Several weeks ago, Iowa City-area musician Blake Shaw shared some exciting news with folks who follow him on Instagram, @theeblakebass.
“Starting this fall,” he posted, “along with my work at Cornell College, I’ll also be taking over the Kirkwood Community College jazz department! My main responsibilities will be directing the big band and one other ensemble AND lecturing a popular music history class among other things.”
It was a full-circle moment for the bassist, vocalist, arranger and composer.
“This next adventure means a lot to me especially because Kirkwood was where I got my start, where I first started really taking music seriously and where I’ve been involved in many music and teaching opportunities since graduating,” he continued. “It may only be a one-year appointment but I won’t be taking it for granted. I’m so excited for the experience and all the learning I’ll be doing and facilitating.”
If you are a fan of Shaw’s — and he has many local and regional fans — you might have been surprised to hear this news. After all, Shaw gigs a lot. A lot.
In a recent phone interview, Shaw talked about how busy he has been of late.
“This summer, I’ve been anywhere between two and five gigs a week, depending on how well I stack them up. I can do three gigs a day, but that’s rare because it has to line up just perfectly and they have to be the perfect distance away from each other and whatnot. But I try to do just one a day because that’s healthy.”
And each of those gigs could involve any of a number of ensemble configurations ranging from a full band to Shaw on stage by himself. Asked about those various ensembles, he started by mentioning “background gigs” — events where the music is not necessarily front and center — noting that he can fill out an assignment like that with any number of area musicians. Then he started talking about his own standing groups.
“Let’s see, I have my BIG(ish) Band, my quartet, my string trio. Those are the only ones that I run.”
But those are far from the only groups he’s in. He’s a vocalist and bassist for River Glen & Band, performing music built from elements of rock, pop and folk. He subs in folk and grass string band Flash in a Pan on the regular. He collaborates with the adventuresome and innovative guitarist and composer Dan Padley. He plays with singer-songwriter Stephanie Catlett and, soon, Abbie Sawyer.
“So upwards of 10 bands,” he estimates. Truthfully, that feels like an undercount — and it doesn’t include a significant number of gigs in which he performs alone.
You might think part-time teaching jobs at Cornell and Kirkwood would get in the way of all of that music-making. But teaching is a passion for Shaw. You can tell when he discusses his role as artistic director of KCCK’s Schoolhouse Jazz program for elementary students, and when he talks about encouraging college-aged musicians who may be short on confidence.
“I take a lot of inspiration — good and bad — from many different people for teaching. My teaching style is very, very heavily [built on] inclusivity. I want those people that don’t feel so confident, that don’t step up and ask questions, I want to help those people … Whatever I do in the future, there will always be a teaching aspect.”
When Shaw thinks about his future, he seldom considers headlining a tour. In fact, he believes that would be too repetitive for him. He’s looking for something else from his musical endeavors.
“I have big ideas but they seem so chill to me. If something fell in my lap where someone needed a bassist to tour for months on end, I’d be down for that. But also I have so many friends around here. There’s so many people in Iowa that I want to play more with or play with for the first time. Success is different in my eyes than some people. Honestly, I just want to play with as many people as possible in as many different places as possible and live a healthy life and be comfortable.”
Shaw is eager to perform with an orchestra — perhaps as a vocalist or perhaps playing an electric bass concerto. Anyone interested in making this a reality is encouraged to reach out.
In the meantime, he has a wonderful opportunity to open for two superstars of jazz — vocalist Kurt Elling and guitarist Charlie Hunter, performing their SuperBlue project — at the Englert Theatre on Saturday, Sept. 30. Tickets are available now.
But if you can’t catch that show, don’t worry. Odds are good you will have another chance to enjoy Shaw’s music very soon.
This article was originally published in Little Village’s September 2023 issue.
