I got hold of Joe Brent, a fiddler in the Big River band, and asked questions regarding the band, the music and the instruments they use.
He responded in depth in each question!
1. It seems that you joined Big River production from the
touring company. Could you tell me how you became
involved with the show and is there any differnece (if any)
working with deaf actors in a musical?
Funny story - I received a call from my friend Eric Svejcar, who is the usual 2nd keyboard player in the Big River band and also the
associate conductor, about a week into the shows in San Francisco. I had recently played another show with him, The Tutor by
Andrew Gerle, except I was playing guitar on that show, and had only mentioned in passing that I also messed around on violin, and
mandolin was even my main instrument above the others. He asked me right off: "Were you just yanking my chain about playing the
violin, or were you serious?" I said that I did play violin pretty well, it was even the first instrument I began on when I was 4 years old.
So he referred me to Steven Landau, the music director, who called me that night, and we talked a little about the schedule of the tour,
and I found out that the original fiddle player had quit the show, and they were looking for a full-time replacement. I had just finished as
the fiddler in Urban Cowboy and was preparing to take over the guitar chair in Wicked, plus some orchestration work I do for Broadway
shows and the Boston Pops, so I was mostly free, and excited about coming to Japan. A few days later, I was on a plane for San
Francisco, and the rest is history, I guess.
As for working with deaf actors in the show, I'll admit that at first, I had a little trepidation. How can deaf actors be in a musical? Will I have to learn sign language? How will this show work, and will I be sorry I signed on to do it for a year?
Turns out my fears were utterly baseless -- I've found that deaf actors and deaf people in general, are some of the most incredibly
creative, genuine people you could ever hope to meet. Their whole life has been about communication in some way; learning to
communicate with their hands and faces as well as with their voices, communicating with hearing people, story telling (at which they
are uniformly gifted at, seeing as how all sign language is essentially a pictorial story used to communicate even the most basic
messages), and just hanging out, chatting and laughing. They are great actors because of this, and once I saw how the show was
structured, with equal rewards for both deaf and hearing audiences, I got very excited about being a part of this show. I've even taken
the step of learning conversational sign language, and many of my best friends on this tour are deaf actors, and they are some of the
most beautiful friendships I could ever hope to make.
And as for being with a touring show for this length of time, I'll say that I had never accepted such a tour even though I'd been offered quite a few, because I don't like to be away from New York for very long, where all of my work and my great friends and family are. But I'm glad that my first experience on the road for this long a time has been such a great one.
2. Could you introduce your band members?
Certainly! Our music director is the aforementioned Steve Landau out of L.A., a marvelous pianist, conductor, and arranger -- he's responsible for most of the arrangements we are playing on this version of Big River, the ones that differ from the original 1985 version.
Eric Svejcar, my old friend, is the usual 2nd keyboard player, but he's in New York right now with a show he wrote book, music, and lyrics for, the notorious Caligula, which I've played in for two separate incarnations thus far, and hope to be a part of when it gets to Broadway, if Eric will still have me! His replacement in Japan is Randy Cohen, who has fit in seamlessly.
On the guitar 1 book (guitar, mandolin, dobro, and banjos) is Nick DiFabbio from New York, who subs with Fiddler on the Roof when he's not with Big River, and he previously played in the national tour of Les Mis, so he's used to the touring life.
On the 2nd guitar chair (which includes banjos, harmonicas, mandolin, and dobro) is Carco Clave from Nashville, who has played with many great country and bluegrass musicians, including my favorite fiddler of all time, Vassar Clements, a fact which never fails to impress me.
On bass is Pete Roze from Nashville, who was originally a guitarist himself but who now concentrates on bass when he's not concentrating on his dancing.
And finally, our percussionist is Scott Higgins out of L.A., from the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, and many film and tv scores. In fact, if you watch the Matrix movies, that's Scott playing percussion. How cool is that?
3. There are some musical instruments that I've never heard
of. Could you explain what Dobro and Hammered Dulcimer? In
which songs in the show they are used?
The dobro is kind of like a guitar you play on its back, laying in your lap with the strings facing up at you, with a slide in your left hand. Any time you hear slide guitar coming from the pit, that's actually a dobro. Also, the strings are higher up off the fingerboard to make it easier to slide around on. It's a cool instrument, and of course Nick and Carco play it beautifully.
The hammered dulcimer, which Scott plays on many tunes throughout the show, is sort of like a sideways harp you play with mallets that look like fat chopsticks. It's hard to describe without showing you a picture of one, or of course a real one. It's a real old-fashioned bluegrass instrument, and has its roots in the cembalum, a gypsy instrument mostly seen in Hungary.
4. You play Fiddle in the show but you are a trained
violinist. What's the difference between Fiddle and
classical violin (other than the tunes you play). How
different the instruments are?
I get this question a lot -- they're actually the same instrument, the only difference in the pretentiousness of the
player. A haughty and exclusive section violinist in the New York Philharmonic might look down his nose at you and
say, "I studied for 8 years at the conservatory to be a violinist," but I've also taken a masterclass with Itzhak
Perlman and he called his 1714 Stradivarius, which he acquired from Lord Menuhin, his 'fiddle'. Jascha Heifetz also
called his instrument the fiddle, but as a Russian Jew he probably meant the Yiddish word fidl, where the term comes
from. I guess the only difference is that 'violin' implies classical and jazz music, whereas 'fiddle' implies bluegrass,
country, and various folk music styles. But the instrument is the same, and when I play with classical ensembles, I call
it a 'fiddle' and nobody bats an eye until they hear that I also play jazz and bluegrass, when they light up and say
something like, "Oh, you're a real fiddle player!" Well, so are you, my friend -- it's just a word, you know what I mean?
5. I've been listening to the OBC CD of Big River but
since there is no recording of DWT version, could you tell
me how the musical arrangement (if any) is different from
the OBC score and the current version? What is the most
challenging number to perform for you and your band
member?
Mostly they're the same, except some of the tunes have been rearranged by Steve Landau, and at least one tune, "Hand For The Hog", has been cut. In its stead is a little ditty called, whimsically, "Hand For The Hog's Gone", which we play just before "I, Huckleberry, Me". And of course, in "Waiting For The Light To Shine", the magical moment at the end of the song where the sign language carries the song alone, was the brainchild of -- who else? -- Steve Landau, and is unique to this production.
6. When actors are out sick etc., there is an
understudy/swing to cover the role. Do you cover each
other's instrument when a band member calls in sick? (or
does it ever happen?)
Well, many of the players in the band play several instruments, so we probably could switch off if we absolutely had to, but never without a full rehearsal which we just don't have time for. The short answer is the band doesn't call in sick -- ever.
Here's a funny story to illustrate this point: I was in Denver a few years ago doing a show called The Immigrant, and the band was only
piano, clarinet, bass, and me doubling on violin, guitar, and mandolin. With such a small band, there's no way one piece can go
missing without sacrificing the integrity of the arrangements, so when I got food poisoning one night, there was really not much I could
do but try to clean myself up in time for the 11am matinee the next morning. I had been up all night barfing so hard, the blood vessels
around my eyes had all burst and my stomach muscles hurt from the constant contractions. I even had to bring a bucket with me into
the pit, because I knew there was no way I would make it through the entire show, if you know what I mean. So I shuffled into the pit,
looking like 10 pounds of crap in a 5 pound bag, thinking I was a real hero for making it to the show early. So I sat down next to the
clarinet player, who was there before me, and told him my story.
He just shrugged and said, "Oh, you think you're tough? Last night my house burned down during the show. Everything I own was destroyed, and all I was able to save was my family, the shirt on my back, and my clarinet -- and yet, I was here before you, m----- f-----!" I pretty much shut up after that, except when the bass player arrived and the clarinet player quipped, "Boy, you'd better have been abducted by aliens last night, because that's the only way you're going to beat us!"
7. In the souvenir program (U.S. tour), in the insert
where they list all the crew members (BTW, it doesn't
list any of the band members, drat!) there is a sentence
"Joe Brent uses John Pearse stings and Martin guitars"
and I thought that's rather odd. I mean are these
instruments so special?
I've been lucky enough to develop associations with these two companies - John Pearse Strings supplies the strings for my violin,
banjo, and some of my mandolins, and they're the best in the world for that (I use Dogal strings on my classical mandolin, and Martins
on my acoustic guitars). Martin Guitars is deservedly the most famous acoustic guitar maker in the world, and in exchange for a little
publicity, these two companies make sure I'm well stocked. I don't play guitar in this show, but I use an 18 in Broadway shows and a
28 in the studio. And of course, I use John Pearse Strings on the Konya violin I play in Big River.
8. What would you like to do during your stay in Japan?
Much, much more than is possible in one month! I've already seen every neighborhood in Tokyo, from Asakusa to Shibuya, including the Meiji, Hie-jinja, and Senso-ji shrines, the Roppongi nightlife, Mt. Fuji, Mt. Komagatake, took a boat ride on Lake Ashi, and sampled as much of the delicious food as I can get! If there's time, I plan to make it out to Kyoto, Yokohama, and out into the country if I have time, and keep shopping for my family and friends.
9. Do you have any message to Japanese audiences?
Thank you for the tremendous support you've given us in our time here, and for your wonderful hospitality as we discover your beautiful country. I've never been here before, and now I'm already planning my next visit!
Joe, thank you for taking your time to tell us such fascinating stories! I'm so happy to hear that you are enjoying the stay. Hope to see you in Sacramento!
