Dennis Raffelok and the Heart of Jazz
aline reynolds :: The Hamptons Music Scene
Bassist/singer Dennis Raffelok and his accompanist on the piano, Wayne Sabella, certainly know how to turn on the charm on stage. Raffelok and Sabella have been playing together for a decade now in a wide variety of venues–from restaurants to weddings to night clubs –all across Long Island. The standard jazz tunes they performed two Sundays ago at Pierre’s Restaurant in Bridgehampton included the 1950’s classics “Blue Moon,” “My Romance,” “Green Dolphin Street,” and “When Sunny Gets Blue.” Raffelock and Sabella were consistently in sync, as the bassist and pianist took turns in executing rich, soothing melodies that were accompanied by strong rhythmic backup.
Dennis Raffelok’s musical origins stem from 4th-grade drum lessons. “It was a good instrument to start out with,” he says, “’cause it taught me the basics of rhythm.” He grew up in Westbury, Long Island listening to his parent’s favorite swing music. Upon receiving a draft notice at age nineteen, he immediately consulted an army recruiter about substituting musical participation for standard military tasks. “I ended up never having to touch a weapon!” Raffelok exclaimed, expressing his joy about having served instead as a member of 97th Division Army Band at Fort Sill, Oklahoma.
Shortly after his four years at Cabrillo College in Santa Cruz, where he studied jazz theory and performance, Raffelok joined various house trios and show band ensembles on a cruise ship. He then settled in L.A., and, joining a trio called Mood Indigo, procured gigs at several of the Hollywood hotspots such as the China Club, Mortons, Oscars, Nucleus Nuance, At My Place, and the Hard Rock Café. Soon the bassist was basking in the Hollywood limelight, getting calls from celebrities like Joni Mitchell for private performances at exclusive weekend parties on their estates. “We appealed to a very wide range of [music listeners],” Raffelok explains,” “and had all these fans [from within] the [entertainment] industry!”
Wayne Sabella, meanwhile, was formally trained as an organist, starting in first grade. “I always had a thing for popular music,” he said, alluding to Tony Bennett, Mel Torme, and Frank Sinatra as a few of his all-time favorite musicians. Sabella also expressed his fondness for the mid-twentieth century bossa nova movement, founded in part by Grammy-award winning Brazilian singer and composer Antonio Carlos Johim.
Sabella describes his musical upbringing as somewhat anomalous yet ultimately beneficial: “My parents gave me the chance to study [music] by buying an organ, which was quite unusual back in the 1950s.” After switching from organ to piano in high school, Sabella began working professionally as soon as he graduated. “I met some great local players [at the time] and had the chance to learn ‘on the job’”; this spontaneous interchange with other musicians inspired the emerging pianist to forge his own musical path.
Raffelok and Sabella met over ten years ago at the Deerfield Inn on Montauk Highway, when the pianist approached Dennis after listening to one of his gigs. Little did they know that they would soon form their own jazz band, The Dennis Raffelok Trio. When asked about their collaborative musicianship, Wayne remarked, “I feel like he and I are on the same page,” adding that he and the bassist form a “symbiotic relationship” as a performing duo.
And they certainly did on Sunday, February 26th at Pierre’s. As if it were second nature, Dennis and Wayne subtlety exchanged glances or nods to signal switches between the “heads” and solo improvisatory sections. During the latter parts of the songs, Wayne’s fingers scampered along the keys in his own creative riffs, while Dennis provided harmonic and rhythmic support on the bass. Then they proceeded to switch roles, with Dennis embarking on a nifty melodic spiel with Wayne softly and smoothly harmonizing in the background. At certain points during each cover, pianist and cellist launched into a contrapuntal melodic dialogue with ease and dexterity.
Throughout the gig, neither musician had a musical score in front of him. Dennis confidently stood next to the piano, singing the blues lyrics with facility and lyricism as he dreamily gazed around the room. He even managed to tweak the tuning knob on his bass halfway through the classic 1920’s Isham Jones song, “It had to be You.” The bassist sang his heart out with fervency and charisma, capturing exactly the meaning of the lyrics as the vocals wistfully leapt from phrase to phrase.
Meanwhile, confidently perched on the piano bench, Wayne often glanced away from his instrument with eyelids half closed as his fingers glided along the keys. It was as if some tacit magnetic force were clasping the two figures and their instruments, fusing the myriad sonic waves into one cohesive sound.
At one point, a tall, curly haired man diagonally perched across the room called out, “Can you play us some Richard Rodgers?” “Sure,” replied Dennis. The audience member and performer negotiated on “My Romance,” which was performed delicately and with pathos.
When asked what he enjoys about playing at Pierre’s, Dennis explained that apart from the artsy, cozy ambience, he has made some key contacts that have led to gigs in other venues. “I got asked to play at a private party in Chicago–they put us up, rented me a bass, all I had to bring is my voice and tuxedo!” he chuckled.
With regard to media compilations, Raffelok’s ensemble produced the 2001 CD So Many Ways, which includes ten cover songs and three of the band’s original compositions. Speaking on behalf of the ensemble, Raffelok explained the musicians’ speedy recording process. “We were in and out for four and a half hours, and normally stuck with first or second takes,” he mentioned, implying that the raw material was barely tampered with.
Raffelok describes his compositions as “loving, uplifting lyrics [and chords],” ones that, he says, aren’t bound by any single genre. “It depends on how [the song] is played,” Denis explained, suggesting that one could tailor his compositions to a variety of musical styles. The ensemble is currently working on a new CD, which will consist of covers, with a few original compositions as well.
Raffelok is performing regularly at Pierre’s Restaurant (located at 2468 Main Street) on Sunday evenings from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. To hear sample clips of the ensemble’s music or to find out details about their upcoming gigs, visit Dennis Raffelok’s myspace page at http://www.myspace.com/dennisraffelock or send an e-mail inquiry directly to Dennis Raffelok at jazzvocal01@yahoo.com.
Aline Reynolds is a magna cum laude 2007 graduate of Barnard College, with a double degree in comparative literature and music. Shortly after graduation, she began working as a freelance arts and culture writer for Long Island periodicals such as Dan’s Papers and Southampton Press. Since June 2007, she has been working in the international sales department at W.W. Norton publishing, where she is responsible for mediating between Norton’s overseas representatives and the Norton headquarters in New York and Pennsylvania. She also does freelance press release writing for Norton’s publicity department, and undertakes various other freelance projects in the college and trade editorial departments on a regular basis.
