Trumpeter Mike Olmos has played with musicians that range from Etta James to Israel “Cachao” Lopez, and regularly with Marcus Shelby, Adam Theis, Lavay Smith, John Calloway, Jesus Diaz and Rebeca Mauleón.

As of January it will be four years that Olmos has been running a jam session every Monday night at Grant and Green in North Beach and bringing together some of the most soulful musicians in the Bay Area. It is FREE and needs the public’s support!

Here is an interview with Trumpeter Mike Olmos. I found Mike to be engaging, sincere, reverent and truly in love with music.

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How long have you been playing and why did you choose the trumpet?

I have been playing trumpet for almost twenty years now. Around the age of twelve my mom approached me about possibly picking up another instrument (I was already taking beginning piano lessons at the time). My grandfather had an old Conn cornet from the late 1930's which he used to play when he was younger. At first I thought "sure I'll take this up, there's only three buttons!" I learned quickly that this instrument was not easy to learn.

Where are you from? Where did you study?

I was born in East Los Angeles in the city of Monterey Park. At the age of six I moved up to Merced, California where I did most of my grade schooling. After high school I moved up to the San Francisco Bay Area to attended Cal State Hayward to study music.

Who are your influences? Musical and Life influences.

Where do I start? How do I start? On the musical side I can say that as a trumpeter I've been influenced by almost every great on the instrument as well as those on any other instrument such as saxophone, trombone, piano, bass drums, vocals, etc. I'll name off of few of those but I don't think that I have enough time to name off everybody! Some of those influences are: Woody Shaw, John Coltrane, Dexter Gordon, Wynton Kelly, Joe Henderson, Cannonball Adderly, Paul Chambers, Art Blakey, Miles Davis, Freddie Hubbard, J.J. Johnson, Herbie Hancock, The Marsalis Family and that does not even scratch the surface of who I've checked out.

My influences on my growth as a musician stem from all of the numerous bands I've played with since coming to the Bay Area. Most notably I credit band leaders such as Marcus Shelby, Adam Theis, Lavay Smith, John Calloway, Jesus Diaz and Rebeca Mauleón for giving me the opportunity to play with at a young age. These experiences are the reason that I've gotten to where I am today.

Now as far as my life influences go, I have to give it up to my mom since she was the one who convinced me to pick up an instrument in the first place! Another person who was a huge influence is my high school band director Greg Christiansen who made me realize that I had a talent worth developing and that I should actually do something with it!


You play in a lot of big band orchestras - what interests you in them?

My first exposure to jazz music was through big band music. First it came from my parents and then when I got to high school I began playing in a jazz ensemble. Before I was learning how to improvise I was an ensemble player. Through that I had to learn how to sight read, play in a section, lead a section, and develop my sound, range and technique. What have always interested me in playing in large ensembles have been the opportunities to read and perform creative, challenging music from some of my favorite composers. I feel that I have always thrived when the music was the most challenging.




You groove between Jazz, Latin Jazz, Blues - Hip-Hop - is this challenging for you? Do you have a favorite genre of music to play?

The only challenging thing about playing multiple genres of music is that I have to make sure I am bringing the right influence to the table. It would be interesting to walk into a blues gig after spending the entire day listening to Coltrane's Sun Ship and still having that on my mind while doing the gig!

Now as far as what is my favorite genre? Jazz without a doubt just because it's the one genre to me where I feel I am most creative as an improviser, not to mention that I get to interact with other musicians! However what's most important to me and probably to every musician out there, is it doesn't matter what style of music you're playing, it's who you're playing it with.

What are your favorite attributes in a person you are playing with?

If I hear soulfulness and can create a musical bond with them. I suppose how intuitive another
musicians is, how well we are able to connect.

Who are some of the musicians you connect really well with?

Marty Wehner, Marcus Shelby, Adam Schulman, Jeff Marrs. There are so many…

You are one of the few musicians I am aware of that transcends both communities of Jazz and Latin Jazz, similarly in the way Anthony Blea has transcended Classical, Latin and now into Hip-Hop, how did a young straight-ahead jazz cat start playing with John Calloway, Rebeca Mauleón and backing up Israel “Cachao” Lopez?

When I came to the Bay Area I started playing Salsa gigs. Gary Flores had a weekly over at Rasselas and that is where I met everyone.

I know you have played with legends, including Etta James - how did these opportunities come to you?

The important thing is making sure you answer the phone. I've been around the Bay long enough and I've met and played with so many great musicians. Networking has been a huge strength as a side man and when that call came through strong recommendations from a couple of musicians. Had I said no to the tour they would have moved on down the list and gotten the next available guy. I made sure that when I walked on that gig I learned the horn parts quickly so everything would go smoothly as far as leading the horn section. When the first tour was over I went to visit Ms. James' tour bus to thank her for the opportunity to play with her and before I could continue she was saying, “I got some gigs in Vegas, you wanna do them?” From then it was safe to assume that I was in the band. As musicians we all pay our dues playing gigs we don't necessarily want to do. For me it was who I've met on those gigs which in turn opened other doors of opportunity.


What has been your favorite performance experience so far?

That's a tough question for me to answer because no matter how great a show maybe I'm constantly thinking about the next one that comes along that will outdo the previous. It's hard to sit back and think about say the gig I did backing up Cachao five years ago and measure that up to the first time I played the Monterey Jazz Festival. I'm thinking about the next great thing that's going to happen!

Do you teach? Are you interested in teaching?

I teach privately on occasion and always welcome drop in lessons.

What would you tell a young trumpeter starting out?

Listen to other trumpet players, get in your ear the kind of sound you want for yourself.

You run the Jam Session every Monday night at Grant and Green in North Beach, why are jam sessions so important? Why does the public (people who are not musicians) need to support these sessions?

Jam sessions have always been a way for me to meet other great musicians locally or from other parts of the country or even the world. They have also been a learning tool for me as far as building repertoire of songs that I may want to play with other cats. If I want to play my own songs I'll just save that for my own band.

The jam session to me has always been about community, about interaction, about developing strong musical and social bonds between one another. Now as far as the public needing to support this, I don't necessarily look at it that way.

You can't make a person come to your gig, they have to want to. The key is to convince them that there is something to be said about experiencing live music instead of just staying home and listening to your iPod or CD's. The people who do come to my session on a regular basis who aren't musicians come because they love live music. They love being in that live atmosphere where they can not only hear it but see it being created. What I would say to anyone who lives in San Francisco is don't deprive yourself of this, music is good for the soul.

How long have you been running the session?

In January it will be four years. The house band is myself on trumpet, Michael Coleman on keys, Eric Markowitz on Bass, and Jeff Marrs on Drums. We will have on average a dozen or more musicians sitting in. It’s FREE, although we do pass the hat. People can hear great music for a cost of drink and hopefully a few dollars in our tip jar.

How were you affected by the lost of Jazz at Pearls?

In many ways I grew up in that club. From playing every Monday night with the Contemporary Jazz Orchestra since I was a teenager to the numerous gigs I did with many other groups. Jazz at Pearl's was North Beach. At one time I would always make it a point stop there to check out what was happening and from there I would venture out to the other venues in North Beach. From Black Cat, Enrico's, the Cigar Bar, The Rose Pistola, the numerous clubs on Grant Street, I could bounce that neighborhood like a pinball.

What is the significance to jazz in North Beach?

Look at all the clubs that have come and gone and the musicians who have come through to play them. And I'm talking about looking way back in time.

What inspires you besides music?

The time I get to spend with friends, family and those I love the most. I thrive being around people and it's what inspires me the most to do what I do. I enjoy reading about history.

Who are your favorite composers?

I have a hard time giving short answers. For the the sake of this question I'll limit it to Chopin, Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn, Miles Davis, Sergei Rachmaninoff, John Coltrane and Stevie Wonder.

What do you think about the music scene in the Bay Area?

I think that it is a scene rich with talent and is in need of more venues.

How does it compare to your travels?

I hold it up there with any other great cities that I've been to in this country or in the world that has a great music scene.

Where can people learn about what you are doing?

Through my MySpace page www.myspace.com/THEMIKEOLMOS or my Facebook fan page-- THE Mike Olmos

What is your favorite food?

BBQ baby!

Since you have traveled, where in particular is your favorite BBQ?

This guy Sonny pulled up in front of the Rhythm Room in Scottsdale, AZ with a huge 15 foot grill. I was playing with sax player Bill Stewart, who was in his 80’s, Bill said, “This might be some of the best BBQ I’ve ever had.”