In order to allow proper time for the MUSIC, Roulette TV interviews are often only a small portion of our conversations with the artists... This video delves deeper into our conversation with Jerome Cooper.
View Jerome's Roulette TV performance here: • Roulette TV: Jerome Co...
Jerome Cooper (1946-2015) tries to change the perception of drummers with his performance that incorporates the balaphones, chiramia, synthesizer, and rhythm machine in addition to drum set.
Pointing out that many cultures outside of American consider accomplished drummers as valued soloists, Jerome Cooper has stated his goal to "improve the quality of American music." He supports this aim with his captivating solo performance titled "All That Is or Is That All the Music." Cooper not only employs the instruments of the conventional drum set (each of which he has given "psychic names" that describe and evoke their characters, eg. "OM" for the bass drum and "Julio" for the high-hat) but also plays balaphones ("Repooc"), two types of the Mexican double reed instrument called the chiramia ("Slim" and "Big Mama"), a Yamaha synthesizer which supplies melodic and harmonic materials, and a Casio rhythm machine. This setup parallels the practice of other cultures in which drummers typically sing or play winds simultaneously with their drumming. Cooper's performance is a suite of contrasting moods, concluding with an astonishing display of "multi-dimensional" polyrhythmic sensibilities. In his interview, Cooper discusses the origins of and tensions within the highly influential Revolutionary Ensemble which he co-founded, his interest in sound qualities and the natural generation of rhythms, and his changing roles with collaborators such as Cecil Taylor, Roscoe Mitchell, Anthony Braxton, Leroy Jenkins, Oliver Lake, Lester Bowie, and Rashaad Roland Kirk.
Jerome Cooper's fruitful musical legacy with the Revolutionary Ensemble and stints with Anthony Braxton, Cecil Taylor and others reads like a who's who in cutting-edge jazz. Nowadays, Cooper's polyrhythmic drumming and multitasking persona are prime influences in his mesmerizing solos. Wonderful combinations of Indonesian gamelan, West African timbres, jazz kit, and garageband electronics surprise the audience with its satisfying post-everything style.
Aired on rTV: 2000
Performance: May 11, 1996
Produced by Jim Staley
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