It's difficult to imagine improvisation with the harmonica, a non-traditional, toy-like instrument, in a traditional jazz set up as compared to a saxophone or a trumpet. But that's exactly what harmonicist Frederic Yonnet is known to do, and he aims to do just that when he takes to the stage today at the Dubai Jazz Festival.
"I'm hoping to change the audiences' musical lives. They will never look at the harmonica the same way again," Yonnet stresses.
The French urban jazz harmonicist, musician, producer and recording artist, who has performed alongside music icons such as Stevie Wonder, Prince, Ed Sheeran and John Legend, to name a few, will be opening up for rockers Snow Patrol at the three-day music festival that's kicking off tonight at the Dubai Media City Amphitheatre.
Yonnet has performed in the UAE earlier and this is his third visit to the country. "I have attended the Formula One (in Abu Dhabi) event a couple times and performed for the opening of Cafe Milano in Abu Dhabi's Four Seasons. But I'm excited to be back and looking forward to performing in the Dubai Jazz Festival."
Traditionally, the harmonica has been mainly used in blues or country music. However, a handful of artists, such as the legendary Toots Thielemans (who gave the harmonica a prominent place in jazz music), and Stevie Wonder (who makes infectious R&B music with the instrument), gave the harmonica a wider appeal.
Described by Rolling Stone magazine as Prince's 'killer harmonica player,' Yonnet has been using the instrument to embellish jazz, R&B, pop-rock, hip-hop and other contemporary genres. But for him, the harmonica is just a reflection of his personality. "It's simple, accessible and playful. However, like me, it shouldn't be underestimated. With its 10-holes, it appears to be limited in it's function, however, I've discovered the limitations are in the mind, not the instrument. Expanding the way I approached the instrument allows me to take my music to a whole new level."
Call it coincidence or providence, but the harmonica also helped Yonnet manage and overcome asthma, an ailment he has been struck with since childhood. "I discovered that the intense breathing that I did while playing the harmonica actually helped strengthen my lungs. I remember feeling like I'd literally die if I didn't play it. The more I reached for the harmonica, the less I grabbed my inhaler. The more I played, the more inspired I was to play."
Dream run
Interestingly, Yonnet began his music career with a percussion instrument. "It's been pretty amazing. I actually started by playing drums when I was 13-years-old, but I didn't own a car or have a driver's license then, so I traded it (drums) for an instrument that was more portable - a harmonica.
"At that time, I didn't know exactly how far it would take me but I was willing to go for the ride. As it turned out, it's taken me all around the world and given me the opportunity to perform with people who had, until then, only been on my playlist. I feel like I am living my dreams."
Yonnet has an unorthodox approach to music, and adapts his technique to fit any contemporary style of music. "I'm kind of a harmonica hacker. I deconstruct the instrument and the music. I use techniques to access notes which don't naturally exist on the instrument. If I can sing or whistle it (tune), I can figure out how to play it. I don't put any limitation on how to include the harmonica into music. It can fit anywhere, even in oriental music. My latest projects feature the harmonica in a variety of genres - jazz, R&B, hip-hop, rock, gospel and country. My live shows sometimes go a little further in showcasing the range."
Yonnet loves performing live the most. "Even my latest album, Reed My Lips: The Final Mix, really gives one the feeling of being at a live show. When performing live I'm able to create a moment, while recording allows me to capture a moment."
Meeting Stevie Wonder
Frederic Yonnet says his first encounter with Stevie Wonder, was in a rather unusual fashion. Comedian Dave Chappelle was introducing him to Wonder during the 2006 Grammys when, suddenly, out of the blue, Yonnet pulled out a harmonica from his pocket and started playing some riffs, and the next thing. he and Wonder were on tour.
"I met Stevie Wonder at the Grammys. It's a pretty funny story and Chappelle tells it best. You have to watch it on YouTube video (www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRNDIVJ4n0w)," Yonnet recalled.
And it was their common love for the harmonica that led to a fruitful partnership. "Wonder has always been an inspiration to me, and our shared passion for the harmonica, made us fast friends. He'd invite me to jam with him at shows for these high-energy harmonica duels.
"When he decided to do a tour celebrating the 50th anniversary of his Songs in the Keys of Life album, he asked me to be a part of it. His songs Have a Talk with God and Mama's Call feature him singing or playing multiple harmonica parts. On the album, he sang and played all the parts. But on the tour, I played while he sang, and we played the multiple parts together. Every show was as exciting as the first one," he said.
And it was the gigs with Wonder that led him to play with the late Prince. "Prince saw me perform with Stevie Wonder at New York's Madison Square Garden. Several months later, I was at one of Prince's house parties, he remembered my performance and invited me to jam with him and his band in the basement. That eventually led to me doing performances and tour dates with him and The New Power Generation (Prince's band)."
A chance jam with Ed Sheeran ended up with a TV special for Yonnet. "Dave Chappelle and I produce a pop-up event called: Dave Chappelle's Juke Joint featuring Frederic Yonnet and the Band with No Name," Yonnet said.
"We did a party in London and Ed stopped by to jam. We had such a good time Ed invited me to perform with him on a show in Washington, DC. We performed his hit song, Thinking Out Loud and it ended up being filmed as part of a Christmas TV special. We've stayed in touch and have since jammed together at pop-ups in DC and Johannesburg, SA," he added.
He also got the chance to meet the legendary Toots Thielemans.
"I had the pleasure of meeting Thielemans at Blues Alley in Washington DC. We also chatted on the phone once about recording together, but somehow I never performed with him."
Yonnet holds fond memories of performing at Quincy Jones's 85th birthday party last year. "Quincy's birthday celebration, which aired on BET, was an amazing, star-studded evening of music and tributes to 'The Dude'. You name it, they were there... Oprah, Stevie Wonder, John Legend, Dave Chappelle, Gladys Knight, Usher, Gloria Estefan and many others.
"I had the chance to perform two songs, including one with an all-star band led by Herbie Hancock and directed by (keyboardist and musical director) Greg Phillinganes."
Hollywood calling
Besides touring and recording, he is also involved with Hollywood films. "There are actually two projects (I worked on). The re-release of Bradley Cooper's A Star is Born, which includes a brief performance and song that I wrote called, Stomping at the Juke Joint. And most recently, I worked with music director Robbie Robinson on the score of Martin Scorsese's film (The Irishman). It features the harmonica pretty prominently. I can't really elaborate about it now, except that it's supposed to release this fall and it's projected to be one of Netflix's most expensive production to date."
Music sharing concept
Explaining a unique music sharing concept that he created, he says, "I call this project 'reality CD' because I'm sharing the music at various stages in the creative process. The music is available on a download card that you retain it in order to access the music whenever major changes and updates are made to a song. You're notified of updates and invited to give your feedback, either on the website or on social media. Your feedback will influence the final outcome."
While Yonnet maybe one of the most proficient harmonicists on the world stage, he still faces huge challenges trying to get people hooked to his music. "I think Dave Chappelle summed it up best when he said 'I didn't even know I liked harmonica music until I met this guy.' But my biggest challenge has always been to get the music in front of audiences so that they can discover and hopefully appreciate it. If they don't like it, they'll at least be fascinated about it."
So what's next for him? "Well, I'm going wherever this instrument will take me."
The Dubai Jazz Festival line-up
Today: Frederic Yonnet, Vandalye, Snow Patrol
Thursday, February 21: Abri & Funk Radius, Keb' Mo', Jamiroquai
Friday, February 22: Alicia Keys
Where: Dubai Media Amphitheatre
Tickets: From Dhs350-Dhs3,000 available at www.dubai.platinumlist.net, www.tickets.virginmegastore.me/ae or www.800tickets.com or visit dubaijazzfest.com
michael@khaleejtimes.com