Pablo Held Investigates

I grew up listening to John Scofield through my parents who are big fans of his music. So each time we’d go on holidays or just went for a little trip in the car there’d be a cassette with Sco’s music playing at some point during the journey. “Still Warm”, “Hand Jive”, “What We Do”, … Continue reading John Scofield

This is my conversation with the great sound engineer Rob Griffin. He worked with so many incredible artists: Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Michael Brecker, Paco De Lucia, Chick Corea… and he also mastered my last album „Ascent“. Rob is one of a kind and I think that really comes across in this conversation. He is … Continue reading Rob Griffin

I enjoyed recording the audio commentary to my latest record “Ascent” so much that I made the plan to do this for each one of my albums. This time I’m talking about my record “The Trio Meets John Scofield” which was released on Pirouet Records back in 2014. It features my trio buddies Robert Landfermann … Continue reading The Trio meets John Scofield (audio commentary)

Talking to master bassist Ben Street was a great experience for me. Right from the start I felt a connection with him, which allowed for a very candid and in-depth exploration of Ben’s musical process and experiences. He also asked me a couple of questions, including some about previous episodes and the process behind this interview … Continue reading Ben Street

I’m happy to share my interview with the great Aaron Parks. I first heard him sometime 2004 on Terence Blanchard’s “Bounce” album. Being very impressed by his playing I began to investigate more and came across lots of recordings that featured his playing. Too many to list here, but I’ll say that especially during that … Continue reading Aaron Parks

I first heard about Lau Noah in a podcast with Larry Goldings where he talked about how much admiration he had for her work. (I always listen very closely when my heroes talk about music that they’re checking out. This was no exception.) I’ve been following Lau Noah’s music since back then. She has such … Continue reading Lau Noah

I first became aware of Lionel Loueke’s playing on records by Gretchen Parlato, Terence Blanchard and of course through closely following everything that Herbie Hancock was up to. I was completely blown away and wanted to know more about him. That led me to check out his own record “Virgin Forest” and then when it … Continue reading Lionel Loueke

This episode is in German, for English subtitles please watch the video version. I’m excited to include Christian Lillinger, one of the most individual voices on the drumset in music today, in this series of interviews. Christian is a role model for me on a lot of levels. His no-bullshit/no-compromise attitude is admirable and I … Continue reading Christian Lillinger

Bill Frisell was on the top my list right from the start of this interview series. Through the help of Mike Gibbs, I finally got in touch with Bill and we had a lovely conversation. What is there to say about Bill Frisell’s music that hasn’t been said yet? I mean, I don’t know anyone … Continue reading Bill Frisell

I was 7 years old when I first heard Wallace Roney’s playing on Herbie Hancock’s “Dis Is Da Drum”, a record that has over the years remained very important to me. I was always drawing to people that respect (and draw their inspiration from) the masters that came before them. Wallace was somebody who went … Continue reading WALLACE RONEY

This episode is in German. The video version has English subtitles. My story with Achim Kaufmann started when I discovered Paul Heller’s great albums “Kaleidoscope” & “Little Songs” as a teenager. I listened to them a lot, and Achim played piano on both. I really liked his playing, so I started to check out his own … Continue reading Achim Kaufmann

Marc Johnson — one of my favorite bassists of all time. I was always drawn to his warm sound and fluid way of playing, always taking risks, always propelling the music forward. The first time I saw him live was in 2004 during a concert of the John Abercrombie Quartet at the Domicil in Dortmund … Continue reading Marc Johnson

Norma Winstone is one of the most influential singers of our time. She certainly influenced me and my music in a big way. Her record “Somewhere Called Home” is one of my most favorite albums of all time. Furthermore Azimuth, all of her work with my late teacher John Taylor, Kenny Wheeler and so much more … Continue reading Norma Winstone

Pedro Martins’ album “Vox” was one of my absolute favorite releases from 2019. I listened to it countless times and I’m still mesmerized by its unique beauty, deep compositions and great playing by everyone involved. Pedro has a real gift for writing timeless melodies!! The first time I noticed him was a couple of years … Continue reading Pedro Martins

I’m happy to present a special episode of this podcast: This is an audio commentary to my new album “Ascent” which was just released on Edition Records. I often enjoy checking out the audio commentaries that directors include in the bonus features of their movies. Listening to them talk about their methods and inspirations while you’re … Continue reading ASCENT Audio Commentary

What is left to say about the incomparable Larry Goldings that hasn’t been said yet? Frankly, after having shared a couple of these interviews + having written personal introductions to each one of these, I hope it doesn’t sound too repetitive… Why? Because all the stories of what happens when I’m inspired by someone share … Continue reading Larry Goldings

The first time I heard Peter Bernstein was on “The Intimacy Of The Blues”, the first Larry Goldings Trio album that my parents used to listen to and I really liked that album. When I got more into to buying my own records I bought “Heart’s Content”  – I really lived with that album for … Continue reading Peter Bernstein

When I first heard the Dirty Projectors some time in 2012 I was blown away. (I think it was either “Two Doves” from the “Bitte Orca” record or “Maybe That Was It” from “Swing Lo Magellan”… don’t remember it exactly). I fell in love with this music right away.  The creativity and the searching quality … Continue reading Dave Longstreth (Dirty Projectors)

The first time I heard Drew Gress was on Fred Hersch’s beautiful trio album “Live at the Village Vanguard”. I was immediately drawn to his big sound. but also I was in awe of how lyrical he could be in one moment and how burning and risk-taking he would be in another moment. Drew was … Continue reading Drew Gress

You’ll hear me geeking out here a little in my conversation with master drummer & composer Bill Stewart. I’ve always loved his playing as well as his writing, so it was like a dream come true to get to ask him a few questions and talk about music with him. We cover a lot of … Continue reading Bill Stewart