Julian Lage Trio: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert From The Archives

We've been filming Tiny Desk concerts for more than 10 years. While revisiting our archives, we discovered that some of our earliest concerts never made it to KZbin!
Watch Julian Lage Trio’s Tiny Desk concert from 2011: www.npr.org/2011/07/07/137646...
Patrick Jarenwattananon | July 7, 2011
You hear a lot about young prodigies in jazz. That's understandable: Jazz prizes skill, and any teenager who can tear it up like the big boys and girls is usually worth a smile and nod. But usually, you can safely make a note to yourself to check in about that kid in, say, 10 years. It's one thing to emulate the masters' technique. It's another to develop an original style, the way your heroes did.
Guitarist Julian Lage, 23, was once called a prodigy. He was a cute kid, true. But lately, he's also been playing in bands of master musicians - among them Gary Burton, Eric Harland and Mark O'Connor. There's also the matter of Lage's distinct sound. He plays an electric guitar, which sounds almost like an acoustic, and he tends toward folky, pastoral lines, but with a bite. When Lage released his debut album two years ago, even hardened jazz cynics took notice: He had ideas, too.
When Lage recently came for a one-nighter in Washington, D.C., he brought only bassist Jorge Roeder and percussionist Tupac Mantilla. (His usual quintet is a bit unusual, adding a saxophonist and a cellist.) Collectively, the three are soft-spoken and friendly, and they're stellar musicians, too. At the NPR Music offices, they treated us to songs that haven't yet been commercially recorded - the opening tune "Welcoming Committee" and the closing untitled number, harvested from a little online experiment wherein Lage challenged himself to write a song a day for 30 days. ("The first 23 suuucked," he joked.) In between, there's the gentle whisk and country-road twang of "However," which appears on the Julian Lage Group's 2011 sophomore album, Gladwell.
The three looked intently at each other throughout this Tiny Desk Concert, with the sort of push-and-pull group interaction that brought a near-constant smile to each of their faces. There was plenty of concentration wrapped up in that, of course; before we started rolling tape, the three grabbed each other's hands in a circle for a brief moment of meditative clarity. But then they had some fun.
SET LIST
"Welcoming Committee"
"However"
"Untitled (No. 24)"

[@CamKnoppMusic]

So after they filmed this one were they like "alright awesome, so just keep an eye on the KZbin channel and it should be up about 9 years from now"

[@Bonifratz]

What even is the deal with these archives? Why didn't they upload these videos in the first place? I understand some of them have camera or audio issues, but this here is just pure tiny desk quality.

[@Empyrean55]

@@Bonifratz they used to be on the NPR website I think

[@TalkAsSoftAsChalk]

@@Bonifratz I think this was before they started regularly uploading the concerts on youtube. I remember seeing this when I was really young on their website.

[@righinitattoo5599]

can't find a reasonable motive for not posting this before. anyway, thankful for them posting it now.

[@BurntMcgurnt]

Ya it's been on the website for years I've watched it there about a million times

[@luizavanco4943]

You guys need to bring Julian again. His latest work is pure gem

[@Casey_J96]

I love Julian’s playing but wow gotta take a second to appreciate this percussionist!

[@sam.palumbo]

I had the same thought

[@class6853]

And his name is Tupac Mantilla, it cant get better than this

[@jaredforthmusic]

Agreed! This whole band is fantastic!

[@Ricardomartinez-vi2tx]

He's a Colombia percusionista called Tupac

[@bjornyesterday2562]

Yep

[@spacejazz6272]

No way, I've been looking for this concert for years ever since Gary Burton's one where it's mentioned in the description that the Julian Lage trio had visited the Tiny Desk. And now i learn that the reason I couldn't find it was because it never made it to youtube?? lol nevermind it's here now

[@joshmontederamos4813]

Please bring him back for a second time when you get the opportunity!

[@joelness]

^ This!!

[@SammyMakepeace]

Yes would love to see his modern material in this setting (so I can share it to all my friends)

[@tunaficiency]

There’s a tiny desk concert with him and Gary burton in duo that’s amazing

[@robertswistelnickimusic8824]

Josh, your comment is so important! Since the times of the trio shown above, Julian has gone from a young prodigy to one of the most brilliant, complete musicians alive.

[@andresgualdron]

For those wondering, the percussionist is called Tupac Mantilla. Some years ago I took a class with him in my music college in Bogotá, Colombia, and he was a very good teacher as well.

[@andresbernal5526]

I just love how they have total control of their dynamics. The level of contrast that they achieve is incredible.

[@GoranZec]

Extraordinary playing, Lage's style is really unique. Mantilla is also crazy expressive on the percussion, he reaches some Trilok Gurtu heights there. The chemistry between the trio of them and the relaxed atmosphere with total mastery executed apparently effortlessly makes this top shelf Tiny Desk material.

[@PentameronSV]

0:11 - *Welcoming Committee* (5:50) 6:20 - *However* (11:04) 12:20 - *Untitled (No.24)* (15:57)

[@somafulop]

the 3rd song s called "The Settlement"

[@billderinbaja3883]

This was 12 years ago, and still one of the best Tiny Desk events ever... thanks Tom Boilen, and thanks Julian Lage.

[@christopherkelley3185]

Everyone playing seems to be in a state of pure joy. An absolute pleasure to watch this.

[@JoeValenti1968]

One of the most memorable minutes of music I’ve ever hear, feel blessed. Thank you NPR

[@PhilipPoland1987]

This is too perfect! They play like one instrument... and Julian with that Manzer sounds terrific!

[@fonno_]

I saw Julian playing solo once in Groningen, NL, at a festival. Absolutely mesmerizing

[@DannyDoomPink]

My god this is beautiful. I feel like Julian is one of the ambassadors of jazz for the new generation. His feel is a joy to experience and the enjoyment of making music he emanates really cuts through that "capital J Jazz" that so many young musicians are intimidated by (myself included). Such an inspiration. And MY GOD the percussionist is astounding. I really need to explore his works as well. So glad to have found this.

[@jesseyrouss6918]

Thank you for releasing this gem.

[@daviciriaco4664]

Thank you so much for uploading this!! it's such a treasure archive! please bring him back for another concert :)

[@TodaysRemedy]

All those smiles only musicians understand, love it.

[@taylorrobertsguitarist]

Better late than never! Man...his playing is so deep. Amazing trio.

[@josemolina959]

Love Julian Lage, just love him! He is so special and unique, totally inspiring.

[@mhbackman]

Those faces! They truly love this.

[@TRYBEmusic]

love the fact that's only 720p, gives the old school feelings

[@sebastianlange1986]

That one phone ringing at 5:46 was perfect :’)

[@tizmon]

Good for him. He is much much better now, and that’s incredible.

[@manikraina2154]

I wasn’t feeling like listening to music for sometime but this was such a fresh start. Such inspiring musicians. Phenomenal control.

[@stoyanovasparuh4990]

speechless.. all three of them are magnificent

[@jalelghribi6304]

So you're telling me I've spent months thinking I found a gem before Tiny Desk only to find out he did one nearly a decade prior.

[@nacienlos70]

What a command, range, dynamics and tone

[@Alanoffer]

This really was the early day of npr , I recognise that corner , nice to see the early incarnation of Julian Lage , he deserves another spot

[@G1r2e3e4n5D6a7y811]

Makes me happy to watch julian play, this cheered me up right now hahha love the man

[@maxton1506]

i had no idea that this is what i've been waiting for all these years

[@sherwinscott1713]

Julian Is MY FAVORITE Modern JAZZ GUITARIST

[@jeremylos6459]

I will never not love the faces guitarist make. 😂😍❤️

[@kristofferhjelmaassivertse4736]

Now this is dynamics at it's finest!

[@artificialplanet1540]

Beautiful performance, they do look like having so much fun!

[@DanGross_MusicJournalism]

The audio production is amazing now, but there is something so special about these one mic shows.

[@seneca4ever]

Did not expect that fire when I started this

[@jerrodc155]

Woah!!! I saw this back in the day and have been looking for it since. Thank you for bringing it back to us!

[@MyPiano629]

Old but Gold

[@takwanamadziba3804]

This is truly Masterclass!

[@nacienlos70]

Is this his best guitar sound? Absolutely beautiful.

[@RobertKeeleyTV]

Superb! I just love the dynamics of this trio.

[@bombeijo]

This is next level. So beautiful

[@dreadlockbanana]

can´t wipe the smile off my face watching this

[@tomas5376]

Geees! What a stellar performance. Three incredibly talented musicians! Love the “brushes “!!👍✌️😊🙏🏼🎵🎶🎵🎶🎵🎶🎶🎶🎵🎶🎵🎵🎶

[@nicklarsenjazz]

NPR is holding out the jazz on us

[@benf340]

And this is why I keep all notifications on from this channel lol

[@MikeDoughertyMusic1]

This percussionist is unreal!

[@MikeDoughertyMusic1]

The tone and vibes is perfect for this monday am!

[@puahaha07]

Amazing sound and harmony all over!!

[@Sooby007]

Beautiful! Love this trio. So stoked Dave King has been playing with Julian. I've watched the live version of Prehensile Dream like 10,000 times. 😂

[@vicoloaiza]

Thanks for upload this

[@garrettbabcock9024]

That percussion set up is phenomenal!

[@sylvielopez2686]

Tank you very much tiny desk for uploading this great musicians merci beaucoup

[@brendanivey7814]

You guys need to have him back please

[@danielschenker9874]

Bring Julian back!!!

[@shonakashima6108]

Exactly what I needed

[@FrancescoPinetti]

...what a good surprise! Great talents here... now stars!

[@TheManuelpuerta]

julian's so special

[@samogasteiz4653]

Beautiful music!

[@mrjdaddy1]

What a great trio! I particularly love Tupac Mantilla on percussion.

[@JudithBeckedorf]

What a genius and soulful human and musician.

[@felixfigueroa]

Excellent trio....Congratulation!!

[@dnxxnb]

He has such a lovely tone and blissful melodies. Reminds me of Pat Metheny.

[@jacobdejongh9042]

He studied with Pat right?

[@dnxxnb]

Wow I didn't know that!

[@UberGameplay1508]

@@jacobdejongh9042 Did he? I thought it was Jim Hall..

[@JPSAudioWorks]

I think Pat used to play a lot with Julian when he was just a kid

[@MusicGurus]

Julian definitely studied with Jim Hall and Pat studied with Jim too. So perhaps they sound alike partly because they had the same teacher? Julian's sound has changed a lot over the past 10+ years though.

[@germanmartinez1994]

Bring him back!

[@nasibars4575]

The algorithm works in strange ways .....and what a wonderful journey this is

[@Matt-qx3ne]

What a great trio. That percussionist tho!!

[@AlexTuble]

I love this ensemble set-up. Bright Sized Life vibes. And, Julian a monster as always. Same with the rest of the band!

[@ericliang4744]

perfection

[@fullmoonofus2683]

Wow... Wish I was there

[@tausenti]

Awesome!

[@chokysenge]

The desk in this concert was so tiny that we almost missed it!!! thank god we didn't!

[@MrHarrisonMusic]

Great playing guys

[@nadasonic6]

Stellar

[@mikedelferro]

Worldclass playing

[@TurgutAlpBekoglu]

Thanks for sharing..

[@thefantobi]

awesome

[@Aldoistaken]

wow

[@nopeguessnot]

Pro photographer speaking. For those of us who would have enjoyed seeing more of his work on the fretboard, you should’ve considered both light source and camera angles before the session.

[@RyanTehPyro]

They all are (as well as myself,) but that drummer REALLY seems to be enjoying himself!

[@zaldum386]

Sobrenatural también el joven Julian, el AMO del cotarro.

[@coreyo6256]

idk who/what i’m watching or y i clicked but it’s with it

[@iammusicp]

great!!

[@judahdsouza9196]

FINALLY

[@kindoffblinking6105]

The whole gang is right in the pocket. Amazing

[@charlesgrey8651]

Awesome, bloody awesome, ... 🎶👌💖👍🤘

[@ninjapanda9570]

why did we have to wait so long for this ????! awesome !!

[@onseul1004]

I'm soaked with beautiful performances. What a beautiful performance. I am a nameless busker who I do not know yet, but I will try to become a musician who people love someday. I support your music life and wish you good health and happiness.

[@kingofskateop]

People were not ready to see this video 10 years before.

[@kingabalcsiktamas]

Percussion is amazing! All of it, but that!!!

[@anitadavideduo]

Super!

[@bonelessbryan]

oh man oh mannn!

[@Bob0bscureD]

Wow...

[@worldnotworld]

That first piece combines so much of I like about Ralf Towner, John Ambercrombie, and Steve Tibbetts, but -- of course! -- it takes off in a uniquely Lage-ian way...

[@YohoKnows]

THIS IS SO BADASS

[@chalapenomusic]

At first I thought the percussionist was hitting that bongas with slippers

[@Bhuyakasha]

haha the phone ringing is a great outro

[@UntitledSix]

How has this never been released until now?!

[@SammyMakepeace]

It was on the website, just not KZbin

[@veganvocalist4782]

Oh that timing ;D

[@alangonzalezmartinez8189]

I miss Julian's sound with his Archtop.

[@magibatalla]

I feel you, but I think that's because it's easier for us mere mortal guitar players to relate to this sound (and only the sound, the playing... well, that's a whole other story). IMHO, the boldness Julian brought playing more exotic instruments to jazz enthusiast ears are quite a signature of his uniqueness (as are those bends such as the one in 4:43 haha). When he picked up that Guild lately I missed his Tele sound, we're always behind :D (and that tells a lot about the genius he is).

[@alangonzalezmartinez8189]

@@magibatalla He's one of my favorite players but I just didn't dig his last two albums as much. Not because they are "modern" I mean, I listen to guitarist such as Lund, Rosenwinkel, Moreno and many more to me they are more out there than Julian. When I refer to his Archtop soon I was referring to his style of playing at the time. Really enjoyed his performance of "Emily" and "We'll Meet Again" though. He'll always be an inspiration to me and I'm looking forward to his next musical project. Seguro los dos hablamos español y andamos de huevones hablando inglishki

[@magibatalla]

@@alangonzalezmartinez8189 Saludos, Alan! Lo importante es entendernos sea cual sea el idioma :) Entendi que te referías al estilo, sí, y creo que lo que comenté sigue siendo válido. Julian tocando la Tele me parece más anárquico y vanguardista (no en el sentido "out there" que tu apuntas a respecto de los tipos con un lenguaje más oblícuo que el de Julian), menos preocupado con la pureza del sonido y la pulcritud técnica y más por la aventura de encontrar caminos y forzar sus propios límites dentro de contextos musicales más "crudos" (harmonias más simples, que reflejan su proximidad al folk, bluegrass...). Yo también amo su estilo más "clásico", pero en mi caso lo que me cautivó fue esa actitud arrojada que descubrí en Arclight. Un privilegio ser contemporaneos de su genio, en cualquier caso. Un abrazo y disculpa si escribí algo raro, últimamente solo uso el portugués :$

[@alangonzalezmartinez8189]

@@magibatalla todo bien. Agree to disagree. El Arclight es mi favorito