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A writing desk.

A desk is a piece of furniture and a type of table often used in a school or office setting for reading or writing on or using a computer.^[1][2]

Desks often have one or more drawers, compartments or [pigeon holes to store office supplies and papers.^[3] Unlike a regular table, usually only one side of a desk is suitable to sit on (though there are some exceptions, such as a partners desk).^[4] Not all desks have the form of a table. For instance, an armoire desk^[5] is a desk built within a large wardrobe-like cabinet, and a portable desk^[6] is light enough to be placed on a person's lap. Since many people lean on a desk while using it, a desk must be sturdy. Desk were first made from wood, but are slowly being converted into harder materials that last longer.

A desk is also known as a counter, davenport, escritoire, lecturn, reading stand, rolltop desk, school desk, workspace or writing desk.^[7] In Spanish a desk is called el escritorio.^[8]

Etymology[link]

The word desk comes from the M.L. desca, “table to write on”, from the mid 14th century.^[9] It is a modification of the Old Italian desco table, from Latin discus dish, disc.^[10] The word desk has been used figuratively since 1797.^[11]

Early desks[link]

Chinese editing desk of the 12th century (Metropolitan Museum of Art).

Desk-style furniture appears not to have been used in classical antiquity or in other ancient centers of civilization in the Middle East or Far East, but there is no specific proof. Medieval illustrations show the first pieces of furniture which seem to have been designed and constructed for reading and writing.

Before the invention of the movable type printing press in the 15th century, any reader was potentially a writer or publisher or both, since any book or other document had to be copied by hand. The desks were designed with slots and hooks for bookmarks and for writing implements. Since manuscript volumes were sometimes large, and heavy, desks of the period usually had massive structures.^[12]

Desks of the Renaissance and later eras had relatively slimmer structures, and more and more drawers as woodworking became more precise and cabinet-making became a distinct trade.^[13] It is often possible to find out if a table or other piece of furniture of those times was designed to be used as a desk by looking for a drawer with three small separations (one each for the ink pot, the blotter and the powder tray) and room for the pens.

The desk forms we are familiar with in this beginning of the millennium were born mostly in the 17th and 18th centuries. The ergonomic desk^[14] of the last decades is the newest addition to a long list of desk forms, but in a way it is only a refinement of the mechanically complex drawing table^[15] or drafting table^[16] of the end of the 18th century.

Industrial era[link]

An untidy desk.

Refinements to those first desk forms were considerable through the 19th century, as steam-driven machinery made cheap wood-based paper possible in the last periods of the first phase of the industrial revolution. This produced a boom in the number of, or some might say the birth of, the white-collar worker. As these office workers grew in number, desks were mass-produced for them in large quantities, using newer, steam-driven woodworking machinery. This was the first sharp division in desk manufacturing. From then on, limited quantities of finely crafted desks have been constructed by master cabinetmakers for the homes and offices of the rich while the vast majority of desks were assembled rapidly by unskilled labor, from components turned out in batches by machine tools. Thus, age alone does not guarantee that an antique desk is a masterpiece, since this shift took place more than a hundred years ago.

More paper and more correspondence drove the need for more complex desks and more specialized desks, such as the rolltop desk^[17] which was a mass produced, slatted variant of the classical cylinder desk.^[18] It provided a relatively fast and cheap way to lock up the ever increasing flow of paper without having to file everything by the end of the day. Paper documents started leaving the desk as a "home," with the general introduction of filing cabinets. Correspondence and other documents were now too numerous to get enough attention to be rolled up or folded again, then summarized and tagged before being pigeonholed in a small compartment over or under the work surface of the desk. The famous Wooton desk and others were the last manifestations of the "pigeonhole" style. The newer desks could be transformed into many different shapes and angles and were ideal for artists.

Steel desks[link]

A small boom in office work and desk production occurred at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th with the introduction of smaller and less expensive electrical presses and efficient carbon papers coupled with the general acceptance of the typewriter. Steel desks were introduced to take heavier loads of paper and withstand the pounding meted out on the typewriters. The L-shaped desk became popular, with the "leg" being used as an annex for the typewriter.

Another big boom occurred after the Second World War with the spread of photocopying. Paperwork drove even higher the number of desk workers, whose work surface diminished in size as office rents rose, and the paper itself was moved more and more directly to filing cabinets or sent to records management centers, or transformed into microfilm, or both. Modular desks seating several co-workers close by became common. Even executive or management desks became mass-produced, built of cheap plywood or fiberboard covered with wood finish, as the number of people managing the white collar workers became even greater.

Student desks[link]

A student desk can be any desk form meant for use by a student. Anna Breadin designed and patented a school desk in the late 1880s that was built with a table section and attached in front of it was a wooden seat and back rest. Before this, most students sat either on chairs or long benches at long tables.^[19]

Usually the term designates a small pedestal desk^[20] or writing table^[21] constructed for use by a teenager or a pre-teen in their room at home. It often is a pedestal desk, with only one of the two pedestals and about two thirds of the desk surface. Such desks are sometimes called left-pedestal desks and right-pedestal desks, depending on the position of the single pedestal. These desks are not as tall as normal adult desks. In some cases, the desk is connected from the seat to the table.

The desks are usually mass-produced in steel or wood and sold on the consumer market.^[22] There is a wide variety of plans available for woodworking enthusiasts. Modern student desks are often made with laminate table tops and molded plastic seats in a combined single unit, with storage found under the desktop or on a wire shelf beneath the seat.^[23]

There are many novel forms of student desks made to maximize the relatively restricted area available in a child's room. One of the most common is the bunk-bed desk,^[24] also called the loft bed.^[25]

Influence of computers[link]

Until the late 1980s, desks remained a place for paperwork and business negotiation, though at the end of this decade, the personal computer was taking hold in large and medium sized businesses. New office suites included a "knee hole" credenza which was a place for a terminal or personal computer and keyboard tray. Soon new office designs also included "U-shape" suites which added a bridge worksurface between the back credenza and front desk. During the North American recession of the early 1990s, many manager and executive workers had to do word processing and other functions previously completed by typing pools and secretaries. This necessitated a more central placement of the computer on these "U-shape" suite desk systems.

A desk in an office.

With computers abounding, "computer paper" became an office staple. The beginning of this paper boom gave birth to the dream of the "paperless office", in which all information would appear on computer monitors. However, the ease of printing personal documents and the lack of comfort with reading text on computer monitors led to a great deal of document printing. The need for paperwork space vied with the rising desk space taken up by computer monitors, CPUs, printers, scanners, and other peripherals. As well, the need for more space led some desk companies to attach some items to the modesty panel at the back of the desk, such as multi-outlets and cabling.

Through the "tech boom" of the 1990s, office worker numbers skyrocketed along with the cost of office space rent. The cubicle desk became widely accepted in North America as an economical way of putting more desk workers in the same space without actually shrinking the size of their working surfaces. The cubicle walls have become new place for workers to affix papers and other items once left on the horizontal desktop surface. Even computer monitor frames themselves are used to attach reminder notes and business cards.

Early in the 2000s, private office workers found that their side and back computer-placing furniture made it hard to show the contents of a computer screen to guests or co-workers. Manufacturers have responded to this issue by creating "Forward Facing" desks where computer monitors are placed on the front of the "U-shape" workstation. This forward computer monitor placement promotes a clearer sight-line to greet colleagues, increases computer screen privacy and allows for common viewing of information displayed on a screen.

Famous desk[link]

The Resolute desk in the Oval Office has been used by many presidents, including President Franklin D. Roosevelt, President Harry S.Truman and President John F. Kennedy. It is made from the timbers of the HMS Resolute, an abandoned British ship discovered by an American vessel and returned to the Queen of England as a token of friendship and goodwill. Queen Victoria commissioned the desk from William Evenden, Royal Naval Dockyard at Chatham, England, and presented to President Rutherford B. Hayes in 1880.^[26]

In literature[link]

American author Eleanor H. Porter^[27] referred to a desk in her novel, Pollyanna; “On the big, flat-topped desk in the middle of the room you'll find a telephone.”^[28]

American author Jack London^[29] referred to a desk in his novel, John Barleycom; “Soon I found myself, seated at my desk in the midst of my thousand words, looking forward to that eleven-thirty cocktail.”^[30]

See also[link]

• List of desk forms and types

References[link]

• Aronson, Joseph. The Encyclopedia of Furniture. 3rd edition. New York: Crown Publishers Inc., 1965.
• Bedel, Jean. Le grand guide des styles. Paris: Hachette, 1996.
• Boyce, Charles. Dictionary of Furniture. New York: Roundtable Press, 1985.
• Comstock, Helen. American Furniture: 17th, 18th and 19th century styles. Lancaster, Pennsylvania: Schiffer Publishing, Ltd. 1997
• Duncan, Alastair. Mobilier art déco. Paris: Thames and Hudson, 2000
• Forrest, Tim. The Bulfinch Anatomy of Antique Furniture. London: Marshall editions, 1996.
• Hinckley, F. Lewis. A Directory of Antique Furniture: The Authentic Classification of European and American Designs. New York: Bonanza Books, 1988.
• Moser, Thomas. Measured Shop Drawings for American Furniture. New York: Sterling Publlishing Inc., 1985.
• Nutting, Wallace. Furniture Treasury. New York: Macmillan Publishers, 1963.
• Oglesby, Catherine. French provincial decorative art. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1951.
• Payne, Christopher, Ed. Sotheby's Concise Encyclopedia of Furniture. London: Conran Octopus, 1989.
• Pélegrin-Genel, Elisabeth. L'art de vivre au bureau. Paris: Flammarion, 1995.
• Reyniès, Nicole de. Le mobilier domestique: Vocabulaire Typologique. Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, 1987.
• All authors, all works. Written on a desk, 100-present.

External links[link]

Look up Desk in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Desk

K Ishibashi (stage name : Kishi Bashi)
K Ishibashi performing with of Montreal in April 2011.
Background information
Born	1975/11/04
Origin	Seattle, WA
Genres	Indie pop, indie rock, psychedelic pop, electronic, experimental
Occupations	Musician
Instruments	Guitar, violin, keyboards, programming
Labels	Aerobic International
Associated acts	Of Montreal, Jupiter One

Kishi Bashi is K Ishibashi's self-recorded and self-produced project. K is a founding member of Jupiter One, as well as a touring member of of Montreal and Regina Spektor.

Biography[link]

Kishi Bashi is the pseudonym of singer, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter K Ishibashi (born November 4, 1975). Born in Seattle, Washington, but growing up predominantly on the east coast, Ishibashi has recorded with and toured internationally as a violinist with such diverse artists such as Regina Spektor, Sondre Lerche, and most recently, the Athens, Georgia based indie rock group of Montreal, of which he is currently a member. Ishibashi is also the singer and founding member of the New York synth rock outfit, Jupiter One. In 2011, he started to record and perform as a solo artist, opening for Sondre Lerche,^[1] Alexi Murdoch, and of Montreal. He will support of Montreal on their upcoming spring 2012 tour ^[2]. Ishibashi has a side project called Cop Gravy, he plans on releasing his first EP under this moniker on the Joyful Noise label in late 2012, it has the tentative title "I Lost My Wrestling Match To Davey Pierce On The Big Black Bus".

Projects[link]

Kishi Bashi's first EP, Room For Dream, came out in May 2011 on Aerobic International. Room For Dream features four songs, including a duet with Kevin Barnes and can only be purchased from downloading platforms such as iTunes or Bandcamp. A physical release is due later this year. His live show is a solo performance based on live violin and vocal looping and beat boxing. He has often been compared to Andrew Bird and Owen Pallett.^[3] Kishi Bashi's first full-length record, 151a, was released by Joyful Noise Recordings on April 10th after being funded partly through Kickstarter.^[4]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official Bandcamp page
• Of Montreal's official site
• interview and solo performance

Bill Frisell
Background information
Birth name	William Richard Frisell
Born	(1951-03-18) March 18, 1951 (age 61) Baltimore, Maryland United States
Genres	Jazz, jazz fusion, grindcore, americana, world, experimental rock, soundtrack
Occupations	Musician, composer, arranger
Instruments	Electric guitar, bass, clarinet, tenor saxophone
Years active	1973-present
Labels	Savoy Label Group, Nonesuch, ECM
Website	www.billfrisell.com
Notable instruments
Fender Telecaster, Steve Klein Electric

William Richard "Bill" Frisell (born March 18, 1951) is an American guitarist, composer and arranger.

One of the leading guitarists in jazz since the late 1980s, Frisell's eclectic music touches on progressive folk, classical music, country music, noise and more. He is known for using an array of effects to create unique sounds from his instrument.

Biography[link]

Early life and career[link]

Frisell was born in Baltimore, Maryland, but spent most of his youth in the Denver, Colorado area. He studied clarinet with Richard Joiner of the Denver Symphony Orchestra as a youth, graduated from Denver East High School, and went to the University of Northern Colorado to study music.

His original guitar teacher in the Denver-Aurora metropolitan area was Dale Bruning, with whom Frisell released the 2000 duo album Reunion. After graduating from Northern Colorado, where he studied with Johnny Smith, Frisell went to the Berklee College of Music in Boston where he studied with Jon Damian and Jim Hall.

The ECM Records years[link]

Frisell's major break came when guitarist Pat Metheny was unable to make a recording session, and recommended Frisell to Paul Motian who was recording Psalm (1982) for ECM Records.^[1] Frisell became ECM's in-house guitar player, and worked on several albums, most notably Jan Garbarek's 1981 Paths, Prints. Frisell's first solo release was In Line featured solo guitar and duets with bassist Arild Andersen.

New York City era[link]

Frisell's first group to receive much acclaim was a quartet with Kermit Driscoll on bass, Joey Baron on drums, and Hank Roberts on cello (later slimmed down to a trio when Roberts left). Many other albums with larger ensembles were recorded with this group as the core.

In the 1980s Frisell lived in New York City and was an active participant in the city's music scene. He forged an early partnership with John Zorn—including as a member of quick-change band Naked City—and performed or recorded with many others. He also became known for his work in drummer Paul Motian's trio, along with saxophonist Joe Lovano.

The Seattle years[link]

In 1988 Frisell left New York City and moved to Seattle, Washington.^[2] In the early 1990s Frisell made two of his best-reviewed albums: first, Have a Little Faith, an ambitious survey of Americana of all stripes, from Charles Ives and Aaron Copland (the entirety of Billy the Kid) to John Hiatt (the title song), Bob Dylan ("Just Like a Woman") and Madonna (a lengthy, psychedelic rock-tinged version of "Live to Tell"); and second, This Land, a complementary set of originals. During this time he performed with many musicians, including the more up and coming, such as Douglas September on album 10 Bulls. He also branched out by performing soundtracks to silent films of Buster Keaton with his trio, and contributed to Ryuichi Sakamoto's album Heartbeat.

In the mid-1990s, Frisell disbanded his trio. He continued the trend marked by Have a Little Faith by more explicitly incorporating elements of bluegrass and country music into his music. His friendship with Gary Larson led him to provide music for the TV version of The Far Side^[3] (released on the album Quartet along with music written for Keaton's Convict 13). Since the late 1990s Bill Frisell has lived in Bainbridge Island, Washington, near Seattle.

2000s[link]

Several of Frisell's songs, including his recording of "Over the Rainbow" and "Coffaro's Theme", were featured in the movie Finding Forrester (2000).

In 1999, Frisell was commissioned by the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota to compose Blues Dream, which he premiered on November 15, 1999. He later recorded the work for a 2001 release on Nonesuch.

Also in 1999, he released The Sweetest Punch which featured a seven-piece jazz ensemble reworking the tunes written and recorded by Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach on Painted from Memory.^[4]

Between 2003 and 2005 Frisell acted as musical director for Century of Song, a series of concerts at the German arts festival RuhrTriennale (produced by Lee Townsend). Frisell invited artists including Rickie Lee Jones, Elvis Costello, Suzanne Vega, Arto Lindsay, Loudon Wainwright III, Vic Chesnutt, Van Dyke Parks, Buddy Miller, Ron Sexsmith and Chip Taylor to perform their favorite songs in new arrangements.

In 2003, Frisell's The Intercontinentals was nominated for a Grammy award; he won the 2005 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Jazz Album for his album Unspeakable. His 2008 album, History, Mystery was nominated for a 2009 Grammy award for Best Jazz Instrumental Album, Individual or Group. Frisell was also a judge for the 6th annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists' careers.^[5]

Frisell has united with Matt Chamberlain, Tucker Martine, and Lee Townsend in the Floratone band, and they have released an album on Blue Note (2007), featuring guest performance of Viktor Krauss, Ron Miles, Eyvind Kang.

In 2008, Frisell performed as a featured guest on Earth's album The Bees Made Honey in the Lion's Skull.

In 2009, Frisell featured in a duet rendition of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" with singer-songwriter, Sam Shrieve. The recording was released on Shrieve's debut album Bittersweet Lullabies.

In 2010, Frisell started working with the Savoy Jazz label and released Beautiful Dreamers in August 2010, then a second release of Sign of Life in April 2011. Also, on January 25, 2011, Bill Frisell and Vinicius Cantuária released Lágrimas Mexicanas on the E1 label.

In September 2011, Frisell released All We Are Saying, a full-length offering of his interpretations of John Lennon's music. Frisell's quintet includes violinist Jenny Scheinman, pedal steel and acoustic guitarist Greg Leisz, bassist Tony Scherr, and drummer Kenny Wollesen.

Selected discography[link]

Frisell performing in 2010

Albums[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Bill Frisell

• Official site
• Bill Frisell on NoneSuch Records

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (September 2010)

Raphael Saadiq
Saadiq at the 2012 Time 100
Background information
Birth name	Charles Ray Wiggins
Born	(1966-05-14) May 14, 1966 (age 46)
Origin	Oakland, California, United States
Genres	R&B, soul, neo soul
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, producer
Instruments	Vocals, bass guitar, guitar, keyboards
Years active	1983–present
Labels	Pookie Entertainment, Columbia, Sony
Associated acts	Tony! Toni! Toné!, Lucy Pearl, Eve 6, Joi, Joss Stone, Q-Tip

Raphael Saadiq (born Charles Ray Wiggins, May 14, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, guitarist, and record producer. Saadiq has been a standard bearer for "old school" R&B since his early days as a member of the multiplatinum group Tony! Toni! Toné! He also produced songs of such artists as TLC, Joss Stone, D'Angelo, Mary J. Blige, and John Legend.

He and D'Angelo were occasional members of The Ummah, a music production collective, composed of members Q-Tip and Ali Shaheed Muhammad of A Tribe Called Quest, and J Dilla of the Detroit-based group Slum Village.

Saadiq's critically acclaimed album, The Way I See It, released on September 16, 2008, featuring artists Stevie Wonder, Joss Stone, and Jay-Z, received three Grammy Award Nominations and was voted Best Album on iTunes of 2008. His fourth studio album, Stone Rollin', was released on March 25, 2011.^[1] For the album, Saadiq worked with steel guitarist Robert Randolph; former Earth, Wind & Fire keyboardist Larry Dunn; Swedish/Japanese indie rock songstress Yukimi Nagano (of Little Dragon fame); Funk legend Larry Graham (on the bonus cut Perfect Storm)^[2] plus soul newcomer Taura 'Aura Jackson' Stinson. ^[3][4]

Music critic Robert Christgau has called Saadiq the "preeminent R&B artist of the '90s".^[5]

Early life[link]

Saadiq was born in Oakland, California, the second-youngest of 14 siblings and half-siblings.^[3] His early life was marked by tragedy; he experienced the deaths of several of his siblings as a young child. When Saadiq was seven years old, his brother was murdered. One of his brothers overdosed on heroin and another committed suicide because he was unable to deal with his addiction to the drug. His sister died as a result of a car crash during a police chase in a residential neighborhood. Saadiq states that he does not want his music to be reflective of the tragedies he experienced, saying that "And through all of that I was makin' records, but it wasn't comin' out in the music. I did it to kinda show people you can have some real tough things happen in your life, but you don't have to wear it on your sleeve."^[3]

He has been playing the bass guitar since the age of six,^[2] and first began singing at age nine in a local gospel group.^[6][7] At the age of 12, he joined a group called "The Gospel Humminbirds". In 1984, shortly before his 18th birthday, Saadiq heard about tryouts in San Francisco for Sheila E.'s backing band on Prince's Parade Tour. At the audition, he chose the name "Raphael", and had difficulty remembering to respond to the name when he heard that he got the part to play bass in the band.^[3] He says of the experience, "Next thing I was in Tokyo, in a stadium, singin' Erotic City. We were in huge venues with the biggest sound systems in the world; all these roadies throwin' me basses, and a bunch of models hangin' round Prince to party. For almost two years. That was my university."^[3]

Career[link]

1987–99: Tony! Toni! Toné! and The Ummah[link]

After returning to Oakland from touring with Prince, Saadiq began his professional career as the lead vocalist and bassist in the rhythm and blues and dance trio Tony! Toni! Toné! He used the name Raphael Wiggins while in Tony! Toni! Toné!, where he was joined by his brother Dwayne Wiggins, and his cousin Timothy Christian. In the mid-1990s, he adopted the last name Saadiq, which means "man of his word" in Arabic.^[3] His change of surname led many to speculate that he had converted to Islam at that point; in reality, Saadiq is not a Muslim, but rather just liked the way "Saadiq" sounded and changed his last name simply to distinguish himself from and avoid potential confusion with his brother, Dwayne Wiggins.^[9] As he confirmed by telling noted R&B writer Pete Lewis of the award-winning 'Blues & Soul' in May 2009, "I just wanted to have my own identity!"^[10]

In 1995, Saadiq had his biggest solo hit to date, when "Ask of You", featured on the Higher Learning Soundtrack peaked at #19 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #2 on the R&B chart. In 1995, Saadiq produced and performed on Otis & Shug's debut album, We Can Do Whatever.

Tony! Toni! Toné! would become major R&B superstars throughout the late-1980s and 1990s. However, after the 1996 album entitled House of Musicfailed to duplicate the group's previous success, Tony! Toni! Toné! went their separate ways in 1997.

In 1997, Saadiq hooked up with EPMD for the tune "Da Joint".

1999–2004: Lucy Pearl and first string of solo albums[link]

In 1999, Saadiq's next big project became the R&B supergroup Lucy Pearl. He recorded the self-titled album with Dawn Robinson (En Vogue) and Ali Shaheed Muhammad (A Tribe Called Quest). The group only lasted for one album.

In 1999, he also collaborated with rapper Q-Tip on the single "Get Involved", from the animated television series The PJs. It samples The Intruders' 1973 song "I'll Always Love My Mama" and charted at number 21 on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks.^[11]

His 2000 song collaboration "Untitled (How Does It Feel)" won D'Angelo a Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance; it was also nominated for Grammy Award for Best R&B Song.^[12] The song was ranked #4 on Rolling Stone's "End of Year Critics & Readers Poll" of the top singles of 2000.^[13] D'Angelo's album Voodoo won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Album at the 2001 Grammy Awards.

In 2002, Saadiq founded his own record label, Pookie Entertainment. Among the artists on the label are Joi and Truth Hurts. In 2002, he released his first solo album Instant Vintage, which earned him five Grammy Award nominations. He released a two-disc live album All the Hits at the House of Blues in 2003, and his second studio album Ray Ray in 2004, both on Pookie Entertainment.

2004–present: Expanded output and second string of albums[link]

Saadiq in 2009

In 2004, Saadiq produced a remix of the song "Crooked Nigga Too" by Tupac Shakur which is featured on the album Loyal To The Game. Other artists he has collaborated with include Whitney Houston, Mary J. Blige, The Isley Brothers, A Tribe Called Quest, Teedra Moses, The Roots, Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Macy Gray, Angie Stone, Snoop Dogg, Devin the Dude, DJ Quik, Kelis, Q-Tip, Lil' Skeeter, Ludacris, The Bee Gees, Musiq Soulchild, Jaguar Wright, Chanté Moore, Lionel Richie, Marcus Miller, Noel Gourdin, Nappy Roots, Calvin Richardson, T-Boz from TLC, Floetry, Leela James, Amp Fiddler, John Legend, Joss Stone, Young Bellz, Anthony Hamilton, Babyface, Ledisi, Goapele, Ghostface Killah, Ginuwine, Stevie Wonder, Earth, Wind & Fire, Bilal, Chali 2na, Larry Graham,^[2] Luniz as well as many others. In 2007, Saadiq produced Introducing Joss Stone, the third album of British soul singer Joss Stone.

Saadiq's third solo album, The Way I See It, released on Columbia Records on September 16, 2008, available in a collector's edition box set of 7" 45 rpm singles as well as on traditional CD, was critically well-received, made several critics' 2008 best albums lists, and garnered three Grammy nominations including Best R&B Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocals (for "Never Give You Up", featuring Stevie Wonder & CJ Hilton); Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance (for "Love That Girl") and Best R&B Album for The Way I See It. Music from The Way I See It was featured in the following motion pictures: Madea Goes To Jail, Bride Wars, Cadillac Records, Secret Life of Bees, In Fighting (Rogue), and It's Complicated.

Saadiq performing at the 2009 Stockholm Jazz Festival, promoting The Way I See It.

Touring with a nine piece band, Saadiq hit the 2009 summer music festival circuit with performances at Bonnaroo, Hollywood Bowl, Outside Lands, Pori Jazz Festival, Stockholm Jazz Festival, North Sea Jazz, Essence Music Festival, Summer Spirit Festival, and Nice Jazz Festival, Bumbershoot Music Festival and Austin City Limits. Saadiq has been touring Europe extensively, and held a five-night residency at the House of Blues in Tokyo, Japan in June 2009. In 2008, Saadiq formed a new label called Velma Records, a place where Raphael promises "people can express themselves like I did with The Way I See It... where they can dream something up and just go with it".^[14]

He produced songs for LeToya Luckett's forthcoming second album Lady Love, released August 2009. In 2009, Saadiq produced "Please Stay" and "Love Never Changes" for Ledisi's August 2009 release "Turn Me Loose". Saadiq also was the executive producer for an emerging group called Tha Boogie. Tha Boogie's first EP was released on iTunes and is titled Love Tha Boogie, Vol. 1 (Steal This Sh*t).

In 2009, Saadiq announced his video game development company called IllFonic. The first video game in development by IllFonic is titled Ghetto Golf, with an expected release late in 2010. In 2009, Saadiq teamed up Bentley Kyle Evans, Jeff Franklin, Martin Lawrence, and Trenten Gumbs to create a new sitcom called Love That Girl! starring Tatyana Ali. Raphael is an executive producer and composer for Love That Girl!. The show is currently in development. In 2010, Saadiq sang as part of the chorus in the 2010 remake of "We Are the World" for Haiti.

Saadiq performing at South by Southwest in 2011, promoting Stone Rollin'.

In 2011, Saadiq was the guitarist/bandleader for the group backing Mick Jagger for Jagger's tribute performance of the Solomon Burke R&B classic, "Everybody Needs Somebody to Love" at the 53rd Grammy Awards in Los Angeles and on CBS. The band that accompanied the performance was Saadiq's touring band called Stone Rollin.^[15] In 2011 he and his band performed as the ESPY's house band for the night, where he performed his latest compositions.

Saadiq's 2011 album Stone Rollin' was released to great critical acclaim.^[16][17] "He’s always had a boyish enthusiasm for performing, and a flexible, naturally joyous voice that suggests a young Stevie Wonder," wrote Greg Kot of the Chicago Tribune, "but with his latest album, Saadiq finds a new gear. The album and his current tour demonstrate that there’s a big difference between retro and classic, and the artist consistently finds himself on the right side of that divide."^[18] Kot ranked the album number seven in his year-end list, in which he dubbed it Saadiq's "finest achievement" and stated, "He’s always written songs steeped in soul and R&B, but now he gives them a progressive edge with roaming bass lines and haunted keyboard textures. He’s no longer a retro stylist – he’s writing new classics."^[19] Critic Jim Derogatis called it "a stone cold gas of a party disc."^[20]

In fall 2011, he performed on the fourth results show of Dancing with the Stars season 13. In December, 2011, he performed a cover compilation of several Neil Diamond songs at the Kennedy Center Honors award ceremony.

Discography[link]

• Instant Vintage (2002)
• All Hits at the House of Blues (2003)
• Ray Ray (2004)
• The Way I See It (2008)
• Stone Rollin' (2011)^[21] (UK chart peak: #84)

Singles[link]

Awards[link]

• BET Awards
  • 2009, BET Centric Award (nominated)

• Grammy Awards
  • 2011, Best Traditional R&B Performance "Good Man" (nominated)
  • 2009, Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group "Never Give You Up" (nominated)
  • 2009, Best R&B Album The Way I See It (nominated)
  • 2009, Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance "Love That Girl" (nominated)
  • 2007, Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance "I Found My Everything" (nominated)
  • 2005, Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group "Show Me the Way" (nominated)
  • 2003, Best Urban/Alternative Performance "Be Here" (nominated)
  • 2003, Best R&B Song "Love of My Life (Ode to Hip-Hop)" (winner)
  • 2003, Best R&B Song "Be Here" (nominated)
  • 2003, Best R&B Album Instant Vintage (nominated)
  • 2003, Best Song Written for a Motion Picture of Television Special "Love of My Life (Ode to Hip-Hop)" (nominated)
  • 1995, Best R&B Song "Anniversary" (nominated)

• Soul Train Awards
  • 2011, Centric Award (winner)
  • 2009, Best Male R&B/Soul Artist (nominated)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Raphael Saadiq

• Official website
• Raphael Saadiq on Myspace
• Raphael Saadiq at the Internet Movie Database
• The Stone Rollin' Sessions Interview With Raphael Saadiq, co-producer Chuck Brungardt, Taura Stinson & Ron Fonksa Bacon on Soul Jones (July 2011)
• Raphael Saadiq on SoulRnB.com (FR)
• Interview of Raphael Saadiq on SoulRnB.com (June 2011)

(FR)

Esperanza Spalding
Spalding performing at the Newport Jazz Festival on August 10, 2008
Background information
Born	(1984-10-18) October 18, 1984 (age 27) Portland, Oregon, US
Genres	Jazz, jazz fusion, bossa nova, neo soul
Occupations	Musician, composer, educator, bandleader
Instruments	Upright bass, bass guitar, and vocals
Years active	2000–present[1]
Labels	Heads Up International, Hush, Merge
Associated acts	Stanley Clarke, Patti Austin, and Joe Lovano
Website	www.esperanzaspalding.com

Esperanza Spalding (born October 18, 1984)^[2] is an American multi-instrumentalist best known as a jazz bassist and singer, who draws upon many genres in her own compositions. In 2011, she won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist at the 53rd Grammy Awards,^[3] making her the first jazz artist to win the award.^[4][5]

Biography[link]

Early life and early education[link]

Spalding grew up in the King neighborhood of Portland, Oregon,^[6] a neighborhood she describes as "ghetto" and "pretty scary".^[7] Her mother raised her and her brother as a single parent.^[8] Spalding has a diverse ethnic background.^[7][9] Her father is African-American and her mother is of Welsh, Native American, and Hispanic descent.^[10] She also has an interest in the music of other cultures, including that of Brazil,^[11] commenting, "With Portuguese songs, the phrasing of the melody is intrinsically linked with the language, and it's beautiful."^[12]

Her mother shares Spalding's interest in music, having nearly become a touring singer herself.^[8][13] But while Spalding cites her mother as a powerful influence who encouraged her musical expansion, she attributes her inspiration for pursuing a life in music to watching classical cellist Yo-Yo Ma perform on an episode of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood when she was four.^[8]

By the time Spalding was five, she had taught herself to play the violin and was playing with the Chamber Music Society of Oregon.^[8] Spalding stayed with the Chamber Music Society of Oregon until she was fifteen and left as concertmaster.^[8] Due to a lengthy illness when she was child, Spalding spent much of her elementary school years being homeschooled,^[8] but also attended King Elementary School in northeast Portland.^[6] During this time, she also found the opportunity to pick up instruction in music by listening to her mother's college teacher instruct her mother in guitar.^[12] According to Spalding, when she was about eight, her mother briefly studied jazz guitar in college; Spalding says, "Going with her to her class, I would sit under the piano. Then I would come home and I would be playing her stuff that her teacher had been playing."^[12] Spalding also played oboe and clarinet before discovering the bass in high school.^[8][14] She is able to sing in English, Spanish, and Portuguese.^[15]

Spalding had begun performing live in clubs in Portland, Oregon as a teenager,^[11] securing her first gig at 15 in a blues club, when she could play only one line on bass.^[16] One of the seasoned musicians with which she played that first night invited her to join the band's rehearsals "so she could actually learn something", and her rehearsals soon grew into regular performances spanning almost a year.^[16] According to Spalding, it was a chance for her to stretch as a musician, reaching and growing beyond her experience.^[12] Her early contact with these "phenomenal resources", as she calls the musicians who played with her,^[12] fostered her sense of rhythm and helped nurture her interest in her instrument.^[16] She does not consider herself a musical prodigy.^[17] "I am surrounded by prodigies everywhere I go, but because they are a little older than me, or not a female, or not on a major label, they are not acknowledged as such", says Spalding.^[17]

Spalding had intended to play cello,^[12] but discovered the bass during a one-year stint at age 14 at the prestigious performing arts high school, The Northwest Academy, to which she had won a scholarship.^[16][18] The school was not a good fit, but the bass was.^[16] Spalding found high school "easy—and boring" and dropped out. When she was 15 or 16 years old, Spalding started writing lyrics for music for the local indie rock/pop group Noise for Pretend, touching on any topic that came to mind.^[17] Although she had taken a few private voice lessons, which taught her how to protect her voice, her primary singing experience had come from "singing in the shower", she said,^[17] before she started performing vocals for Noise for Pretend.^[12] Her desire to perform live evolved naturally out of the compositional process, when she would sing and play simultaneously to see how melody and voice fit together, but she acknowledges that performing both roles can be challenging.^[12][19] In a 2008 interview, she said, "[W]hat can be difficult is being a singer, in the sense that you are engaged with the audience, and really responsible for emoting, and getting into the lyrics, melody, etc., and being an effective bassist/band leader".^[19]

Spalding left high school at 16 and, after completing her GED, enrolled on a music scholarship in the music program at Portland State University, where she remembers being "the youngest bass player in the program".^[8] Although she lacked the training of her fellow students, she feels that her teachers nevertheless recognized her talent.^[8] She decided to instead apply to Berklee College of Music on the encouragement of her bass teacher, and did well enough in her audition to receive a full scholarship.^[13][16] In spite of the scholarship, Spalding found it a challenge meeting living expenses, so her friends arranged a benefit concert that paid her airfare and a little extra.^[12][16] Spalding's savings did not last long. Broke and exhausted,^[20] she considered leaving music and entering political science,^[13] a move jazz guitarist and composer Pat Metheny discouraged, telling Spalding she had "the 'X Factor'" and could make it if she applied herself.^[13] During her time at Berklee, her primary bass instructor was John Lockwood.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] 2004–07: Musical beginnings, teaching and Junjo

Spalding performing at the Umbria Jazz Festival in Perugia, Italy on July 12, 2007

Gary Burton, Executive Vice President at Berklee, said in 2004 that Spalding had "a great time feel, she can confidently read the most complicated compositions, and she communicates her upbeat personality in everything she plays".^[16] Ben Ratliff wrote in The New York Times on July 9, 2006, that Spalding's voice is "light and high, up in Blossom Dearie's pitch range, and [that] she can sing quietly, almost in a daydream" and that Spalding "invents her own feminine space, a different sound from top to bottom."^[21] Spalding was the 2005 recipient of the Boston Jazz Society scholarship for outstanding musicianship.^[8] Almost immediately after graduation from college later the same year, Spalding was hired by Berklee College of Music, becoming one of the youngest instructors in the institution's history,^[12] at age 20.^[22] As a teacher, Spalding tries to help her students focus their practice through a practice journal, which can help them recognize their strengths and what they need to pursue.^[12]

Her debut album Junjo was released on April 18, 2006, on the Ayva Music label.^[23][24] It was created to display the dynamic that she felt among her trio.^[17] Though Junjo was released solely under her name, Spalding considers it "a collaborative effort".^[12]

[edit] 2008–10: Esperanza

Spalding performing on December 10, 2009 at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert of 2009

When asked in 2008 why she plays the bass instead of some other instrument, Spalding said that it wasn't a choice, but the bass "had its own arc" and resonated with her.^[17] Spalding says that for her discovering the bass was like "waking up one day and realizing you're in love with a co-worker."^[12] By the time she randomly picked up the bass in music class and began experimenting with it, she had grown bored with her other instruments.^[16][25] Her band teacher showed her a blues line for the bass that she later used to secure her first gig.^[16] After that, she went in to play the bass daily and gradually fell in love.^[12]

Ratliff wrote in The New York Times again, two years later, on May 26, 2008 that one of Spalding's central gifts is "a light, fizzy, optimistic drive that's in her melodic bass playing and her elastic, small-voiced singing" but that "the music is missing a crucial measure of modesty."^[26] He added, "It's an attempt at bringing this crisscrossing [of Stevie Wonder and Wayne Shorter] to a new level of definition and power, but its vamps and grooves are a little obvious, and it pushes her first as a singer-songwriter, which isn't her primary strength."^[26] Pat Metheny said in 2008 it was immediately obvious "that she had a lot to say and was also unlike any musician I had ever run across before. Her unique quality is something that goes beyond her pretty amazing musical skills; She has that rare 'x' factor of being able to transmit a certain personal kind of vision and energy that is all her own."^[20] Andrés Quinteros wrote in the Argentinian periodical, 26Noticias on October 28, 2008 that Spalding is one of the greatest new talents on the jazz scene today.^[27] Patti Austin hired Spalding to tour with her internationally after Spalding's first semester at Berklee,^[16] where Spalding supported the singer on the Ella Fitzgerald tribute tour "For Ella".^[12] In 2008, Spalding recalled the tour as educational, helping her learn to accompany a vocalist and also how to sustain energy and interest playing the same material nightly.^[12] She continued to perform with Austin periodically for three years.^[12] During the same period, while at Berklee, Spalding studied under saxophonist Joe Lovano before eventually touring with him.^[12] They began as a trio, expanding into a quartet before joining quintet US5 and traveling across the United States from New York to California.^[12] As of 2008, she was also in the process of developing several courses for students at Berklee, including one that focuses "on transcribing as a tool for learning harmony and theory."^[12] Due to touring commitments, Spalding stopped giving classes at Berklee. She lives in New York and Austin, Texas.

Spalding performing at the Northsea Jazz Festival, 2009

Esperanza is Spalding's second studio album. Being exposed to many different cultural impressions while growing up, Spalding sings in three different languages, English, Spanish, and Portuguese.^[28] After Spalding's Grammy win in February 2011, the album entered the Billboard 200 at 138. With Esperanza, Spalding's material was meant to be more reflective of herself as an artist, with musicians selected to best present that material.^[17] Ed Morales wrote in PopMatters on June 23, 2008 that Esperanza is "a sprawling collage of jazz fusion, Brazilian and even a touch of hip-hop".^[29] Siddhartha Mitter wrote in The Boston Globe on May 23, 2008 that "the big change" in Esperanza "is the singing..... This makes it a much more accessible album, and in some ways more conventional".^[30]

On December 10, at the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize ceremonies, Spalding performed at Oslo City Hall in honor of the 2009 Laureate President Barack Obama and again at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert the following day. She was personally selected by Obama, as per the tradition of one laureate-invited-artist to perform.^[31] Spalding also was the featured final act for the opening night of the 2009 Park City Jazz Festival in Park City, Utah, one of the top jazz festivals in the country. She closed the show with a number along with bass artists Brian Bromberg and Sean O'Bryan Smith, who also performed earlier that day.^[32] As a tribute to Prince, Spalding was invited to sing along with Patti LaBelle, Alicia Keys, and Janelle Monáe. Spalding performed the 1987 hit single "If I Was Your Girlfriend".^[31][33] On February 7, 2010, Spalding became the most searched person and second most searched item on Google as a result of her appearance the previous evening on the PBS television program Austin City Limits.^[34][35]