The jazz musician Nguyễn Bảo Long on what inspires him, why he started Jump for Jazz and the Hanoi jazz scene
Jazz is pouring out of the second floor window of The Music Box studio and into the alley just off Hào Nam Street. Inside, jazz saxophonist Nguyễn Bảo Long is leading the rehearsals of his group Jump for Jazz: Đào Minh Pha is on double bass; Nguyễn Hữu Vương is on the piano, and Hoàng Hà is on the drums. Long has his soprano with him today as it is “easier to carry on a motorbike.”
Long has been playing jazz in Hanoi for over fifteen years, and despite the small local scene, he keeps himself busy with teaching, playing concerts, as well as organizing and running jazz projects and events. Today, he’s working with his collaborative project, Jump for Jazz. Two years in the running, the project creates a space for a variety of local jazz musicians to play, learn and explore – from owner of The Music Box and professional double-bassist Minh Pha, to drummer Hoàng Hà, who had never studied music before joining Jump for Jazz.
Interview & Images by Chris Humphrey ● Edited by Rose Arnold
&: Today you have been rehearsing with a band. Do you normally play with a band or is it more about collaboration?
Nguyễn Bảo Long: They [Jump for Jazz members] still have to do their own jobs. Some are doing pop, some are doing studio work, some are doing rock and some teach in academies. It’s good for them to have their own space. They come when they have time or when we decide to play.
&: How does the creative process work? Do you mainly cover jazz standards or compose your own music?
Nguyễn Bảo Long: With songs we’ve got a policy, every week we need to have one new song. There’s maybe one idea, or maybe there’s a whole song or a movement. It doesn’t matter, we build it up together. Everybody writes their part. I give people room to develop their own ideas. I mean, I can’t decide the drum line better than the drummer, or the piano harmony better than the pianist or the bass line better than the bassist. But they respect me so I am the one who decides which one is the best.
&: What inspires you?
Nguyễn Bảo Long: My teacher, Minh, inspires me a lot in the way he does things, the way he gives direction. But generally it’s not about inspiration. I’ve been doing this for a long time now, and I know that if you want a good concert, you need pressure. So first you’ve got ideas or you need to do something important. Then the process, with me, it normally takes about three months. Once I start, there’s no way I can stop. I’ve got a packet of money and I spend it. I have to be smart with my money. But, we’ve got three months pressure, so I have to do this even if I lose money, even if I lose time.
My dream is to open a big band under the Jump for Jazz name. A big band is the highest level of any jazz band, and every country should have a professional big band.
&: Why do you think projects like Jump for Jazz are important?
Nguyễn Bảo Long: In my experience a lot of jazz players have to play pop music or they have to play lounge music, and in doing so they lose the spirit of the music. They have to play full time, for maybe four hours every day and after two years, they have lost the spirit. I’ve experienced this; I lost a lot of feeling about music this way. So Jump for Jazz can give them what they want. And that’s why I have my policy for the song writing. It gives them an opportunity to perform their ideas and get their passion back.
My dream is to open a big band under the Jump for Jazz name. A big band is the highest level of any jazz band, and every country should have a professional big band.
&: Earlier you mentioned ‘Belong’, the project you want to do in Hà Giang. Could you tell me more about that?
Nguyễn Bảo Long: I like to go to Hà Giang a lot, but when I do I see the kids there are missing something. A lot of tourists go to Hà Giang and maybe give money or medical supplies, but never music. For children at elementary school age, classical music is very important for helping their minds to develop. So my dream is to bring some really good classical music, and make it a real occasion. I think it would positively affect their future lives.
‘Belong’ needs a lot of support, because to bring a whole orchestra to Hà Giang you need a lot of funding. It’s very difficult for me here, because people think they need to support the occasion, but they need to think they are supporting the kids of Hà Giang.
&: Minh’s is obviously the biggest jazz venue, are there any other up and coming venues in Hanoi?
Nguyễn Bảo Long: Mostly I play in Minh’s Jazz Club. It’s the place where things keep happening. And I have to admit it’s a place where I have learnt so many skills by playing there with a lot of great musicians.
We have others like +84, but they may close after six months or one year, so they are not places I can necessarily play in regularly. I am often asked if there is a strong jazz scene in Hanoi and in my life playing here there’s not much, but the energy musicians give here is very strong.
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Nguyễn Bảo Long lives in and performs regularly in Hanoi. He has been working as a jazz musician for nearly twenty years, playing at venues such as Minh’s Jazz Club, The Goethe Institute and Bar +84 whilst also working as a lecturer at two universities. Long founded the group Jump for Jazz, a project that aims to help people from disadvantaged backgrounds access and perform Jazz.
