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Jazz is considered America\u2019s classical music, and it may take a 23-year-old former San Diego resident to keep it alive for the next generation. <\/p>\n
His name is Eldar Djangirov, better known as Eldar, and this Russian-born graduate of Francis Parker High School in La Jolla has quickly earned an international rep for both his classical and his jazz recordings. <\/p>\n
In fact, he signed a recording contract with Sony Masterworks at the age of 17 to do a classical album and his 2008 album \u201cRe-Imagination\u201d was nominated for the Best Contemporary Jazz album. <\/p>\n
To have that impact at that young an age takes a lot of focus and dedication, but to keep the ball rolling \u2013 especially in a genre like jazz that rewards originality — requires a willingness to stretch your boundaries and keep exploring new ground. <\/p>\n
Eldar, who performs at Anthology on May 7, is ready and able to do that. Whether the audience is ready to go with him is something he thinks about deeply. <\/p>\n
\u201cJazz in 2010 is a misnomer,\u201d he said. \u201cThe label limits the music at least where press is concerned. People think that jazz has to sound a certain way for it to be jazz, but the vocabulary has changed \u2013 even in the last 10 years.\u201d <\/p>\n
To Eldar\u2019s way of thinking, jazz, as he knows it, should be affected by the contemporary world the same way other forms of popular music such as hip-hop or rock are. But not everybody who considers them a jazz fan feels that way. <\/p>\n
\u201cMusic should effect an edge of what\u2019s around,\u201d he said. \u201cSomeone who hears my new album, \u2018Virtue,\u2019 will hear a jazz record, but it also has elements of classical, rock and hip-hop because that\u2019s where I\u2019m coming from.\u201d <\/p>\n
The title \u201cVirtue\u201d was deliberate and seriously thought out, much like everything Eldar does. <\/p>\n
\u201cTo me, the word \u2018virtue\u2019 means a certain honesty or excellence that reflects personality and character, and that\u2019s what I strive for.\u201d <\/p>\n
To that end, he made sure to record with other top younger jazz musicians such as sax giant Joshua Redman, trumpeter Nicholas Payton and sax great Felipe Lamoglia. <\/p>\n
However, much of the key to his musical growth in recent years hasn\u2019t necessarily come from the musicians, but the engineers who press play on the tape deck. <\/p>\n
\u201cTalking with a lot of sound engineers has been a big influence because they know exactly how things should sound, and that\u2019s been important,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n