Aerial Phenomenon

Matt Davis weaves music and interviews into his new monthly CD project.

by Shaun Brady

SATELLITES: Aerial Photograph has a core group of regulars, but personnel and instrumentation change from show to show (Matt Davis, center). (CLICK IMAGE FOR LARGER VERSION)

Last year was a light one for Matt Davis' Aerial Photograph; the guitarist's 12-piece chamber jazz ensemble played only three gigs. To remedy that inaction, Davis decided to turn his monthly last-Thursday Tritone gig into a showcase for new compositions. The idea bloomed into "Philadelphia, 2008," a 12-part documentary music project incorporating interviews with diverse Philly communities as samples and inspiration for new pieces. Davis enters the studio prior to each month's gig and records the music, releasing limited-edition CDs at the show and online. Past months have tackled seniors, drug addicts, immigrants and youth; this month's installment is "City of Transcendence," dealing with religion and spirituality. I spoke to Davis recently over lunch in Manayunk.

City Paper: Where did the idea come from?

Matt Davis: The woman who cuts my hair is Laotian, and she told me stories about escaping into Thailand when Laos became Communist. When she was 14 she paid a bunch of fishermen with her mother's jewelry to disguise her and take her across the river, with people getting shot around her. I remember thinking about the diversity of Philly and all the different places that people have come from. The initial thought was to do a song or an album that featured different groups of people who've come to Philadelphia, but I started brainstorming and thought it would be cool to have something different every month.

CP: What's your creative process?

MD: I'm always thinking about it. When I get together with people and improv I explore different ideas, and if something strikes me as being appropriate for a certain group of people I'll file it and revisit it later. I do a lot of research online before I actually do the interviews, and then I edit them, looking for clips that stand by themselves. When I'm writing the music I'm thinking about where the pieces will go and how they're going to relate to the rest of it.

CP: One of the interviewees on January's City of Age (about elderly lifelong residents) talks about experiences in jazz.

MD: That's Jerry Dorn, a trombone player I met because he lived in the same apartment complex as a drummer friend of mine. He invited me to a jam session, and when I walked into his apartment, there's a signed picture of Jerry arm in arm with Louis Armstrong. I was shocked. Then I turned the corner and there's pictures of him with Charlie Parker, Billy Eckstine, Count Basie. He was in the Woody Herman Band for about six years.

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CP: How did you find the drug addicts you spoke to for February's City of Addiction?

MD: I naïvely thought I could just go up to people downtown who were asking for money and offer them a couple bucks to talk to me. I did that for a few days and got nowhere. It was frustrating, but of course they're not going to open up to a complete stranger about their drug addiction. It was silly on my part. So I just drove over to this drug rehab place in Kensington where there's always people hanging out in front who are obviously dealing with those issues and spent an afternoon there talking to people.

CP: With Aerial Photograph, there seems to be a core group of regular members, but personnel and instrumentation change from show to show.

MD: It's kind of a necessity. But I have a group of people I really love working with, and at this point I write for people as much as I write for their instruments. I know everybody in the band and I know how they play, so I write things that I think would feature their best attributes.

(s_brady@citypaper.net)

Matt Davis' Aerial Photograph plays Thu., May 29, 10 p.m., $10, Tritone, 1508 South St., 215-545-0475, tritonebar.com, mattdavisguitar.com.