John Case Responds to The Questionaire - Cadence Magazine, March 1992
In Lieu of an Interview: Relic from many moons ago - John Case responds to The Questionaire.
The Questionaire ----- Compiled by Bob Rusch. Published on page 34 of the March 1992 issue of Cadence Magazine.
Subject: John Case's recordings have been covered in the 9/76 (p.11), 5/78 (p.28), 9/81 (p.31), and 8/85 (p.23), 9/89 (p.70) issues of Cadence.
Name, date & place of birth: completion date of questionnaire. John Case; 8/24/47, Forth(sic) Worth, TX; 12/30/91
Cadence: Your most pertinent biographical facts or points of reference. Case: I am a jazz musician with roots in country music. I am the second of two sons born to J.C. and Floy Case.
Cadence: Your most pertinent artistic facts or points of reference. Case: Through my recordings I've presented a wide range of improvised music including avant garde, modern mainstream jazz and western swing.
Cadence: Your preferred venue for performance (clubs, concerts, recording studio, etc.). Case: Any venue that offers me an in-tune piano and at least a few perceptive listeners.
Cadence: Your major artistic achievemnet. Case: I've been playing jazz six nights a week for over eight years at Sardines Ristorante Italiano in Fort Worth.
Cadence: Future artistic goals. Case: I hope to issue my newly recorded Jazz Song Adventure along with previously unissued free-jazz from the Creative Explosions session, and perhaps also issue one of my recent compositions for concrete sound.
Cadence: Your major turning point(s), personal and/or professional. Case: My brother, guitarist Jerry Case, provided my first professional gig on 12/31/62. My personal life changed for the better when I met Kitty Keever in 1980.
Cadence: How do you relax? Case: Spending free time with my wife Kitty, reading works by my favorite authors, listening to music, contemplating objects in which I find beauty.
Cadence: What is the best way to communicate with you? Case: In person.
Cadence: Outside of music, what is your most major passion or interest? Case: My wife, paintings by Georgio Morandi, prose works and plays by Samuel Beckett and Jean Genet, the poetry of Bill Knott.
Cadence: What is your major musical irritant? Case: Out-of-tune pianos.
Cadence: Who are your heroes, or what are your major sources of stength or inspiration? Case: Too numerous to mention, but the list includes well-known and obscure names in European music, modern jazz, and western swing.
Cadence: The artistic achievement you feel best about to date. Case: The on-going documentation of honest music on my Priority/Anomaly label.
Cadence: What is most relevant to your artistry? Case: Being true to myself in the music.
Cadence: What is the most neglected area in your business? Case: Promotion and record distribution.
Cadence: What sustains you personally and/or artistically? Case: My wife, my musical heritage, working regularly with empathetic musicians.
Cadence: What makes you feel good and/or successful? Case: My commitment to pure musical expression.
Cadence: Preferred geographical place it live? Case: Fort Worth.
Cadence: Do you feel you have power in your business? In what area? Case: I have the power to maintain artistic integrity on my gig and on my recordings.
Cadence: Where is the power in your business most centered? Can you, or do you, reach it? Case: Mass media. Since I'm not hungry for power or money, I make no attempt to reach what is most likely inaccessible to me.
Cadence: What would you like the public to most understand about you? Case: With or without the support of the jazz community or any other external sources, I am documenting a broad spectrum of improvised music which, I am totally confident, has lasting value.