• By Derek Halsey
• Sep 28, 2017

BANNER ELK — The jazz music world was enthralled a week or two ago when bassist, composer and singer Esperanza Spalding created, recorded and produced a new album in 77 hours locked in a studio with the whole process broadcast live on Facebook. It was fascinating insight into what it takes to record a jazz album in these modern times.

The problem is; jazz is not in a good place right now. It is near the bottom of the musical genres as far as albums sold in the world and in the U.S., despite the fact that thriving jazz scenes still exist in various places. In the High Country, we are lucky to have multiple artists, combos and big bands that provide live jazz music, and one of the best is trumpeter Shane Chalke.

Chalke spends most of his time during the year in the Banner Elk-Boone area, but he also resides in Florida during the winter months. But, it is in Banner Elk that Chalke and his B.E. Jazz combo have decided to record a new album this week. And, there are many reasons why the recording will be made in the High Country as opposed to elsewhere.

With jazz music currently staying afloat as an important but lesser heard music, the recording studios of this modern age are physically and electronically geared towards pop, rock, hip hop and other fare. That poses a problem for jazz musicians wanting to get that certain sound.

“I’m recording the album up here because I love the mountains and I have a little more time up here, and I like the guys that I play with here,” said Chalke. “The room that we are recording in also has a lot to do with it. This is local sound engineer Mark Doram’s idea. I was talking to him for the longest time about trying to get more of an authentic jazz club sound. One day he said, ‘You know, the acoustics that you are looking for; I think we got it right where you live.’ I said, ‘What are you talking about?’ He said, ‘Go to the River Club at Eagles Nest and spend the day down there playing your trumpet in the room and see what you think.’”

The River Club is the lower facility found at the Lodges of Eagles Nest mountain community located by the Elk River. The River Club is not in any way a recording studio. But, the way it was built, with its wooden walls and angles, it will be transformed into a recording studio for this special project.

“Because of all of the angles on the walls and ceiling, there are no flat surfaces facing each other in that space,” said Chalke. “It has just the right acoustics and sounds very authentic to me. The worst thing about a room when it comes to sound is when you have two parallel walls facing each other that create what is called a standing sound wave bouncing back and forth from wall to wall. When you have more angled surfaces, you don’t get any of that. You get a much more complex sound. Mark had worked several events down there at the River Club and said, ‘This is the space.’”

Chalke will be recording with B.E. Jazz bandmates Jim Fleri on keyboards, Ben McPherron on acoustic bass and Mike Willis on percussion.

The tentative title of the album is “Jazz on the River” and it will feature two original cuts written by Chalke including “You Used To Be” and “Sent From My iPhone.” The rest of the album will feature distinctive and somewhat overlooked jazz gems that Chalke wants to put his unique touch on.

“This will be an almost entirely chill album filled with ballads,” said Chalke. “This is what my jazz fans in Florida have asked me to do, as in making a CD that they can put on while pouring wine and cooking dinner. Or, what they are really talking about — jazz for sex. That is the way it used to be. We will try to record about eight or nine pieces and then cull it down to CD size, which is six or seven songs for a usual jazz album. All of the other songs mean something to me in a certain way.”

Some of the album’s song selections have come from chance encounters and the suggestion of fans.

“‘Portrait of Jennie’ is a song I love, and I also love the novel and movie that the song was written for, and I love the story behind it,” said Chalke. “I was told about the song by a guy in a club down in Sarasota. I had never heard of it before. He asked for it, and I started doing research on it and began to play it. I also read the book and watched the movie and really got into it.

“‘Portrait of Jennie’ hasn’t been recorded very much. My favorite version of the song was recorded by Clifford Brown and his Orchestra. I’m also going to record the song ‘Lonely Woman,’ which has only been recorded twice before, as far as I know, by Horace Silver and Pat Metheny, and never with horns. It is an awesome tune and was what the classic song ‘Misty’ was adapted from back in the day.”

Chalke’s project will be available in the months to come after it has been mastered, packaged and finished. But as for now, as the leaves turn to color, the cool nights roll in and the mist rolls off the hillsides, a brand new album of great jazz will be recorded on the banks of the Elk River. Mountain jazz informed by the beauty that is the High Country.

You can keep up with Chalke and crew at be-jazz.com and on the Shane Chalke and B. E. Jazz Facebook page.