Long Live the Live Show: A Pritesh Walia Interview

Back in March of 2020, which almost feels like another lifetime ago, in-person events dried up immediately, thanks to the arrival of Covid. 

For performers who make their living on the stage, this was terrible news. Going from multiple shows per month to zero shows became, sadly, the new normal.

But live shows are back now after a painfully long wait, and both audiences and performers alike are ready to get back into the groove.

Here in LA and in cities all around the world, venues are finally opening their doors once again. 

Sadly, many venues didn't survive the pandemic, but there's hope that renewed interest in live shows will be able to resurrect some of these businesses or even spur the creation of brand new ones. 

Accomplished jazz musician and music instructor Pritesh Walia is the lens through which we'll be considering the value of live shows today. 

As a famed songwriter once said, "You don't know what you got 'til it's gone," and for Walia, Pandemic restrictions highlighted just how much he enjoys playing with other musicians in front of a live audience. 

An expert jazz musician and longtime music teacher, Walia knows his way around a gig, and especially when it comes to playing jazz, he feels that the genre is basically inseparable from performance and improvisation. 

If you'd like to read our full interview with Walia, just keep scrolling.  

For you personally, what's special about live shows? 

Walia: Performing live is the most beautiful and also scary thing. It's exciting and daunting at the same time, but the entire process is magical and inspiring. 

As a musician, we spend countless hours a day practicing our instruments and honing our craft. As jazz musicians, we aspire to get to the plane where our instrument can act as an extension of our consciousness. Playing live is our test of how well we can execute everything we practice and experience the real-time application of it. 

As a performer, you have to learn to communicate with everyone else in the band and also have the sensibility to relate to the audience. As a performing musician, you have to have the ability to sense the mood of the audience and relate to them through your playing. 

I find playing live shows is a combination of a lot of different aspects coming together, from playing to listening to communicating, which is why it's so beautiful and scary because you can never predict what’s going to happen next on the bandstand.

For non-musicians out there, can you explain why playing alongside other musicians can be so enjoyable? 

Walia: Playing any kind of music is a language, a code only other musicians understand and relate to. As a jazz musician, you have to spend time learning the repertoire, history, and culture because that's the common ground of language and communication for all jazz musicians. 

There is nothing more beautiful than showing up on a stage not knowing anyone and being able to play music together because everyone knows a common tune. Even if we come from different ethnic groups and cultures, we're always able to find a common thread for communicating with each other and that's music. It's also very inspiring to be on stage and watch how other musicians relate to what you play and what they offer to the group. 

Jazz is all about communicating with each other, giving each other space, and yet still finding your own musical identity within the group. It's always inspiring to play with other musicians. Not only is it fun but it's also a learning experience that humbles you.

Do you think it's difficult for some students to go from playing and practicing alone to playing with others? 

Walia: Absolutely. Practicing alone in your room is not the same as playing with others and this is a differentiation that most musicians forget to make.

 In the practice room, you have to be honest with yourself, you have to look at what you lack and fill in the holes. Playing with others is a completely different task that requires a completely different set of skills. The most important skills are listening and adjusting your sound depending on what the music requires. 

For jazz musicians, it's very important to spend time alone with your instrument to learn the mechanics of the instrument and the repertoire. However, real learning happens when we play with others because that’s when we as improvisers realize that we are not alone and can’t always be selfish about our playing. 

 

Playing in a group dynamic gives us a better sensibility of time feel, and phrasing promotes active listening and builds our overall ability to express ourselves effectively. It's very difficult to transition from playing by yourself to playing with others for an audience, which is why I highly encourage all aspiring jazz musicians to spend as much time as they can, listening to live music and playing with each other.

Jazz is so strongly rooted in improvisation. How do you go about teaching improvisation to students?   

Walia: Improvisation is an integral part of jazz, and it's definitely hard to teach the concept of improvisation to a student who's had no exposure to jazz or improvised music. However, it is a process I really enjoy. 

The concept of improvisation should begin with exposure for the student. I make sure I play recordings of my favorite jazz musicians and have my students actively listen and identify what they hear. I make sure they pay close attention to nuances like time feel, phrasing, and repetition. Once they understand the basic outline of what the music is delivering, I start introducing very easy jazz standards and American songbook tunes. 

Almost every time I start with very simple modal/vamp tunes, which are songs that stick to one chord or mode for a long time, and then introduce easy scales that complement the harmony. Once I teach the mechanical aspect of where the scale lies on the instrument and the different permutations of playing it, I start showing them improvisational concepts that involve phrasing and theme development. 

Later, I ask the student to write their own solos and play them for me and their peers. Once all these concepts start making sense to the student and they are able to effectively digest and apply the information, I start introducing tunes with more complex harmonies. Even though the process can be very mechanical in its initial stages, it's very important that the student is actively listening to music at all times. The process of learning to improvise can be very time-consuming and tedious, but it's also very rewarding and inspiring.

Music theory can be incredibly complex. What is your approach to covering music theory concepts? 

Walia: I consider myself to be very interested in music theory. It's a subject that is so vast and fascinating that one can spend a lifetime trying to comprehend and use the information. This makes it really hard to teach music theory. However, I've become a better teacher in the process. 

I've developed the skills to break down complex materials into small digestible chunks that are understandable. The ability to break down sophisticated theoretical concepts depends on how well I understand the concept, and this process of teaching has been extremely inspiring and humbling for me, giving me a new perspective on the concepts themselves. 

The most important aspect of teaching complex concepts is breaking them down into comprehensible chunks of information and relating it through music that is current and interesting to the student. All theoretical concepts should come with an aural demonstration so the student understands the concept, not just in theory but also in sound.

How do you choose specific brands to endorse? 

Walia: As a musician, it's really hard to find other musicians and people who relate to your artistry. Every musician has a unique identity and sound which is a combination of how they play, their musical sensibility, and their musical relationship to their instrument. 

I've been very lucky to find brands that reflect the same ideology in music as me and I'm extremely blessed to have been able to work with some of these brands. As a guitar player and a musician, there are a lot of different aspects that come into play in order to achieve the sound I have in my head. 

Companies like Collings Guitars, Chicken Picks, and Gruvgear have been super helpful to me in achieving my sound and building my musical identity. In the past, I have also been able to work with other companies like Laney and Antelope Audio, which have helped me with the resources and opportunities to hold my own masterclasses, clinics, and performances.

You're clearly already an expert player and teacher, but do you think you're still learning about music on some level? 

Walia: Yes, absolutely. I've spent over ten years in music schools studying, analyzing, and transcribing, trying to comprehend the different aspects of music. However, I feel like I have only just scratched the surface. 

There is always something to learn, something new to discover, and something new to listen to. This is a never-ending journey. As a professional working musician, I am still learning to be true to everything that is presented to me. Every musician is different and every form of music is different. It's very easy to understand the music only at its surface but very hard to take the time to understand the depth and nuances of every piece of music and actually do justice to the composer. 

Being a performing musician you are constantly thrown into different musical situations and settings, and I want to be able to treat every situation differently and use my skills in a way that reflects the music.