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Esperanza about Edgar
Published: 6/13/2012 3:45 PM
Last Modified: 6/13/2012 3:45 PM

When OK Mozart announced its 2012 season earlier this year, one of the more intriguing aspects of the guest artists it planned to bring to Bartlesville was that two of the most highly regarded bass players/composers in contemporary music -- Esperanza Spalding and Tulsa native Edgar Meyer -- would be spending part of their summer in Oklahoma.

However, just days before this year's festival began, Meyer had to bow out of OK Mozart because of scheduling conflicts.

One of those disappointment by this turn of events was Spalding, as she said during a conversation Monday.

"I really just wanted to be able to hear him play," Spalding said. "He's such a phenomenal player."

She also recalled the first time she met Meyer -- in place familiar to any working musician.

"I was at an airport, and I happened to see this guy waiting at the luggage carousel holding this double bass," she said. "I recognized him right away, but it took me a while to get up the courage to approach him and tell him I was big fan of his.

"But the real question I wanted to ask was, how'd you get here with that bass?" Spalding said, laughing. "He said that he paid for it to be in the seat next to him. And that just seemed so cool to me, 'cause I was there waiting from my bass to show up on the carousel."



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ARTS

James D. Watts Jr. has lived in Oklahoma for most his life, even though he still has people saying to him, "Don't sound like you're from around these parts." A University of Oklahoma Phi Beta Kappa graduate, Watts has received the Governor Arts Award, Harwelden Award and the National Conference of Christians and Jews Beth Macklin Award for his writing. Before coming to the Tulsa World, Watts worked for the Tulsa Tribune.

Contact him at (918) 581-8478.


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