Dialogues

The program involves three extraordinary musicians performing in three formations making bridges. Dialogues set the stage without limits on performance genre, generational, and cultural differences. The two duo performances begin as exciting encounters opening with unscripted musical dialogues. With bridges made in the duos, all three musicians come together to communicate together as one. The program is 90 minutes long and centered on the music both from Jon and guest artists.

Growing up with a strong musical foundation in NYC and then being invited to Austria as a young tuba player, made musical dialogue a central aspect of Jon’s navigating a diverse career expressed in jazz, classical, and far beyond.

“This conceptual structure was inspired by Jon’s participation in Friedemann Derschmidt’s “Vielgeschichtig”. And especially from an experience he had years ago at a Canadian music festival where he was asked to play with one of the other hundred or so invited musicians. The key point was the musicians did not know which kind of musician or which musical instrument he or she would play with.  Unscripted musical connections was the concept. Jon was arranged to play with “Artis the Spoonman”, whose musical case was filled with various spoons for different pitch combinations and who was also on national television. This turned out to be an amazing and musically successful experience.”

Jon is a man of dialogue. Having come to Austria as a young tuba player, musical dialogue with partners was and is the most important basis of his music. The connection to Friedemann’s work has inspired Jon to create a program with two new duo premieres and a long-standing duo partner in one program.

Jon Sass in a duo with extraordinary partners and a long-time companion in new, exciting musical encounters. The world-class musician Karin Nakagawa from Japan plays the Japanese string instrument Koto, breaking all genre boundaries and mixing new timbres with Jon’s tuba. The initial dialog between Jon and Karin was the starting point for this program. Jon will perform the second duo with the Egyptian-born Austrian sound artist percussionist Amir Wahba. Jon has been cultivating a dialogue of friendship and musical affinity with flutist Wolfgang Puschnig for decades, and so a duo session with him will complete the evening of musical conversations.  

“Soul Conversations bring an exciting and broad musical palette to life”