“I think jazz is about cultures combining in unexpected and beautiful ways and it is about personal expression.” That is how Gabrielle Stravelli describes jazz and that is what her music is all about.
I will admit that I’ve been a bit of a cheat, introducing the artist straightaway in her own words, but I could not have summed her up any better. Stravelli’s music embodies one of the core principles of jazz, that of musical freedom and beauty. Well, and some absolutely rollicking fun along the way!
Let’s get the basic facts out of the way. Stravelli is an American jazz artist. She does not come from a particularly musical family but her parents were great music lovers.
“Growing up, they played many different kinds of music in our home – everything from opera to jazz and big band to musical theatre, pop and gospel music. I really appreciate that they had such wide-ranging musical interests – they influenced me to have an open mind, musically,” she says.
She also played the piano and the French horn, one of those wondrous instruments everybody expects to see in an orchestra but no one is really that keen to play, mainly because it is incredibly difficult. But I think that really reflects Stravelli’s musical imagination. It is also an incredibly versatile instrument, having a wide range and is capable of many subtle nuances just like the human voice.
Sometimes we forget that the human voice is the most wonderful and complex of instruments. Listening to Stravelli’s voice you sense a fine craftsmanship, someone who understands their instrument down to the minutest detail. But there is also something else, a quality that can only be described as ‘soul music’. Stravelli’s repertoire encompasses a broad range of genres, from jazz to country to popular music and yet it always sounds like pure Stravelli.
“My style is eclectic and that is what I strive for, to take the music I love, no matter what genre it’s from and make it my own. I think if you have a strong sense of who you are, and if you have worked to develop your own individual sound, then you can explore different music and it will still sound like you. I don’t worry too much about labels. If I find a piece of music I love and it has a great lyric then I’ll start working on it.”
My style is eclectic and that is what I strive for
Stravelli and her band are currently on a worldwide tour as part of the American Music Abroad series; an exchange scheme aimed at promoting American culture abroad through the arts which includes Malta as one of its stops.
“This tour is a real honour. Every time I have travelled abroad to perform and interact with local people from vastly different cultures, my own life is made more full. I’m so excited to visit Malta, play with local musicians, eat the food, see the sights, and experience the culture that makes Malta unique,” she says.
Stravelli will be performing in Malta with bassist Pat O’Leary (with whom she’s been playing and writing music together for six years) drummer Jordan Young (whom she’s also known for a few years) and pianist Jim Ridl (a new collaboration for her but an artist with whom she feels a natural connection). They will be performing a wide range of music and, she tantalisingly adds, maybe a touch of Maltese music too.
There is something quintessentially American in all this; not the loud rhetoric of American post-war politics which is what we often get in the media, but something far more genuine and positive. When I ask her what American music is all about, she simply says: “I think American music is a reflection of our culture, we’re a country of immigrants, we’re very inclusive.”
We live in an age where words like ‘inclusion’ and ‘immigrants’ are looked upon with suspicion. An artist like Stravelli has the power to remind us that inclusion is not about just living in the same city but about sharing experiences.
Music has the power to remind us of our common spiritual and emotional heritage. Listening to Stravelli sing I am comforted by the fact that there is still good in this world, if only we just open our eyes and ears and hearts.
• Gabrielle Stravelli and her band will be performing today at Hard Rock Cafe, Bay Street, St George’s Bay, at 9pm and on Friday at St James Cavalier, Valletta, at 7.30pm. Entrance is free to both events.