Jazz has a handful of its Walter Mitties, artists who, for one reason or another, have a “day job” that gives them the ability to continue on their musical paths. Most famous are Drs Denny Zeitlin (pianist) and Eddie Henderson (trumpeter), both psychologists, who live the dual lives of professional medical and musical artists. Out on the East coast, in the small town of Wilson, Connecticut, alto saxist Matt Criscuolo serves up pizza in his three restaurants as a means of supporting his greater quest of delivering advanced post bop music.
His latest and third release, Melanchoia (www.jazzeria.com), has been getting a lot of attention with its unique sounds. Using pianist Larry Willis’ advanced and intriguing string arrangements, Criscuolo approaches originals and songs by Hancock and Shorter with passion, verve, and, most importantly, originality. The creative mix of horn and strings (along with bass and drums) is a holistic aural mix, rather than the usual “with strings” approach that most artists succumb to.
Melancholia was not inspired by any of the classic strings recordings by Clifford Brown or Art Pepper, but by band mate/pianist Larry Willis. Matt explains his musical impetus, “Luckily, because I’m self-produced, if I get an idea, I can run with it. I was pretty steadfast in making the record with strings. I heard Larry Willis’ own record called Sanctuary, and he’s just a wonderful musician; a genius. He did this thing on his own record with the strings that just knocked me out. I’ve always liked rich sounds from strings. I like soundtracks, like from Fellini movies, that have that rich and big sound.”
“Since I heard his record, I wanted to do a record with strings. It really wasn’t a thought in my mind to do it myself before hearing Sanctuary. When I realized that I could produce something like this, I started working towards making it a reality. The only reference point I had was Willis’ record.”
“Larry was on my second recording, so I asked him to arrange strings for the next record. I put together a list of songs; the only regret that I have is that I didn’t pick more of my originals. I chose only two, but I knew that the Wayne Shorter and Herbie Hancock tunes would come out real well, so I wasn’t too worried. In hindsight I wish I could here more of my own music, but that could always be done another time in the future.”
Being at the stage in life where you can strive to fulfill your musical passions did not come easy for Criscuolo.. “I don’t make living from playing music, unfortunately. I kind of wish that I did. I think that I could make a living with music if I wanted to, as I’m aggressive enough where I can line up gigs and create a musical business out of it. But, I chose to go into the restaurant business. I own three pizzerias. I have a dilemma about letting people know that I do that. I don’t want people to think that I’m a part-time musician because I don’t think I play like a part time musician.”
The journey from smoky night clubs to red and white linen tablecloths came while Matt was at one time living the true “jazz” life, as he remembers,” The first experience that I had with the restaurant was in 1993 I had been in Europe, I was playing and was knee deep in making a living and it was very difficult. But, I was chasing it. It was then that I opened up the first pizzeria in Connecticut. The experience of having to put the music down for a period of time was almost like dieing. Like the saying goes, you have to die before you can live.” Criscuolo has lived that famous Bible verse, “(if) a grain of wheat falls and dies, it bears much fruit.” It took his giving up his horn for awhile to be able to see it with a different perspective.
In retrospect, he observed, “In a sense, that’s what happened to me musically. I had to put the horn down and it was difficult to make that transition and focus on a business. But, it also made me appreciate the music in a different light when I came back around to it. It took a few years, but now I’m at a point where these restaurants are easy enough for me to pay managers to run them. I go there just every day to just “crack the whip’ and make sure that the pizzas look and taste good. But, it afforded me the ability to produce these records and take gigs that may not pay so much, and for me to be selective about what gigs I play and what I record.”
Because he let go of his initial passion, he was able to appreciate it even more when returning to music, and is at peace with his “day” job supplementing his passion. “I’ve become proud of now being able to say that; I mix the two well. I’ll tell you the truth-I like it like this. I make a living making pizza and food. The good thing about it is that I’ve been fortunate to incorporate the jazz experience into my restaurants.”
As Monk had his Baronness, and Tchaikovsky had his wealthy widow, so Criscuolo has his Margarita (pizza, that is) to support his artistic endeavors. He admits, “The biggest gift out of this is to be able to say, “Hey, I want to make a record with strings! I’m going to hire a string quartet from the city; I’m going to book the studio.” I don’t have to worry about the record company giving me the right to do it. There are a ton of musicians out there that are very talented, but they can’t get their music done. This is what I chose to do. I’m happy I made that decision.”
The music-marinara relationship has been beneficial in both directions, as his restaurants have also served as venues for his music as well. Criscuolo explains, “I have music three nights a week in each my restaurants, because of the space and budgets sometimes I may have a soloist or a duo. But I do have my own band at least once a week in one of my restaurants, and I bring in some fine musicians to back me up and kick my rear.
Some of my customers are (surprised that I play), but I’ve been doing it since 1993 in a small town. A good amount of people know that I play. They’re surprised at the quality of the stuff.”
The lessons he’s learned from running a restaurant have served him well for being on the musical bandstand, with just a few variations, as he compares, “I’ve learned about marketing oneself as a musician has a lot of parallels to getting people in the door to buy pizza. You always have to give something of value, and what they want. But, I treat my music a bit more differently than I treat my business. I feel like my music is the place where I can afford to do what I want whether people buy it or not. The pizza business is a vehicle for me to do what I want with music. Whereas, in the pizza business, I don’t necessarily do everything that I want to do. I’m happy with what I do in the business, I don’t have any dilemmas, but there’s a distinction between the music and the pizza business. With the pizza business, I do what I can to get people to come in, enjoy the food, and spend their money in my place. But, with the music, I really don’t feel that pressure to get people to buy it.”
Most importantly, whether it’s pizza or music, alto saxist Matt Cruscuolo knows how to serve it hot! Check out his latest disc, and maybe he’ll deliver some time to LA!