The following is jazz journalist Morgan Enos’s interview with vibraphonist, composer, arranger, and producer Simon Moullier. His new album Elements of Light, released 20 September, features his quartet – pianist Lex Korten, bassist Rick Rosato, and drummer Jongkuk “JK” Kim – as well as guest pianist Gerald Clayton (‘Elements of Light’) and guest trumpeter Marquis Hill (‘Lotus’).
Moullier will perform in September and November on both coasts of the United States. Links to purchase Elements of Light, and to Moullier’s website, can be found at the end of this article.
Naturally, Simon Moullier is best known for the vibraphone. Regarding his facility on that instrument, Herbie Hancock and Quincy Jones have sung his praises. But to interface with his work is to absorb his beginnings as a drummer, and that influence rings throughout his blooming discography.
“There are more production elements involved. More synth, more keyboards, and there are some drum machines,” Moullier says of Elements of Light. “As a percussionist, I was always very interested in discovering new instruments and sounds.”
Both percussion and production led Moullier to create Elements of Light. Read on for a full interview with the vibes master on its intention and execution.
UK Jazz News: After your 2023 trio album of standards, Inception, Elements of Light finds you returning to original music, like you recorded on 2023’s Isla and 2020’s Spirit Song. Which creative territory did you want to explore here?
Simon Moullier: When I recorded Isla, I found a good sound in terms of the quartet, piano, and vibes dynamic, and I wanted to keep exploring that.
I really love combining both worlds: those new production elements, with an acoustic drum set played by Jongkuk Kim. The first track, ‘808’, [is based on] an 808 drum machine rhythm. We had that beat going in the studio, so Jongkuk was recording over that.
It’s a different concept. It doesn’t mean that, in a live setting, we’re playing with drum machines; obviously, we’re just playing acoustic. But for the record, it was fun to implement that.
UKJN: Elements of Light seems very melody-driven.
SM: I was trying to write melodies that I can sing, that I can relate to in a certain way. I was trying to write songs more than long pieces of music.
UKJN: What else influenced you here?
Influences come from all over the place; music that I heard as a kid, but also recent discoveries. A lot of Brazilian artists have influenced this music, like [singer/songwriter] Milton Nascimento, and [guitarist/vocalist] Tononho Horta.
And then, Wayne Shorter – a very, very important influence. I was definitely inspired by his [1995] album High Life; there’s a very interesting mix of the acoustic world with the electric world. Sometimes, you hear a synthesiser doubling actual strings, and it’s like, What is that? A synth, or an orchestra? But it brings the best of both worlds, in a way.
Certain tracks have classical music influences. ‘Lotus’, the intro to ‘Primavera’ – all that stuff is influenced by people like Ravel, Debussy, and Stravinsky. I’ve spent a lot of time listening to those composers, so that’s important too.
UKJN: Where’d that component come from?
SM: For the whole of last year, I was studying how to write for orchestra. That brought a whole different perspective to how I write and play music, and approach it in general. There are 90-plus instruments in a symphonic orchestra, and understanding all the textures and colours you can create is so interesting.
When I’m writing for a quartet, I’m more aware of which textures I can create. If the bass plays in this register, with this going on with the vibes, it’s going to create this texture. And if I stop the bass drum for all this time, it’s going to create only high frequencies, which will create a need for low frequencies, et cetera.
I love it because it’s the science of sound. Orchestration is a beautiful way to see the architecture of music, and I’ve had a tremendous time studying that.
UKJN: What made Marquis Hill and Gerald Clayton ideal guests on this project?
SM: I’ve been listening to Marquis for a while now. The trumpet is an instrument I love, and his tone is so recognizable, one of my favourites out there.
He brings such a clear aesthetic to his music; his playing is so poetic. When I sent him the track, I was expecting him to just send back the trumpet, but he also recorded a bunch of percussion and ambient tracks. It added a lot to the track, and it was so tastefully done.
I’ve looked up to Gerald for the longest time, even back when I was in Europe. After Berklee, after Boston, I went to the Monk Institute in LA. Gerald’s from there, so he was in town, and I would always go see him. It was incredibly inspiring.
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