Photo by Rich Schmitt, Staff Photographer
Greg Alper never would have imagined that YouTube, the scrappy video-sharing Web site could have revived his signature 1978 jazz album, ‘Fat Doggie,’ which would lead to its re-mastering at Abbey Road Studios in London in 2010. The tale is intriguing and a twist of fate, says the Pacific Palisades musician. ‘The album is a collector’s item that had lots of airplay in the ’70s,’ Alper says. ‘Some cuts had been uploaded to YouTube and were noticed by musicians from First Hand Records, Ltd., who produce music and a re-issue series.’ Alper’s band experimented with various forms of jazz fusion in the ’70s and ’80s. They created a new sound by interweaving jazz, Latin, funk, R&B and world beat rhythms into their original vocal and instrumental compositions. For Alper, who has since enjoyed a career in film scoring and teaching, reviving the band’s ’70’s recording was a highlight of his life, bringing back memories of his unbridled performing days in New York. He went to London to oversee the project, and was thrilled to be in one of the most famous studios in the world, most notable for being the venue in the 1960s for innovative recording techniques adopted by the Beatles, Pink Floyd and others. ’I liked the classic electronics, the old mixing consoles,’ Alper reminisces, even though his album was re-mastered using the latest digital technology. ‘In the old days, the engineers all wore white jackets.’ ’Fat Doggie’ features Richie Morales (drums), who also played with Spyro Gyra, the Brecker Brothers and Ray Baretto; Chuck Loeb (guitar), musical director for Stan Getz; Ray Anderson (trombone, vocal), named Best Trombone by Downbeat five years in a row; and Alper, wailing on the tenor and soprano sax. For 50 years, the saxophone has been companion, therapist and inspiration for Alper. The first time he heard John Coltrane’s signature album ‘A Love Supreme’ in the early ’70s, it changed his life. ’I had a dream that night in which these giant saxophones came at me. I awoke the next morning and vowed that I was going to be a sax player.’ Thankfully for Alper, his epiphany hadn’t occurred at a bullfight or Indy race. A student at Indiana University, he soon was possessed by the instrument and explored the colors and capabilities of the hybrid horn, halfway between the woodwinds and brass. He buckled down with the sax, practicing 16 hours of day, taking time off only for class and sleep. He found that the versatility of the horn, thought to be the most powerful and vocal of the woodwinds and the most adaptive of the brass, suited his emotional temperament. Alper, who has lived in the Palisades with his wife Sonja for over 20 years, has been immersed in music his entire life. He taught himself piano by listening. ‘I was composing at 6 on the piano and then on the guitar, and by 12, I was performing in clubs around Chicago [his hometown].’ There was a time in college’a memorable week when ‘a friend invited me to jam with a bunch of guys, and we just holed up in his house. It was great.’ After graduating from Indiana in 1975 with a creatively sculpted B.A. in arts (an independent major in music and experimental tape), Alper decamped for New York. ‘This was at a time when there was a willingness and availability for great music and an eagerness to entertain,’ he says. He worked on developing styles and interpretations and performed several nights a week at dance clubs, such as Broadway Charlie’s, and Prescott’s in the West Village. ’One of the bands I played with had a three-month gig at the Village Gate. We opened for Charles Mingus, Dizzy, Art Blakey, Stanley Turentine. So I would hear these guys play five nights a week and learned a lot. ‘I even sat down with Rashid Ali [John Coltrane’s drummer] a couple of times.’ And then he put together the Greg Alper Band of extraordinary talents that for a brief time was magical. He kept the band going, but gradually the personnel left, so Alper segued into writing for other instruments. ‘I started writing for industrial films, commercials and films, eventually moving to Los Angeles in 1989. He scored over 100 films, including a song for ‘Random Hearts’ with Harrison Ford, and for computer games, most notably ‘War Craft.’ L.A. turned out to be more difficult to crack than he had hoped, so ‘in order to survive, I started teaching.’ To listen to Alper talk about his work with students, from ages 4 to 80, offers insights into the ingredients for musical magic. Through the Children’s Music Workshop, he teaches flute and recorder at Palisades Elementary. Through his own studio, The Alper Music School, he teaches all levels on six instruments, along with composition and improvisation. When he went into teaching fulltime in 2000, Alper was determined that music must be fun, notwithstanding that he considers himself a focused and disciplined person. ‘My challenge is to be able to express a concept so that an individual will understand it. I teach to the person, which leads to a path of style, theory, improvisation and history.’ One telling lesson for his students involves truly hearing the music, not just listening. ‘I often ask students to sing what they have heard, to see whether they can hear the music,’ Alper explains. ‘Then you know that the music is living inside you if you can do this.’ Alper’s CD ‘Fat Doggie,’ featuring the Greg Alper Band, is available at Village Books on Swarthmore. Greg Alper in his home studio in Pacific Palisades. Rich Schmitt/Staff Photographer By LIBBY MOTIKA Greg Alper never would have imagined that YouTube, the scrappy video-sharing Web site could have revived his signature 1978 jazz album, ‘Fat Doggie,’ which would lead to its re-mastering at Abbey Road Studios in London in 2010. The tale is intriguing and a twist of fate, says the Pacific Palisades musician. ‘The album is a collector’s item that had lots of airplay in the ’70s,’ Alper says. ‘Some cuts had been uploaded to YouTube and were noticed by musicians from First Hand Records, Ltd., who produce music and a re-issue series.’ Alper’s band experimented with various forms of jazz fusion in the ’70s and ’80s. They created a new sound by interweaving jazz, Latin, funk, R&B and world beat rhythms into their original vocal and instrumental compositions. For Alper, who has since enjoyed a career in film scoring and teaching, reviving the band’s ’70’s recording was a highlight of his life, bringing back memories of his unbridled performing days in New York. He went to London to oversee the project, and was thrilled to be in one of the most famous studios in the world, most notable for being the venue in the 1960s for innovative recording techniques adopted by the Beatles, Pink Floyd and others. ’I liked the classic electronics, the old mixing consoles,’ Alper reminisces, even though his album was re-mastered using the latest digital technology. ‘In the old days, the engineers all wore white jackets.’ ’Fat Doggie’ features Richie Morales (drums), who also played with Spyro Gyra, the Brecker Brothers and Ray Baretto; Chuck Loeb (guitar), musical director for Stan Getz; Ray Anderson (trombone, vocal), named Best Trombone by Downbeat five years in a row; and Alper, wailing on the tenor and soprano sax. For 50 years, the saxophone has been companion, therapist and inspiration for Alper. The first time he heard John Coltrane’s signature album ‘A Love Supreme’ in the early ’70s, it changed his life. ’I had a dream that night in which these giant saxophones came at me. I awoke the next morning and vowed that I was going to be a sax player.’ Thankfully for Alper, his epiphany hadn’t occurred at a bullfight or Indy race. A student at Indiana University, he soon was possessed by the instrument and explored the colors and capabilities of the hybrid horn, halfway between the woodwinds and brass. He buckled down with the sax, practicing 16 hours of day, taking time off only for class and sleep. He found that the versatility of the horn, thought to be the most powerful and vocal of the woodwinds and the most adaptive of the brass, suited his emotional temperament. Alper, who has lived in the Palisades with his wife Sonja for over 20 years, has been immersed in music his entire life. He taught himself piano by listening. ‘I was composing at 6 on the piano and then on the guitar, and by 12, I was performing in clubs around Chicago [his hometown].’ There was a time in college’a memorable week when ‘a friend invited me to jam with a bunch of guys, and we just holed up in his house. It was great.’ After graduating from Indiana in 1975 with a creatively sculpted B.A. in arts (an independent major in music and experimental tape), Alper decamped for New York. ‘This was at a time when there was a willingness and availability for great music and an eagerness to entertain,’ he says. He worked on developing styles and interpretations and performed several nights a week at dance clubs, such as Broadway Charlie’s, and Prescott’s in the West Village. ’One of the bands I played with had a three-month gig at the Village Gate. We opened for Charles Mingus, Dizzy, Art Blakey, Stanley Turentine. So I would hear these guys play five nights a week and learned a lot. ‘I even sat down with Rashid Ali [John Coltrane’s drummer] a couple of times.’ And then he put together the Greg Alper Band of extraordinary talents that for a brief time was magical. He kept the band going, but gradually the personnel left, so Alper segued into writing for other instruments. ‘I started writing for industrial films, commercials and films, eventually moving to Los Angeles in 1989. He scored over 100 films, including a song for ‘Random Hearts’ with Harrison Ford, and for computer games, most notably ‘War Craft.’ L.A. turned out to be more difficult to crack than he had hoped, so ‘in order to survive, I started teaching.’ To listen to Alper talk about his work with students, from ages 4 to 80, offers insights into the ingredients for musical magic. Through the Children’s Music Workshop, he teaches flute and recorder at Palisades Elementary. Through his own studio, The Alper Music School, he teaches all levels on six instruments, along with composition and improvisation. When he went into teaching fulltime in 2000, Alper was determined that music must be fun, notwithstanding that he considers himself a focused and disciplined person. ‘My challenge is to be able to express a concept so that an individual will understand it. I teach to the person, which leads to a path of style, theory, improvisation and history.’ One telling lesson for his students involves truly hearing the music, not just listening. ‘I often ask students to sing what they have heard, to see whether they can hear the music,’ Alper explains. ‘Then you know that the music is living inside you if you can do this.’ Alper’s CD ‘Fat Doggie,’ featuring the Greg Alper Band, is available at Village Books on Swarthmore.
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