Jazz Pianist & Composer Dan Karlsberg Brings Generations Together With New Album, 'HOLDING THE WHEEL OF LIFE'

Departed composers and living musicians converge with youthful memories and modern pressures on HOLDING THE WHEEL OF LIFE, Jazz pianist and composer Dan Karlsberg's sixth and latest album. On several levels, it is his most personal project yet.

The eight-track album is Karlsberg's reflection on having reached a more mature period of existence. Now 44, it is his way of uniting musicians who came before him, taught him, and inspired him, with younger ones who represent the future of Jazz. However, the album is about more than just music and those who create it.​​​​​

"This album deals with my relationships now in middle-age," said Karlsberg, who teaches at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM). "I am one of many assisting our elders, while nurturing the youth. Being Gen Xers, we have the cultural experiences to relate to both generations. I feel a responsibility to hold up the constantly moving wheel of life."

For HOLDING THE WHEEL OF LIFE, Karlsberg enlisted two of his favorite veteran musicians and two younger ones, ranging in age from their 20s to 70s, to join him in the studio: Jim Anderson (bass), who has toured with Jazz greats Art Blakey, Ernestine Anderson, Benny Golson and more; Marc Fields (trombone), who toured with Ray Charles for six years; Josh Kline (tenor saxophone), a musician who is also working on a doctorate in math at the University of Cincinnati; and Charlie Schefft (drummer), one of Karlsberg's former students, now based in New York.

Most compositions on HOLDING THE WHEEL OF LIFE are original, with even cover and semi-cover tunes displaying Karlsberg's unique interpretations of the original composers' music.

"Disciples Blues" is a swinging ode written by The Modern Jazz Disciples, a Cincinnati-based band that was popular during the 1950s and 1960s. "They were an influential part of Cincinnati's jazz history and lead by saxophonist Curtis Peagler," Karlsberg said. "This song is my way of sharing with the younger people some of the city's jazz traditions."

"Ictus No. 1" is a classically inspired original, the title of which Karlsberg chose simply for how it sounds. "In music, an ictus is the visible beat of the conductor's baton, but that's not what the song is about. Sometimes I come up with random titles. 'Ictus' is just a fun word to say."

"We're All Just One" is Karlsberg's expression of a desire to remind us "we create our divisions; they are not naturally there."

"Cheer Up, Charlie" is an instrumental redux of the song written by Anthony Newley and Leslie Bricusse for Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, one of Karlsberg's favorite films.

"Fall Suite Movement 4" is a song that Karlsberg wrote for an as-yet unfinished album inspired by the four seasons.

"Lili's Blues" was inspired by a composition by the early 20th century French composer Lili Boulanger, the first female winner of the prestigious Prix de Rome.

"Mephistopheles" combines old with new, as it is based on "Mephistopheles' Song of the Flea," a song by 19th century Russian composer Modest Mussorgsky, one of Karlsberg's favorites.

"Elaine" was inspired by one of Karlsberg's most influential piano teachers, Elaine Leung-Wolf, who died in 2020 at the age of 59.

"As a teenager I developed tendonitis from playing the piano, which was extremely painful," Karlsberg said. "Elaine had learned from the famous piano teacher, Dorothy Taubman.who studied anatomy and developed an original approach to playing the piano that doesn't fight one's body and injure it. Elaine gave me a good understanding of the roles mind and body play when learning and practicing music."

The Taubman technique enabled Karlsberg to reduce the physical pain that nearly derailed his musical career as it was just getting started. He now incorporates much of what he learned from Leung-Wolf in his own teaching.

It is worth noting that on the cover design for HOLDING THE WHEEL OF LIFE, Karlsberg's name appears so small as to be almost unnoticeable. In an industry where creative artists often have overinflated egos, Karlsberg prefers to share the spotlight with others who inspire him.

"I like recognition for my work, but not attention," he said. "The music is not about me; it's about how my friends and I work together to create something. The music is meant for everyone."

HOLDING THE WHEEL OF LIFE is available on Spotify, Apple Music, and on CD at DanKarlsberg.com.

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