Live at Lucille’s: Season 2
Kenny Banks Jr Trio
I love music. Good music. Music of almost any genre. There’s something especially exciting about jazz music.
I love directing TV. Live TV. TV programs of entertainment or sporting events. There’s nothing like the challenge of live TV, where anything can happen.
On a rainy night in late January, “two great tastes that taste great together” joined forces in the local East Tennessee PBS studio to revive an old Knoxville jazz tradition. Lucille’s.
Whenever improvisational music is performed on camera, the TV director has to immerse him/herself into the performance and become “the fifth Beatle.” I’m constantly looking for the nuances – a look, nod, wink or chromatic bend in a chord – that signal to the band-mates “hey, we’re about to go to the ‘B Section‘ here.”
Usually, TV productions isolate various camera angles and insert those golden moments in the editing process. Sometimes, we capture them live as they happen.
The way we record Live at Lucille’s is completely extemporaneous. No rehearsals. No music scores. No script. Just feel the music and take the shot as it happens. It’s a fun craft to show the audience a live performance in the moment.
It’s like being in a band again.
Kenny Banks Jr Trio
Kenny Banks – piano
Tommy Sauter – bass
Dave Patton – drums
You can stream past episodes of Live at Lucille’s on https://watch.easttennesseepbs.org/show/live-lucilles-great-performances-world-jazz/
