Profiles from the Center City Jazz Festival, Part 2

This is Part 2 of the series: Profiles from the Center City Jazz Festival.

By: Alexander Ariff

I am still reliving memories from April 28, when I attended  the first Center City Jazz Festival in Philadelphia, PA. The last profile was Ernest Stuart, here is number two, saxophonist Wade Dean. 

 

Wade Dean. Enspirational.

(L to R) Niel Perdursky, Jason Frataccelli, Wade Dean
(c) Alexander Ariff

I first heard Wade Dean in 2006 at a jam session inside of Naked Chocolate, a cafe (that no longer exists) on Walnut Street.  I witnessed Dean strut in, exchange some words, and take out his horn.  Dean told me that night that his horn was attached to him, it was a  part of his body; he never went anywhere without it. Back then, words like that stuck to me: a fertile, aspiring jazz musician. This past April, when I interviewed Dean after his set at Fergie’s Pub, he laughed, remembering the Naked Chocolate session: “the short-lived session grew out of a natural pairing, chocolate and jazz.”

Wade Dean moved to Philadelphia in 2003 to earn his M.M at University of the Arts. He was so determined to be a part of the scene that he would walk, at night, with his horn, two miles deep into North Philly to play. Dean said that his horn could have been stolen many times walking to Ortlieb’s, but he kept going back. “It broke my heart when it closed,” he said “but it’s back open now [for jazz] on Tuesday nights. There was day school in the classroom, but night school was getting your ass kicked by Mike Boone, Orin Evans, or Tim Warfield.”

Here is an exclusive recording of Wade Dean’s group, The Wade Dean Enspiration, from the Center City Jazz Festival. The band was the first to play the entire festival–they were also reuniting after a 6-month hiatus. You’ll hear Wade Dean (alto, from Philadelphia, PA), Adam Siegel (alto, from Albany, NY), Anwar Marshall (drums, from Germantown, PA), Jason Frataccelli (bass, from Philadelphia, PA), and Niel Perdursky (Fender Rhodes, from Philadelphia, PA). The first alto solo is played by Dean.

Wade Dean (left) and Adam Siegel (right)
(c) Alexander Ariff

Dean grew up in Orangeburg, South Carolina and still calls himself a “southern-boy.” After graduating from University of South Carolina in 2003, he made Philadelphia his home. First attending UArts, then in 2008 serving as Director of Jazz at University of Pennsylvania. His concept on the horn is distinctly soulful, and like many Philadelphia musicians, he is rooted in jazz but does not stray from gospel, blues and r&b groove oriented music.

Dean calls his Philadelphia jazz-colleagues resilient, and went as far as to use the word “stubborn.” He believes that the “we’re going to do it whether you like it or not” attitude contributed greatly to the making of the Center City Jazz Festival. Dean praised CCJF founder Ernest Stuart, and said that the festival could spark “a reawakening, and a renaissance.” The CCJF gave the musicians “new blood” by shining light on musicians, of all ages, who may not have had earlier chances to be heard by large, big-eared audiences.

(L to R) Adam Siegel and Wade Dean

Dean is set to move to  Los Angeles, California to enroll in a PhD program at UCLA in Musicology, Sociology and Africana Studies. He’ll focus on the music of Post-Katrina New Orleans. He believes this will allow him to stay steeped in jazz, by playing it, while informing his writing. He’s not just leaving a great gig at UPenn. Dean is leaving his band and his city…for now. “Philadelphia is my second home,” Dean said, “I became a man here.” If you’re on the east coast, you can say farewell to Dean at his goodbye party at Chris’ Jazz Cafe on June 29.

This is Part 2 of the series: Profiles from the Center City Jazz Festival. The first profile was of festival founder Ernest Stuart. Additional  reading: David Adler’s terrific recap on the CCJF for NPR. For more on Wade Dean’s music visit his website, Myspace, Reverbnation, and Facebook page. The final post will feature saxophonist Victor North.