Skip to content
CapRadio

CapRadio

listen live donate
listen live donate
listen live
donate
  • News
    • News

    • State Government
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • Race and Equity
    • Business
    • Arts and Lifestyle
    • Food and Sustainability
    • PolitiFact California
    News
    • News

    • State Government
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • Race and Equity
    • Business
    • Arts and Lifestyle
    • Food and Sustainability
    • PolitiFact California
  • Music
    • Music

    • Classical
    • Jazz
    • Eclectic

    • Daily Playlist
    Music
    • Music

    • Classical
    • Jazz
    • Eclectic

    • Daily Playlist
  • Podcasts & Shows
  • Schedules
  • Events
  • Support
    • Support
    • Ways to support
    • Evergreen Donation
    • One-Time Donation
    • Corporate Sponsorship
    • Vehicle Donation
    • Stock Giving
    • Legacy Giving
    • Endowment Support
    • Members
    • Member Benefits
    • Member FAQ
    • Member Newsletter

    • Fund drives
    • Drawing Winners
    • Thank You Gifts
    Support
    • Support
    • Ways to support
    • Evergreen Donation
    • One-Time Donation
    • Corporate Sponsorship
    • Vehicle Donation
    • Stock Giving
    • Legacy Giving
    • Endowment Support
    • Members
    • Member Benefits
    • Member FAQ
    • Member Newsletter

    • Fund drives
    • Drawing Winners
    • Thank You Gifts
  • About
  • Close Menu

Speak No EvilĀ Jazz blog

Capital Public Radio's discussion of an art form born in America and celebrated worldwide.

subscribe

 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 

Modern Misbehavin': Jason Moran Gets Into The Mind Of Fats Waller

Tuesday, September 16, 2014
Listen
/
Update RequiredTo play audio, update browser or Flash plugin.
Clay Patrick McBride / Courtesy of the artist

Jason Moran.

Clay Patrick McBride / Courtesy of the artist

NPR Music | Staff

Legend has it that pianist Fats Waller used to say, "If you don't know what it is, don't mess with it." That's a challenge that fellow pianist Jason Moran has been eager to take up lately.

Moran's latest album is called All Rise: A Joyful Elegy for Fats Waller. On it, he's taken some of Waller's biggest crowd-pleasers and reworked them to reveal just how timeless these songs are. Moran was originally commissioned by the Harlem Stage to perform a concert of Waller's music — but at that same time, he says, his wife was prodding him to try something new.

"My wife was like, 'You need to do something for some people to come dance!' " Moran says. "And as much as I love traditional concerts and traditional celebrations of great artists, that has not been my forte. I've always chosen to try to do something else with the form and the format."

Waller, Moran says, turned out to be the perfect vehicle for that kind of experimentation: an aggressively modern figure for his time, filled with contradictions.

"All this insane piano technique, but also this freedom with his lips to say the things that he says, to think the things that he thinks. The son of a preacher, the man who likes to drink, the man who finds his sorrow but expresses it through comedy," Moran says. "And these songs, they don't just seem funny; they don't just seem sad. There's always this duality."

Hear more of the conversation at the audio link.

Sign up for ReCap and never miss the top stories

Delivered to your inbox every Friday.

 

Check out a sample ReCap newsletter.

Thanks for subscribing!

Thank you for signing up for the ReCap newsletter! We'll send you an email each Friday with the top stories from CapRadio.

Browse all newsletters

More From CapRadio Music

Caroline Tompkins/Courtesy of the artist

For Missy Mazzoli, composing is the hard work of making life easier

January 26, 2023
We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter

More From CapRadio Music

Caroline Tompkins/Courtesy of the artist

For Missy Mazzoli, composing is the hard work of making life easier

January 26, 2023

Back to Top

  • CapRadio

    7055 Folsom Boulevard
    Sacramento, CA 95826-2625

    •  
      (916) 278-8900
    •  
      (877) 480-5900
    •  Contact / Feedback
    •  Submit a News Tip
  • About

    • Mission / Vision / Core Values
    • Stations & Coverage Map
    • Careers & Internships
    • Staff Directory
    • Board of Directors
    • Press
  • Listening Options

    • Mobile Apps
    • Smart Speakers
    • Podcasts & Shows
    • On-Air Schedules
    • Daily Playlist
    • Signal Status
  • Connect

    •  Facebook
    •  Twitter
    •  Instagram
    •  YouTube
  • Donate

  • Listen Live

  • Newsletters

CapRadio stations are licensed to California State University, Sacramento. © 2023, Capital Public Radio. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Website Feedback FCC Public Files: KXJZ KKTO KUOP KQNC KXPR KXSR KXJS. For assistance accessing our public files, please call 916-278-8900 or email us.