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CartAn Exclusive Interview With Casey Driessen!
Fri, 05 May 2006 14:36:40
Fans of fiddle music might open up the liner notes to Casey Driessen's 3D and think they've died and gone to bluegrass heaven. There's Bela Fleck on banjo, Jerry Douglas on dobro, Tim O'Brien on bouzouki, and singer/songwriter Darrell Scott on guitar. The rhythm section -- drummer Jamey Haddad and bassist Viktor Krauss -- ain't no slouches, either.
So how does a 27-year-old fiddle player from Chicago assemble such a musical dream team for his first solo album? By being one of the most gifted and innovative players of his instrument to emerge in the last, oh, 20 years or so.
Raised by a top-flight banjo and pedal-steel player, and trained at the prestigious Berklee School of Music, Driessen has already toured and recorded with the likes of Fleck, O'Brien, Steve Earle and Abigail Washburn. With his distinctive 5-string fiddle, wild red hair and trademark red shoes, he makes an equally strong impression on the ears and eyes. And with 3D, he instantly takes his place alongside other bluegrass-inspired innovators and genre-benders like Bela Fleck, Bryan Sutton and Nickel Creek. Yeah, he's that good.
We wanted to find out more about this fiddlin' firebrand, so we sent some questions off to Nashville (where Casey lives now) and got back these answers, along with a list of Casey's Top 10 Fiddle Influences (listed after the interview).
When did you get your first violin, and what kind was it?
My first violin was actually a cardboard box with a paint stirrer attached for the neck and a wooden dowel for a bow. That was how the Suzuki method started me at the age of five. Once I learned how to hold and treat the instrument, I think I was given a 1/4 size student fiddle with tape on the fingerboard and bow for reference markers. While that may have been my first fiddle, there are three that came afterwards that are special to me. The first came through Byron Berline, an amazing fiddler and dealer of fiddles. I had been jamming on my 1/2 size at the Walnut Valley Festival in Winfield, KS, when Byron approached my father to tell him he had a 3/4 size that he felt would be great for me. Normally, 3/4 fiddles aren't anything special, but he had one that sounded more full and rich than others. I always got compliments on its sound, and it was special to have this instrument come from a fiddler that I admired. I should note that when I was 12, bluegrass master fiddler Kenny Baker told me, the first time I met him, "Son, that's a ladies fiddle." He was referring to my 3/4 that he stated was a 7/8ths... a ladies size. As a boy, that left an impression.
The second important fiddle was my graduation to full size. I got it for Christmas one year during late junior high, I think. What was special was that it belonged to my great grandfather, Emmett Culligan. Like so many fiddles out there, the label inside said it was a Strad.... but of course, it wasn't. It was a no name fiddle with a Pat. date of Aug, 1908. The top of the fiddle was different than any other I've seen, and to this day, have only heard of a couple others existing. Normally the top is two matchbook pieces, but this one was laminated with 3" X 1/4" pieces.
The last important fiddle came to me in 1995 from the maker, John Silakowski. He was a friend from bluegrass festivals and fiddle contests who knew I liked to experiment with the fiddle. He had just built his third 5-string fiddle. I immediately fell in love with the extended lower register and its endless possibilities. I've played a 5-string ever since and would say that it has significantly shaped the way that I play. I still play a Silakowski though my current one is his 22nd. If you're interested, you can see pictures of my great grandfather's fiddle and my two Silakowski fiddles on my website by following the FIDDLES link - www.caseydriessen.com.
When you first started at Berklee, your concentration was in engineering and production instead of performance. Why? And has that more "technical" background influenced how you write or perform your music now?
I had been performing and studying quite a bit before attending Berklee. I knew that as a member of the in-demand string players (by virtue of our small number) I'd still be playing quite often, and in my heart, I knew I'd still be a player first. What I desired was to learn something totally new to me that would be a valuable resource in my future. I didn't want to feel like I was in the dark regarding the technical side of things and was looking for a way to be able to communicate with engineers, producers, and musicians.
Whether live or studio, I knew that I'd be around gear for the rest of my career. I'm the kind of guy that likes to know why things operate the way they do.
As for its use in my current life, I'd say it's quite useful. I use audio recording software and hardware to try out melodic and chordal ideas, create loops to practice with and compose to, and edit parts of tunes together for arrangement trials. I recently wrote a string quartet piece for someone and could use my gear to hear how it would sound before taking it into the studio. Every so often, I'm asked to record on other folks' records and I feel I'm more efficient in the studio with regards to my communication with the engineer. Additionally, I've been mailed a few projects and asked to record fiddle on them, which I'm able to do with my own resources at home – playing and engineering at the same time.
What was the most important thing you learned from touring with Steve Earle? How about with Bela Fleck?
In an interesting way, I'd say they both taught me the same thing: Be confident and stand up for what you believe in your gut and in your heart, make the music that you want to make, and don't be afraid to be different. I'd say those are characteristics of artists who have an original voice.
Why'd you decide to call the new album 3D?
When I first started working on the record, I wanted to set some guidelines for the material to meet. I figured that the tunes should serve some purpose. My first thought was that, in order to make it on the record, a track should feel good to drive to, dance to, or "do it" to.... three activities that music can raise to the next level. I didn't feel like calling the record Dancing, Driving, and Doin' It -- however, that was my working title for a while. I wanted to be a bit more subtle and had the idea for 3D. As soon as that title appeared, deeper meanings were realized. I've layered my fiddles on different tracks and have a photo of many "me's" within the artwork...3D for three (or more) Driessen's, if you will. Then there's the idea of 3D representing meaningful music and musicians from different walks of my life all coming together in what I feel is a cohesive sound... multi-dimensional, yet unified. While in China last November, I found the old motorcycle glasses on the cover picture at an open-air market in Beijing, further solidifying the 3D concept.
I am in no way telling the listener what they should be doing while listening to the music. I feel 3D represents the process that I went through to get the music to the listener. Everybody will find their personal and appropriate places to insert the record within their life's soundtrack.
What's your favorite thing about living in Nashville?
I love the proximity to a large community of musicians. Most of the musicians I know and hang with like to push the boundaries of traditional music. This wealth and desire for growth leads to many different opportunities to make original music with many different people in as many different styles. As a result, the level of musicianship is very high.
What's the most common misperception people have about bluegrass music?
That it's easy to play and that we like hay bales as stage props. Just to be sure, I wouldn't call my record a bluegrass fiddle record, but I'd say that my roots are in bluegrass.
What musicians, living or dead, do you wish you could play with?
Stevie Wonder. Stuff Smith.
How often do you comb your hair?
I'm just an unfrozen caveman fiddler who's unfamiliar with your modern ways... or vocabulary... what is this word 'comb' you speak of, and why is there a 'b' on the end of it? I actually expected a question about the red shoes... the hair is a first.
Casey Driessen's album, Dancing, Driving and... uh, sorry, 3D, is available now in the ARTISTdirect Store. And once you've had your mind blown by 3D, put away your Charlie Daniels records and check out Casey's list of Top 10 Fiddle Influences, plus a favorite record from each (in alphabetical order):
Darol Anger. Quintet 80 by David Grisman
Kenny Baker. Kenny Baker Plays Bill Monroe
Byron Berline. Dad's Favorites
Vassar Clements. Hartford, Clements, Holland
Stuart Duncan. Drive by Béla Fleck
Stéphane Grappelli. Quintette of the Hot Club of France by Django Reinhardt
Annbjørg Lien. Baba Yaga
Mark O'Connor. The Telluride Sessions by Strength in Numbers
Jean-Luc Ponty. A Taste for Passion
Stuff Smith. Jivin' At The Onyx
