John Nasshan's "Quintessence": Reviews

John Nasshan is one tasty drummer! He has ears out to here! For those not familiar with this term, what I mean is that he really knows how to listen..."

"Longtime local a drummer first, on-air personality second"

John Nasshan’s heart pumps music. Beats and tempos flow through his veins.

You might find the 53-year-old drummer performing with the Henderson Symphony Orchestra or with one of his three bands — Quintessence, The Monuments Trio and Coalition.

When he isn’t performing, he’s playing jazz and talking about it on KUNV 91.5-FM or interviewing local artists for his “Arts Alive” radio program.

“I knew I was going to be a professional musician from the time I was a little kid,” he says. “I never thought of doing anything but playing drums.”

Music was his destiny.

His grandfather was legendary percussionist Bobby Christian, who performed with Paul Whiteman, Sophie Tucker, the NBC and ABC radio orchestras and the Chicago Symphony. Nasshan sometimes would watch him rehearse on Sundays and learn.

But his grandfather never gave him lessons.

“He didn’t have the patience for it,” Nasshan says. “He was a perfectionist.” He sent Nasshan to study with his teacher, Roy Knapp, who also tutored Gene Krupa.

“My grandfather gave me one of his favorite snare drums and when I was in the second grade I was going to play a solo at a Christmas concert,” says Nasshan, who was born in Jamaica, N.Y., but later moved with his family to Chicago to live with his grandfather. “He lived in Chicago but happened to be in New York working at the time. Our house was a block and a half from school and he carried the drum and walked with me to the school and stayed for the concert.”

It was one of many defining musical moments in his life.

Nasshan got his first professional gig when he was 12 years old and joined the musicians union.

“I hooked up with a music act that played county fairs around the Midwest,” he says. “My grandfather had been writing their music for years. I went to correspondence school for the whole year.”

In high school Nasshan’s band director was a bass player who had worked with his grandfather’s band when Nasshan was a child. “He started using me at weddings and parties,” Nasshan recalls. “I wasn’t even driving yet, so my dad would drive me to the gig ... then he’d swing around and pick me up afterward.”

Before he was out of high school he was working in clubs in the Chicago area and doing recording sessions. He went to DePaul University and got a call to go on the road with “Gene Kelly’s Salute to Broadway,” starring Howard Keel, Ken Berry and Mimi Hines. “We did 75 cities in 84 days.”

After the tour he moved to Las Vegas in 1975 and transferred his union membership from Chicago. He was 20 years old. “Times were good,” he says.

His first couple of years he played in a lounge at the Sahara, backing up Penny France and Anne Sidney in an act called Penny and Annie.

“About that time I really got into jazz,” he says. “Vegas was full of jazz musicians. This was the jumping-off place for guys that had grown tired of being on the road with Woody Herman and Stan Kenton and Count Basie and Buddy Rich.”

After three years Nasshan quit the lounge scene to become a showroom player.

He’d go down to the union hall and play with “kicks” bands. Back then the union hall was at Tropicana Avenue and what is now Duke Ellington Way. It housed the union, a credit union and a private club where musicians played.

“They would start at 10 in the morning and play till 6 the next morning — all different bands, all day and night,” Nasshan says.

He started performing with the 10 a.m. band and eventually “graduated” to the 2 a.m. slot, when the hipper bands performed. He played there for eight months, selling musical instruments and giving lessons during the day.

Then he started getting calls to play showrooms of casinos such as the Sahara, Desert Inn and Golden Nugget. For about 15 years, he backed up vocalist and impressionist Bob Anderson.

“The funny thing about it is, all the work I was doing and I never had a permanent job in a house band,” he says. “I was running around town like a hired gun.”

He joined the announcing staff at KUNV nine years ago as a volunteer after surgery to remove a parotid tumor.

“They took it out and it upset my facial nerves. There was numbness and things and a bit of atrophy here and there,” Nasshan says.

Brian Sanders, who was the station’s programming director at the time, suggested he volunteer as an announcer because it would force him to speak clearly and help him to recover.

“I saw that as a chance to learn more about jazz while playing music for people,” he says.

About five years ago general manager David Reese made Nasshan a paid employee.

He never stopped working as a musician, performing with the likes of Jack Jones and Rich Little.

He is principal percussionist and timpanist with the Henderson Symphony Orchestra and plays with his own groups at local clubs and sometimes in elementary schools.

Sonic stewardship

Different genres find devoted caretakers at Black Label Bar and Lounge

It's 4 p.m. on Saturday and local jazz aficionado Marsha Ross has just greeted me at the door to Black Label Bar and Lounge -- a much tidier place than I'd expected from what was, until about a year-and-a-half ago, the Emergency Room Lounge. Not that that rock venue was such a complete mess, but it had started veering into disrepair by the end. It's a trend that's reversed itself under new management, and it's this weekend I'll find out just how lovingly the space is being used by those who need a home for whatever music they're making it their business to preserve.

From 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. every Saturday, Black Label is the domain of "Jazz Conversation," a three-hour session of unspoken word shared among practiced local musicians who rotate in and out of the gig. Today the stage is owned by drummer John Nasshan's Quintessence -- five guys who combine to make a languid Thelonius Monk-ish sound from piano, upright bass and the saxophone stylings of Dave Stambaugh who, at this moment, solos in a Sonny Rollins vein while standing in front of a mural of, um, Henry Rollins -- one-third of a massive, paint-on-brick pop art piece that also features John Lennon (his 1980 incarnation) on the left and, right in the middle, Jimi Hendrix in all his afro-explosive glory.

"I've been in Las Vegas for 15 years," says Ross, the promoter and producer behind this weekly event. "The jazz they used to have at Four Queens, the Riviera ... it's all stopped. We just wanted to keep all this alive."

She gestures back toward the band, where burly, mustached Nasshan just went double-time on the skins, accommodating a Tony Branco keyboard solo that had been asking for it. That's what Ross means by calling this thing a "conversation." This is how jazz players get eloquent. And for any fan who's witnessed the jazzy Friday night goings-on farther north up Decatur at Pogo's Tavern, this is a similar scene, but in an afternoon time slot that may be the answer to those post-work-week Fridays when going out is just too draining a proposition.

"...an impressive display of musical virtuosity."

"Listeners who associate the concept of free improvisation with harsh chaos or impenetrable obscurity will be pleasantly surprised by this Las Vegas-based trio, which wanders amiably through seven open-ended yet even-tempered pieces. This grounding is largely due to drummer John Nasshan, who sticks closely to bop-based rhythms, and keeps even the knottiest excursions in the pocket. Branco's piano pulls in the opposite direction, with deep introspection suggesting modern classical music, while trumpeter Blanton holds the middle ground, balancing tuneful ruminations with bursts of dazzling invention."

"Las Vegas isn't known for its jazz scene. That doesn't mean there aren't jazz players though. Origin dug up an excellent trumpeter at UNLV, and he brought a couple of musical comrades along. The trio plays through an entirely improvised session, covering a lot of musical ground. The album opens with a building trumpet line moving into a thumping piano/drum combination before the title track is over. The album develops in complexity as the trio moves on. "Song Without Words" is a bit exploratory, while "Suite for Lulu" almost sounds like something Miles' bands would have put together in their more free-form days. "Life Force" starts out frantic, then slows down into a bit of an Albert Ayler tone and a long trumpet solo. "Lester Rides Again" gyrates and thumps through a mass of sound, and the album ends on a relatively classic sound in "In and Out." Blanton's trumpet stays in the forefront for long periods, but drummer John Nasshan goes for extended solos lasting minutes from time to time, as does pianist Tony Branco. There's a lot going on in this album, with a lot of complexity and improvised collaborations throughout. The trio never drops the ball, however, and keeps the sound moving until the moment they've finished. Absolutely worth a listen."

The notion of forming a group with the intention of playing completely improvised music is something that Las Vegas trumpeter Walt Blanton says has always fascinated him. While the concept of performing free-form jazz is nothing new, it is a bold move for an artist, like Blanton, not usually associated with the genre. After experimenting with sounds and concepts for about a year, Blanton, along with pianist Tony Branco and drummer John Nasshan felt the time was right to roll tape on their daring musical experiment. The resulting seven tracks, recorded in one day during the summer of 2006, comprises "Monuments"; an adventurous musical joy-ride full of unexpected twists and turns.

Blanton is a powerhouse of a trumpeter who can play with lyrical restraint, culling notes from the middle register, and having fun with short melodic spurts, as he does on "Lester Rides Again" and "In And Out". There are moments, however, when brilliant tone and commanding technique take over, as on "Life Force". For the majority of the disc, it is Blanton who plants the initial musical seed for each piece, creating themes with noticeable traces of post-bop and contemporary mainstream jazz, singed with an abundance of melancholy and satire.

The interplay between piano and trumpet is astonishing. Branco seems to anticipate Blanton's every move, accentuating the nuances of the trumpeter's rhythmic momentum. The pianist enjoys dancing along the outer realm of tonality—with Don Pullen-like fervor—on the title track and serves up elongated, patiently developed rumblings on the lengthy and multi-faceted Life Force".

Always colorful and rhythmically adventurous, Nasshan maintains an incessant drive, keeping things grounded and swinging. His subtle cymbal work on the serene "Song Without Words" melds easily with Branco's light-as-air clusters.

A conceptual winner, void of unnecessary posturing, "Monuments" is a fun time had by three exceptional musical minds.

Track listing: Monuments; Song Without Words; Suite For Lulu; Life Force; Alone; Lester Rides Again; In And Out.
Personnel: Walt Blanton: trumpet; Tony Branco: piano; John Nasshan: drums.

Style: Modern Jazz/Free Improvisation

Published: February 24, 2008

This is the Origin Records marketing statement about "Monuments":
"From wide open free-jazz explorations to moments approaching classical chamber music, trumpeter Walt Blanton, pianist Tony Branco and drummer John Nasshan improvise their way through all manner of moods and soundscapes on their first recording as a trio. Long a dominant member of the Las Vegas jazz scene, Blanton has performed and recorded with Charlie Haden, Henry Mancini, Woody Herman, James Brown and the New World Brass Quintet among many others."

John ,
Thank you! I had the good fortune of seeing Coalition perform at the Winchester Center on Sunday Feb. 3, 2008. What a pleasure. A brilliant reaffirmation of what delights me as a jazz listener. Compelling arrangements, inspired improvisation brightened with flourishes of whimsey, anchored by consummate musicianship. There is a dynamic at work between the three of you that is communicated directly to your audience. It became evident to me that you lead each other to places musically that you didn't necessarily expect to go, with remarkably fresh and entertaining results.The quote "the whole is greater than the sum of it's parts" came to mind. The only people enjoying themselves more than I were you three. Thanks for the ride.

Sincerely,Daniel Bushaw

"Quintessence" is John Nasshan - leader and drummer, Walter Blanton - trumpet, Dave Stambaugh - saxophones, Tony Branco - piano, and Geoff Neuman - bass.

"Worthy Of Your Time"
"Quintessence" is local drummer and KUNV DJ John Nasshan's own straight-ahead jazz quintet. Comprised of his favorite Las Vegas jazz musicians, the quintet plays some standards, but mainly original compositions by band members. On this particular Sunday afternoon, an appreciative audience was rewarded with music not available from any other source.

The concert opened with Dexter Gordon's "Fried Bananas", an uptempo bop tune with a 32 bar ABAC form. The horns scuffled a bit in the active head on the way in, but made up for it with excellent solos, and really laid into the head on the way out. Walt Blanton's solo was notable for his phrasing, in that he often placed long lines asymmetrically across the seams, yielding a welcome sence of freedom beyond what most trumpeters in Las Vegas achieve.

The second tune of the day was the pleasant Nasshan original "No Hassles In Henderson", in a medium tempo swing groove. After the horns took their respective rides, pianist Tony Branco played what is possibly the single most musical and engaging solo of the day. Combining generous use of space, development of simple ideas, large intervals, extensive use of the piano's under-utilized low register, and the effacious juxtaposing of contrasting low and high register ideas. At the very least, this solo made for the most compelling moments of the first set.
After a couple of more Nasshan originals (a fast modal 6/8, followed by a beautiful ballad) and a burning Branco original, the group broke for imtermission.

They came back with Geoff Neuman's original composition "How About That". Here, Neuman has constructed a melody of fast, stabbing shapes contrasting with long, relatively serene notes. In the solos, the rhythm section seemed the most involved behind the long lines of Dave Stambaugh's tenor, and once qagain Branco shone as a soloist after Stambaugh completed his statemenrt.

The three tunes presented in this concert that weren't originals, although chestnuts, were fairly obscure, except for the last: Thelonious Monk's "Well You Needn't" which is known to every jazz musician on the planet. The band closed on a high note with this notorious mastwerwork. Far and away, from beginning to end, this tune was the most engaging, compelling, and exciting performance of the day.

The arrangement opened with an extended, very active a capella drum solo by Nasshan, and his energy carried through to the ensemble statement of the head, which led into Blanton playing the kind of cleverly crafted solo that other jazz trumpet players envy. Stambaugh's alto sax continued the burn until Blanton's horn returned for an absorbing round of trading, and after the band played the head out, the crowd rose to give John Nasshan's "Quintessence" a well deserved standing ovation.

John Nasshan's "Quintessence" is one of the high points of our local Las Vegas jazz scene. Be sure to watch for their next appearance - they are worthy of your time and attention.

On sunday December 11th The Las Vegas Jazz Society presented "Tenor Madness", at the Winchester Cultural Center. First organized thirteen years ago by the Las Vegas trumpeter and "Jazz Institution", Walt Blanton, this annual event has showcased the talents of outstanding Tenor Sax players working in Las Vegas.

Each of the Tenor players was given the opportunity to perform in the context of the full ensemble, a duet, and a solo backed by the incredible rhythm section of John Nasshan on drums, Geoff Neuman on bass, and Dave Loeb on piano. This trio was worth the price of admission all by themselves. Nasshan and Neuman are both members of the bebop quintet, John Nasshan's "Quintessence", and play together with an effotless familiarity. With the addition of Dave Loeb, an exceptional pianist and Director of Jazz Studies at UNLV, this trio went well beyond the role of accompanists and served to bring out the best in all of the soloists. In fact, some of their own solos were high points of the program.......