After recording a second album with his jazz combo in 2017, senior music education major Logan Banister held a release party for his first solo album last night. We caught up with Logan after the show to ask him a few questions about the project.
Q. How did you first become interested in performing?
I remember loving the sax playing in Pink Panther from the Steve Martin remake of the movie when I was a kid, so that got me into the saxophone. Once my middle school band director showed me jazz and improvisation, I was hooked.
Q. What is the title of this album and how did you come up with it?
It’s called “Snapshot”. I chose the title because any recording is really just capturing a specific performance on a specific day. This album was a good representation of the way I was playing last summer before my senior year started, but it’s not necessarily representative of the way I play today. I wanted to convey that in the title, and “Snapshot” did the trick.
Q. How would you describe the sound of this album?
It’s a pretty traditional hard-bop album. Other than the funk tune and the ballad, everything is pretty straight ahead and similar to the music I love from the late 50s and early 60s.
Q. What are some of the similarities and differences between this album and your last one?
I actually re-recorded a couple tunes from Three Day Weekend’s past albums on this one. It uses basically the same personnel as Three Day Weekend’s last album, too, so the style and personality of the group is fairly similar. This one is a little more uniform in feel and focus (because I wrote everything) and is maybe a little more squarely rooted in the hard-bop tradition than some of our other stuff.
Q. What is your favorite song on the new album?
My favorite song on the album is “Four Hours East.” I wrote it for Megan, my fiance, and I really emotionally connected with the song. It’s got a great set of chord changes and is a lot of fun to play.
Q.How do you feel the album release party went tonight?
It was a fun release event. It’s such a crazy time of year so the crowd was pretty small, but they were enthusiastic and the band sounded great. Thanks to Cary and the Brew for letting me use their space! It’s a great place to play.
Q. How can those interested purchase your album or learn more about your music?
If anyone is interested, just shoot me an email (logan.banister@eagles.oc.edu) and I can help you get set up with some music. I’m looking at some steaming options as well. The proceeds from the project go to support United Sound, a cool nonprofit that helps students with special needs get access to band and orchestra programs.
Q. What would you say to someone who is interested in pursuing a musical career?
Being successful in music comes down to a lot of practice, a lot of listening, and a lot of being in the right place at the right time. I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have opportunities to do all of these things. So, to someone looking to make a career in music, I would just say do whatever you can to set yourself up for all of those things.
Q. What are your plans after graduation?
After my fiancé and I get married in July, I’ll be taking a graduate assistantship at Baylor to get my master’s in saxophone performance.
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