A poche settimane dal novantesimo compleanno del Nostro, Stuart Nicholson parla con Mike Westbrook - trovandolo come sempre attento al presente e rivolto al futuro assai più che al passato - e ne scrive per il numero di questo mese di Jazzwise: Such Suite Thunder.
One of the greatest British jazz composers, Mike Westbrook has been a whirlwind of creativity for the last seven decades. On the eve of his 90th birthday, he reflects on his life less ordinary, his voluminous back catalogue - and his undimmed passion for musical (re)invention as well as nurturing a sense of community. In March Westbrook will be 90 years of age. Normally this would be a time for reflection. Nine decades of accumulated memories and experiences a reminder there is more behind you than in front. But only if you stop to think about it, since the past is a country Westbrook seldom visits. Throughout his life he has been driven constantly forward - completing writing commissions large and small, working up new ideas into viable projects, preparing for this gig or that, booking flights and hotels, organising rehearsals, taking care of PR, the list goes on. "When I occasionally allow myself to look back at what we've done," he reflects, "there's an enormous list of pieces - theatre shows we wrote, shows that we toured with, the five operas Kate and I wrote that were all staged in France, all the different ensembles I've worked with, small bands, big bands, brass bands and ensembles with strings - all these things going on, often at the same time, as well as just sitting down at the piano and doing a gig!". The common denominator that links all this work together is in the triumph of the unexpected. His writing does not follow paths made by others, he goes where there are no paths, leaving a trail for others to follow. Like Charlotte Bronté's Jane Eyre, he has avoided selling his soul, in his case to musical trends or fashions, to 'buy bliss': "I have been incredibly fortunate to have had this range of opportunity and have not had to become enslaved to this direction or that, or even to the jazz business. Artistic freedom is paramount, and it doesn't mean freedom without any kind of social or artistic responsibilities or commitments, quite the reverse. Just free to approach things one’s own way, that’s what I most prize".
