Words by Kris Kropff
Tara Sarter’s perfectly dry alto tone hooked me in six notes. After six bars, I was fully invested in knowing where the warm minimalism of “Time Got Relative” would take me. And after the six tracks of Sarter Kit’s What I am and What I’m Not, with its wonderful tension between straight-ahead trio album and experimental jazz album, I wanted to know more about the 25-year-old German saxophonist who created it.
What I learned from Tara’s answers of “ideas of word constellations” is that she is deeply yet easily authentic, dedicated to her craft but unwilling to bend herself to it, and committed to being, intentionally.
Off Shelf: To me, this album has this wonderful tension between straight ahead trio album and experimental jazz album. Provided you agree with that construct, is that tension inherent in the charts? Did it come more through the recording process? Something else?
Tara Sarter: It actually wasn’t my first intention to have that trio construct! It was initialized by two friends but also I try to create differently… so I guess it was, in my way? [laughs]
I don’t really want to frame the music in any way though. I really like – and do not like – the feeling of not knowing what could happen or which sounds could appear while playing together. But I did compose with the purpose of giving us all the space to create what we can give in that moment of playing while also respecting our own know-how of each other.
OS: Talk a bit about how you came to composing. Is this album your first foray into writing?
TS: I guess you could say that it was my first foray into seriously writing. As I tried to explain earlier, I really wanted to have that open space of creating together and did not want to place myself above the knowledge my colleagues have about their own instrument.
OS: What did the process of composing teach you about who you are, and who you aren’t?
TS: It taught me that I definitely can create vibes in advance, but also that I don’t have to. [laughs] Above all, I learned to be satisfied with what we were ultimately able to give.
OS: You pointed to Kenny Garrett as an influence on your sax playing, and I hear that in “Talk” in particular. What is it about his playing that appeals to you?
TS: He was the first saxophonist who really touched and surprised me while listening when I was about 16, I guess. Just the way he builds his sound did something to me, but I wouldn’t call him a role model.
OS: I love the idea of “Laughter as Faith,” especially in our current moment. What makes you laugh? What gives you faith?
TS: [laughs] Yeah, recently it’s been hard to accept who I am and want to be, but also again accepting who I’m not. I strive to laugh at—or rather, be at—stereotypically unfamiliar things. I notice how I desire a very unfamiliar way of dealing with myself and others. To achieve this, I try to find my confidence in honest laughter, in active breathing, in not talking with words while am in exchange with people but in the sole act of being.
OS: What’s next for you? Your gifts as a player are unquestionable, and with this album you’ve made it clear that you have a broader idea of the medium and what it can be. What does exploring that look like for you?
TS: Trying to keep the interest in the not-expected life, which comes with uncomfortableness and comfortableness. Trying to keep my strong will focused on questioning the human being with its perception. Placing constant trust in myself.