROFESSION? IS IT MORE COMPETITIVE OR SUPPORTIVE?
It’s all of that. Of course it’s competitive, but that’s not bad. Mike playing the way he does makes me want to practice more. It’s a little rough on your confidence; you never walk around the house thinking that you’re something great.
What’s more important than the competition is that you understand the things that you have in common. He totally understands my problems; other artists, musicians and writers don’t really understand a neck or speaker that isn’t working right, or an amp that can make or break my day and he totally gets it. It’s wonderful when the other person knows what you’re going through.
*********In acting you are always incorporating someone else. You are trying to bring into life a character that is created. It’s not you; in music it’s you*********
YOU ALSO HAD TO DEAL WITH HIS INJURY AND DISABILITY WITH HIS HAND. THAT CAN REALLY TRY YOUR PATIENCE.
The best thing was that he could play pretty soon after the accident. Like with Les Paul; when he broke his arm, they set it so he could play. He isn’t that good at opening cans, so he’s learning to become a little ambidextrous now. He’s had to turn down some work to stay home, but he’s also been able to try some more adventurous endeavors.
Our home is NYC, so it’s not like he’s going to be missing anything. The world sort of comes to you here.
OK, ENOUGH ABOUT HIM. LET’S FOCUS ON YOU. YOUR FIRST CAREER WAS AS AN ACTRESS. WHAT GAVE YOU THE ATTRACTION TO MUSIC OVER ACTING?
In acting you are always incorporating someone else. You are trying to bring into life a character that is created. It’s not you; in music it’s you.
YOU CHOSE GUITAR OVER COMPOSING. WHY WAS THAT?
I forget who said it, but improvising is instant composition ,
I would not have chosen to be a classical performer because you perform other people’s compositions. But improvising and composing are very close to each other. My composition studies have completely informed my improvisation skills.
I fell in love with the sound of the guitar. I started by studying classical piano like all good German girls. The piano teacher came in on Saturdays and taught seven lessons. But that is part of your education. In science we now find out how beneficial the study of music is for the development of the brain. It was always part of German culture to seriously study music, so I did that.
But my love was the guitar that I found in the attic, which was actually my mother’s guitar. It was a very valuable acoustic guitar, but she let me play it. When she realized that I’d always be found in some corner of the house with the guitar, she kind of realized that it was my instrument and she started getting me classical guitar lessons. I studied classical piano and guitar at the same time.
I then started rebelling as a teenager and wanted to play electric guitar. She bought me one so I could play rock and roll with my brother. That first guitar was a Gibson 330 and it was strawberry red. I loved that thing!
I now love playing my ’59 Stratocaster and acoustic guitar, but that first guitar still has memories for me. I play the Stratocaster exclusively on this record.
YOUR FIRST TRIO WITH BILL FRISELL AND PAUL MOTIAN WAS A DIFFERENT SOUNDING GROUP.
That was a bit different, but with them playing all of my compositions I was hoping that would hold it together.
Bill Frisell was my teacher. He was instrumental in my playing as I’d ask him “How do I get a gig?” He’d say, “Just get a gig, and when you do I’ll play on it” thinking I’d never get one. (laughs)
That was about the time that Paul Motian walked out on Keith Jarrett in the middle of a tour. He therefore had no work, so Bill told me that I could probably get him to play with us.
Paul was kind of a guiding light, and he liked playing with girls. He played with Geri Allen, and people would ask him “why are you playing with her?” and he would simply say “Why not?” as he had a rebellious spirit.
***********The electric guitar a unique responsibility on the other hand. It’s the instrument that brings down the house. The audience is waiting for the guitar solo, not the bass solo or drum solo. They say “guitar solo!” It’s the same with the saxophone. Your job is to bring it home**********
YOU’VE BEEN VOTED 5 TIMES THE BEST FEMALE GUITARIST. IS THAT A LEFT-HANDED COMPLIMENT?
That thought has crossed my mind, but that is simply the reality right now. When you look at a dictionary with electric guitarists, you’re not going to see my picture; you’ll see Michael’s picture.
The electric guitar a unique responsibility on the other hand. It’s the instrument that brings down the house. The audience is waiting for the guitar solo, not the bass solo or drum solo. They say “guitar solo!” It’s the same with the saxophone. Your job is to bring it home.
Once Michael Jackson started hiring women in his band, I started getting more popular. I was playing in Africa with Salif Keifa and there was a video they played non-stop with Michael Jackson with Jen Sebastian, and people thought that I was Sebastian because we were both blond and tall guitarists.
WHAT CLICKED TO MAKE YOU THEN SWITCH FROM JAZZ TO WEST AFRICAN MUSIC?
That area has the origin of the jazz rhythm. When I was still in college I went to the Percussion Department because it was an elective for the composers, and took a percussion class. For awhile I couldn’t find the right instrument that wouldn’t hurt my fingers and make them swell. But I found the calabash from Mali, because you play it with your fist and your ring.
Being that I wasn’t a native American, the rhythmic aspect of music was not that pronounced in European music, so I felt like I needed to study it. That’s what drew me to it and away from classical music. That was the main difference between classical and jazz, the emphasis on the rhythm.
I studied African music and actually wrote a song based on African rhythms before I went to Africa. My first travels to Africa came from going to a festival, called the Festival au Desert, far out in the Sahel desert in Mali. The festival has you four hours away from any kind of civilization. You end up playing with people from other groups in the festival, the majority of them from Africa, so I met and made a lot of friends there.
Upon my return I got recruited by Salif Keita to participate in a UNESCO program that work with African engineers. They needed musicians to work with the engineers and I was available and Salif recorded my first African (Africa in 2007) record as part of the UNESCO project to help the engineers learn their stuff.
For that album I got all of my “star” friends to play on it; my husband, Michael Brecker…it really resonated with everybody.
HOW LONG DID IT TAKE YOU TO FEEL COMFORTABLE PLAYING THE TRADITIONAL INSTRUMENT THE N’GONI?
I still am working on it and haven’t mastered it at all. Of all of the African string instruments the n’goni is the easiest for guitar players because it is fretted with the left hand like the guitar and you pluck it with the right.
The problem with the kora is that you have to pluck it with both hands. I first tried the kora because I liked the sound of it, and Salif taught me. But, my left had was so far behind my right hand that I got frustrated. So, I picked up the n’goni and could play songs right away.
The tone of the n’goni is totally different, and you only have two strings to play with. But you can get around that by painting frets on. The challenge with it is that it is played with the fingers, and the electric guitar is mostly played with the pick.
But I’ve fallen back to my early childhood when I played classical guitar; it’s funny how the hands remember. It’s really a beautiful instrument. So, thanks to my training from my classical teacher I’ve now done a record with a string quartet with four n’gonis.
YOUR MOST RECENT ALBUM HAS A LOT OF VOCALS AND VOCAL HARMONIES AS WELL
I do a lot of harmonizing with my guitar. I’m not singing as a solo. My husband Mike always says “You should sing a song!” (laughs) But it’s really hard!
WHAT MUSICAL WORLDS AND GOALS DO YOU HAVE STILL TO CONQUER.
I want to keep learning and discovering. There’s so much music in the world and so many exciting people to meet.
My favorite part of being a musician is that I travel.
It’s funny; Mike doesn’t like to travel. Even if I didn’t play guitar I would travel, so for me, this life is perfect. I get paid for doing what I love!
MS. STERN’S ENTHUSIASM OVER HER MUSICAL PROJECTS IS INFECTIOUS, AND ONCE YOU GIVE A LISTEN TO HER ALBUMS, YOU’LL BECOME JUST AS CONVINCED OF IT’S IMPORTANCE. CHECK OUT HER RECENT MATERIAL, AND LOOK FOR HER COMING TO YOUR TOWN AS SHE PRESENTS RICH TEXTURES FROM FAR AWAY LANDS.