18 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY SEPTEMBER 25-OCTOBER 1, 2025 www.montereycountynow.com Ten years ago, the Monterey Jazz Festival audience was introduced to 26-year-old Christian Sands when he joined a trio of pianists on the Main Stage—including Jason Moran and Russell Malone—to perform a celebratory rendition of Errol Garner’s best-selling album Concert by the Sea (recorded at the Sunset Center in Carmel in 1955). Sands has continued his development as an innovative jazz pianist, touring worldwide and performing with many of the jazz greats. He earned a Grammy Award nomination for 2020 Best Instrumental Composition for his piece “Be Water II.” In 2020 he was named the Monterey Jazz Festival’s Artist-inResidence; in 2023 he became the musical director for the MJF star-studded All-Star Ensemble, touring across the United States and performing 25 gigs. This year, Sands was named the 2025 Commission Artist and asked to create an original piece of music for the festival—a tradition that originated in 1959 and returned in 1994. Sands will perform “Reflections from the Shore: A Monterey Suite” at 1:30pm on Sunday, Sept. 28 on the Main Stage. It turns out he wrote six original songs as the Commission Artist, not just one. He spoke with the Weekly about his musical journey. Weekly: You were born and raised in New Haven, Connecticut and began playing very early—at age 1. Really? Sands: Yes. I started lessons later, around age 3 or 4. No one really wanted to teach a 1- or 2-year-old how to play piano, so it took a while to find the teacher. But I had an upright piano at my house. And the story goes that I wouldn’t kind of bang on the piano, I would actually try to use my fingers to play. That is the story I was told. I don’t remember, because I was 1. Did you ever go play with the other kids and not play music? Absolutely. I played football, basketball. I wasn’t on any teams because I was playing gigs. So I couldn’t really do that. Although the coaches wanted me to try out, I had rehearsals and I had gigs. I also did martial arts as a kid, but I stopped that early on. I was really good but when we started doing more physical things my mom got a little more worried and told me, “You can’t break boards and go play a gig, too. So one’s going to have to give.” Who was introducing you or exposing you to the different jazz music? It was definitely the jazz community in New Haven, Connecticut and Jesse Hameen II. He’s a wonderful drummer who used to play with Dr. Lonnie Smith, Lou Donaldson, a lot of those amazing cats in New York at a time. Also, the bassist Jeff Fuller. Rex Cadwallader, who was a jazz fan and a composer more than a player, was the one who first taught me, I guess. My father, too. While we were driving he’d put something on, and he’d ask me, “Do you know who that is?” And he’d say, “Oh, that’s Herbie Hancock, or this is Oscar Peterson.” He would play those records; I’d bring them to my teachers and ask them about them. The community was really wonderful. And the more I progressed in it, the more I got to meet other elder musicians, like Rufus Reed or the Heath Brothers. New Haven was a beautiful community because it also had a lot of jazz education. Now you’re 36. And you’re a recording artist on Mack Avenue Records, where the jazz great Christian McBride also records. He’s referred to you as an old soul. What does that mean to you and does it resonate? It does. I’ve always been told that my entire life. I think it just means that they feel like I’ve been here before. Or I’ve been able to channel certain things that are beyond my age, but I think that literally for myself is just because I pay so much attention to the elders and what came before. When you’re sitting and talking to Dave Brubeck and he’s talking about Listen and Learn At 36, Christian Sands carries the weight of an old soul creating fresh sound. By Bradley Zeve monterey Jazz festival RANDY TUNNELL Christian Sands puts on a performance for aspiring jazz musicians at the annual Summer Jazz Camp in June at Stevenson School.
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MjAzNjQ1NQ==