O1C Concludes Month with Cornelius Boots Solos

Cornelius Boots with one of the many shakuhachis made for him (from the O1C Web page for last night’s concert)

Last night Old First Concerts (O1C) wrapped up its live-streamed series of solo recitals for the month of June. The recitalist was shakuhachi master Cornelius Boots. Readers may recall that I singled him out as one of the leading performers at SF Music Day 2019 last October. On that occasion he led his Heavy Roots Shakuhachi Ensemble, whose repertoire extends far beyond the traditional Japanese music usually associated with the instrument. Boots himself specializes in the taimu (bass) shakuhachi; but, for last night’s recital, he played several different instruments in a variety of sizes.

Many of his selections were either his own compositions or arrangements that he had prepared. Most of those arrangements, in turn, were imaginative reflections on some of the more adventurous post-bop jazz composers; and one was inspired by Jimi Hendrix. The Hendrix selection closed out the program of ten selections. This was his own unique interpretation of “Hey Joe,” whose authorship has been contested but which was copyrighted by Billy Roberts. There was little sense of acid rock in Boots’ delivery, but the sense of soulful rhetoric was unmistakable.

The jazz selections were taken from the “dynamic duo” that flourished in the Sixties, saxophonists Eric Dolphy and John Coltrane, both of whom died in that decade. Dolphy had a particularly wide command of the wind family, adding flute and both B-flat and bass clarinets to his alto saxophone work. Coltrane, in turn, extended his mastery of the tenor saxophone to include also the soprano saxophone. The Coltrane selection was “Wise One,” while Dolphy was represented with “Serene.” That piece was followed by Boots’ own “Mandrake Walks,” which he dedicated in memory of Dolphy.

There was much to be gained in listening to the diversity of sonorities and styles that Boots could elicit from his collection of instruments. Unfortunately, too much of his time was occupied with spoken explanations. He clearly had much to offer by way of useful background; but, just as clearly, he was not particularly comfortable with speaking to an audience that was not physically present. At SF Music Day the music spoke for itself, requiring little by way of introduction; and I, for one, would have appreciated more time being allotted to the music itself.

The performance took place in Boots’ own studio, which he calls “The Barn.” Sadly, the technology left much to be desired. Most critically, there was a wide gap of failed synchronization between the audio signal and the video images. For the most part, the best way to appreciate Boots’ performance was to avoid looking at the screen, which provided unnecessary distraction. O1C still has a way to go in establishing a solid command of live-streaming technology; but, in times like these, they still deserve credit for trying.