The MN Hard Bop Collective Hosts a Student Concert at metroNOME Brewery on Monday, August 11

 

This interview originally aired on The Afternoon Cruise on 08/07/25

READ THE COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT BELOW:

Sean McPherson (Jazz88) 

It’s the Afternoon Cruise, and I’m chatting with Abebi Stafford pianist and organist and one of the forces behind the Minnesota hard bop Collective. We’re also joined by a stunning young saxophonist, Sam Stauning, did I get it right? Sam Stauning?

 

Sam Stauning (MN Hard Bop Collective) 

yes.

 

Sean McPherson (Jazz88) 

all right, thank you for lying if I didn’t get it right. I appreciate you. And the Minnesota Hard Bop Collective is really well known for their sit-in series, which runs much of the year on Mondays over a metronome brewery in Lowertown, St Paul. But this summer, the crew has turned their attention in some other directions. They’re throwing a student showcase fundraiser this very Monday, that would be August 11, over at Metronome. And the group recently got some bad news about federal funding for the Hard Bop Collective, so they’re turning it into a fundraiser. And in these trying times, I really thank everybody involved with these events for leading with music. We appreciate you. BB and Sam, welcome to jazz 88 thank you for being here. Thanks for having us. Thank you. Now we got our saxophonist, Sam Stauning here in the house. Sam, you’re going to be on stage on Monday. What are you excited about doing that evening?

 

Sam Stauning (MN Hard Bop Collective) 

I’m excited about collaborating with the other students who are doing the sit in series with me. I think it’s going to be really fun to try out a trio setting with no bass or a drum. I think that is very interesting. And it’s fun to play in a group like that, because then it’s kind of on all three of us to keep pushing time and doing all all that, like pushing time harmonic material, and there’s not really a label on any one of us to for who’s pushing forward and who’s leading, and it’s all collaborative.

 

Sean McPherson (Jazz88) 

Have you ever heard the phrase when there’s no drummer, everybody’s the drummer? Yes. So that’s the thing. You suddenly there’s no you can’t go well, it’s her fault. It’s bad time our drummer’s a problem. Everybody’s the drummer, and there’s no drummer, so that’s kind of like flying without a parachute. And I imagine that doing the sit in series, you’ve probably been in a lot of situations where you’re sort of getting past a chart that’s maybe in the wrong transposition, or perhaps it’s just a tune you haven’t been familiar with. What has doing this type of performing with the sit in series given you as a young player?

 

Sam Stauning (MN Hard Bop Collective) 

I think it’s given me a lot of experience that I think a lot of other young players like myself lack in their playing. I think a lot of people, they want to be very prepared for things, which is very understandable. You don’t want to sound bad in front of pros. But that’s not really the nature of jazz music and jazz culture. I think it’s more spontaneous in the moment, you might mess up, but then you go home and shed and you figure it out, and you come back better.

 

Sean McPherson (Jazz88) 

I had hard earned, hard learned lessons from being exactly one of those very anal retentive, excuse me, what order is everything going to be in? And I was in a in the back parking area of the Mall of America with the Walker West Jazz Ensemble when I was in high school. And I’m talking to my wonderful teacher, Felix James and I go, “What song do you think we’ll play second? What order do you think the solos will be in? Do you think they’ll be a drum solo? Will we trade four? Should we trade eights?” And he leaned over to my friend Martin. He said, “This man talks too much.” And that was one of those lessons of sometimes you have to save some of those questions for the bandstand, and sometimes you have to just let it happen and again, go, kind of lick your wounds when you get home. I want to introduce Abebi Stafford, who we’ve already chatted a little bit with, but he is a spectacular pianist and organist and somebody who we love playing here on jazz 88 and Abebi, you’ve been quite involved with these sit in series. What are you looking forward to about this particular Monday in this concert?

 

Abebi Stafford (MN Hard Bop Collective) 

Oh, yeah, I’m looking forward to seeing Sam and Basil and Kyle lay it down. They’ve been putting a lot of hard work into practicing their craft, becoming better on their instruments. I’ve seen Sam here. He’s had a lot of growth in the past six months, and it’ll be good to see them out there showcasing their talents with the tutelage of Ian and Jesse and myself and other pros who come through every so often. So I’m looking forward to seeing all the hard work that they’ve done come to fruition. And you know, hav e people who enjoy all their hard work.

 

Sean McPherson (Jazz88) 

Now, Abebi, I think we could both agree, there’s certain lessons you can only learn on the bandstand. There’s certain things that just can’t happen in a practice room. Can’t even happen in a rehearsal room with a group of people. You got to be up there. And as you’ve been involved in the sit in series, what kind of development have you tracked from young players who actually come in and do the work and show up week after week and sharpen their tools?

 

Abebi Stafford (MN Hard Bop Collective) 

Well, I think that you know, some of the things like, there’s a lot of elements in going to plan a song. You know, there’s obviously, what are the the chords doing? What direction is it going in? You know, there’s the time. There’s form, you know, let’s keep track of what the form is. Is AAB? Is it? You know, my, my thing with, with the students, is to try to tell them, like, you know, Hey, be very aware of where the song is going and listen to the other band members. That’s very important in, you know, a setting like this, and even in the professional setting, yeah,

 

Sean McPherson (Jazz88) 

There’s a lot of folks who cash checks who don’t listen to each other. So. Know that’s the truth. It is the afternoon cruise. I’m chatting with some folks from the Minnesota hard BOP Collective getting ready for a concert. There’s a fundraiser for the organization. It’s happening on Monday night over a metronome and Sam, I wanted to ask you, when you suddenly on this concert, there’s not gonna have a drummer supporting you, not gonna have your Are you gonna have a pianist? You’re gonna have a saxophonist, you and a guitarist. So when you’re navigating like that as a saxophonist, how does that change how you improvise? And how are you able to keep on listening when you might not have that strong undergirding of the bass player, just, you know, playing the the notes, the quarter notes, etc.

 

Sam Stauning (MN Hard Bop Collective) 

Yeah, I think it forces you to play simpler and more melodically, and you can’t go as you know, crazy or anything like that, because you don’t have drummer bass pushing you forward. And it’s more it’s more of a responsive group than normal quartet is, in my opinion. And I think it forces because, obviously more rhythmically and stuff, but also just forces you to really keep track, and you like, really have to count and listen to where piano and guitar are comping together, and just really listen to both of them.

 

Sean McPherson (Jazz88) 

Well, it’s a it’s a tall order. I wish you were to call me. I’m a bass player. I would have come in and laid down a couple notes for you, but I think you guys are gonna prove yourself pretty spectacular, especially after all the playing you’ve been doing at this sit in series. Now, after the students showcase, there’s gonna be a performance with a BB, Stafford, who’s handling the organ, Jesse on drums, Jesse Simon, who’s one of the main forces behind the hard Bob collective, and Ian Doer on guitar, a BB, after all this helping and supporting and and being a pro, sort of using your tutelage to help people with the students, what are you excited about just getting behind the instrument and getting behind the instrument and cook a little bit.

 

Abebi Stafford (MN Hard Bop Collective) 

Well, it’s, it’s, it’s been, the organs been an interesting mainstay. Well, we’ll call it not quite a mainstay, but I’ve kind of jumped on and off the organ. I first started playing organ, no jazz organ, I should say, back in 97 I got some some pointers from a guy that used to live here. His name is Billy Holloman, yes. Billy Holloman, the legend, yeah. So I think he moved to Philly, but, but, you know, it was one of the thing. He said, Well, baby, you know, do you know how to turn the organ on. So, you know, that’s, it’s one of those things where, like, some people don’t know how to turn the organ on. It’s kind of complicated, you know. So that type of thing, you know, how to do a good bass line, you know, just, just the elements of it. I, you know, I had some of the the technical thing, just playing piano, but just, to, know, kind of like, you know, this is a different beast. It’s a similar beast, but it’s a different beast. So it’s just, it’s just fun to get back into it, I you know. So I I did like a summer of plan back in 97 I know I’m old, and then then I picked it back up in 2016 actually, that’s when I linked up with with Jesse and did a jam session over at jazz Central, with a guitar player at the time and a drummer, Colin Rodney, and that was me, and we would just have a weekly jam. So I kind of got back, you know, dusted the cobwebs off back then, did that for about a year, put the organ away. Then, you know, fast forward, 2024 2025 I’m back playing it again. Realize I was like, Oh, I’m a little rusty on that, but I think, I think I’m back to form.

 

Sean McPherson (Jazz88) 

There you go. Well, that’s the thing. It’s it is quite challenging when you realize, like, oh, Abebi is about to do my job with his feet. That’s a hard gig. I’ve been chatting with the members the Minnesota Hard Bop collective getting ready for a concert going down Monday night over at Metronome, there’s a fundraiser, like so many nonprofits, this group is facing trying times, including a loss in federal funding. And I, you know, I just wanted to ask, sort of, as far as your involvement, Sam, like, what does the future look like for what you’ll be doing when they get the hard bop sit in series back going? Do you plan to sort of keep on bringing that sax and keep on finding your way?

 

Sam Stauning (MN Hard Bop Collective) 

Yeah, I would definitely plan on keep on coming. I think it’s just a great opportunity to come play, and it’s always consistent. It’s always happening. It doesn’t really matter how many people are there. It’s just Jesse’s always there with the drums, just there. And it’s a good opportunity for people to just find out who they are as a musician and figure out what they like to do, what they don’t like to do, what they need to strengthen in their playing. And it’s just good because it’s all free as well. Like you don’t have to pay for anything, you don’t have to pay a cover to get in. You don’t have to buy a certain amount of food or drink or anything. You can just come down and jam.

 

Sean McPherson (Jazz88) 

It’s a whole different parachuteless journey, if it’s just you and a drummer as a saxophone. Sam, I certainly appreciate you visiting and congratulations, young man about your development. Well, glad to welcome you on to Jazz88 Where do you study at? And what type of saxophone Do you play?

 

Sam Stauning (MN Hard Bop Collective) 

Yeah, I study at Walker West Music Academy. I take private lessons with jazz. Jack Breen. And then I’m also a part of ensembles there as well. And then, originally, I started out on alto saxophone, and that was in what was fourth grade, so about seven years, and then I just started playing tenor about two months ago.

 

Sean McPherson (Jazz88) 

Oh are you playing on Monday?

 

Sam Stauning (MN Hard Bop Collective) 

Tenor,

 

Sean McPherson (Jazz88) 

okay, the courage of young people of Abebi, you’re sitting here going, yeah, the organs a little shaky, and he’s like, Yeah, I just grabbed this saxophone.

 

Abebi Stafford (MN Hard Bop Collective) 

News to me that he just started, basically two months ago, playing the tenor I would have never known. I mean, he’s he’s so advanced for what he’s doing that I would have thought he’s been playing it at least a few years.

 

Sean McPherson (Jazz88) 

But, yeah, I got to tip my hat to both of you, one to have professional musicians actually engaged in helping the next generation, both in the informal and formal ways that happens when Felix James said, This man talks too much to me. You know, 25 years ago, that wasn’t, that wasn’t, yeah, exactly. He talks a lot about jazz. I wonder what he’ll do for a career. But it wasn’t in the curriculum, right? It was just one of those things that a grown man knew needed to be said to this person who wasn’t bringing the right kind of energy before a gig, and to have that go on, to see that go on. And I know that you studied at Walker West now you studied at Walker west now we’re involved in the hard BOP Collective. This is a really beautiful thing. So thank you for making this a part of your schedule. BB, Stafford, you’re doing really important work. And Sam, hats off to you for braving it, because I’m sure there’s a lot of people go. I’ll just run this Omni book scale one more time and I’m gonna stay home. You’re actually getting out there and figuring out how to navigate it with other people. And both of those things are important. So hats off to you both. The concert is on Monday, and metronome in Lowertown St Paul. Gentlemen, thank you for visiting jazz88

 

Abebi Stafford (MN Hard Bop Collective) 

Thanks, Sean.

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