7 minute read
Gregg Karukas
from July 2022
Photo: Aric Thompson From darkness to illumination: a very personal story with a bright outcome
By Ken Capobianco
Keyboardist-composer-producer Gregg Karukas has followed his muse in numerous directions throughout his 40-year professional career. The pianist, who co-founded The Rippingtons and won a Grammy award for Best New Age album with Omar Akram for their collaboration Echoes of Love, has become a smooth jazz favorite for his wonderful gift of melody as a composer and eloquent, diverse keyboard stylings. Karukas is ready to explore new musical avenues with his soul-jazz project, The GK Soul Jazz Party, which will breathe new life into soul-jazz classics and eventually play his original compositions. It’s all part of a transition period for the artist who experienced personal tragedy when his wife, Yvonne, passed away in 2018. He has emerged with a new appreciation for life and renewed vigor for his music. “About three years ago I started to play Hammond organ. Once COVID hit, the time allowed me to focus on the Hammond,” said Karukas via phone recently about his shift in musical focus. “Playing that is a whole different concept than how I always played keyboards and multi-keyboards, and I decided to start GK Soul Jazz Party. I enjoy playing these songs I love.” He has begun playing various club gigs with Soul Jazz Party, initially focusing on some of his favorite songs before incorporating his own compositions. He plans to record a Soul Jazz Party album in the fall for a release next spring. “Much of it now is soul-jazz standards that people would recognize,” the Los Angeles resident said. “The group is designed so we don’t even need a rehearsal. I have an East Coast band and a West Coast band with a rotating cast of musicians. I can travel to New York and call some guys who are great players and send them the song list. We’ll just show up and wing it.” This new venture comes on the heels of Karukas’ 2021 album, Serenata, the first solo piano recording of his career. The beautiful, expressive work features solo piano interpretations of songs from Brazilian artists Milton Nascimento and Dori Caymmi, with whom Karukas once played as a band member. The set also included reimagined versions of the pianist’s own compositions.
“It had been 30 years since I played some of these songs—I played with Dori from 1991 to 1995,” he explained. “I sat down and went through a bunch of songs on the piano and thought, ‘I wonder if I can do some of these on solo piano? And, would it sound good enough to release?’ “I didn’t consider whether it was commercial or not. I focused on the melodies and harmonies. It really resonated with me, so I put it out there and let it have a life of its own.” All of this activity and change come after a period when Karukas took some time away from music during his wife’s illness and after her death. He needed time to grieve, reflect and consider his path forward. The father of two sons, Alex and Stephen, said this period helped him refocus and gain a deeper perspective on existence. “The way things happened with Yvonne and me, we had a fantastic period right around 2011 to 2013,” he explained.“I was heavily involved with Dave Koz as his musical director, and that was a lot of work for his cruises, but it was exciting and fun. Yvonne got to go on every cruise. “I took a break to record Soul Secrets (2014), and it was a successful album. But then Yvonne came down with cancer, and music took a back seat, which of course, I was fine with. We could deal with what was going on. “I was able to say no to gigs because royalties were coming in. After Yvonne passed away, I knew I needed to take time away from music and just recover. I was very happy all those phases happened because you are supposed to mourn and retreat.” He said he spent his time in nature going camping and enjoying the beach. Soon, COVID hit, and a new period of isolation ensued, but he gradually resumed playing music and did livestreams with Rick Braun and others. It renewed his creative vision. Now, he is moving forward with a deep sense of compassion for humanity. “Life is good, and I’m establishing new relationships and traveling as much as possible within the limits of COVID because it’s here to stay,” he said. “I know quite a few people who have lost their spouse or loved ones, and what I’ve learned is you get a completely different perspective on life. It’s a gift in a way to have empathy for those who are suffering and find the ability to enjoy life every day. “It’s a process because the grief is always there, but it’s more about gratitude. I would say that’s my lesson. You move from grief to gratitude, and the more you train your mind to do that, the more time you spend grateful for life.” He took a breath and reflected. “There is so much suffering in the world—so many people with cancer and COVID and other things, we sometimes get numb. But honestly, it’s OK to cry. You never know what little trigger will make you cry, but then you just smile. Gradually over time, you will be doing more smiling.” continued on page 13
Photos: Christian Nordström
continued from page 11
He spoke glowingly of his two sons, who are on the fast track to success in their own way. Alex is an up-and-coming composer, and Stephen soon starts an artificial-intelligence job at Google. “Alex is working as a film composer with Christopher Lennertz and graduating to co-composer. He’s now working on movies and television shows,” Karukas beamed. “It’s fantastic because he’s 27 now, and I moved to Los Angeles when I was 26, and by the time I was 29 and 30, I had been doing the exact same thing—composing and doing synthesizer programming with composer Craig Safan. So, there are similarities, but Alex is doing it his way and is right where he wants to be. I couldn’t be happier.” Stephen is also a musician and composer, but he’s going in a different direction. “Stephen studied at Indiana University for percussion and composition for his undergrad work, but for his master’s studied computer science,” Karukas explained. “He loves music and writes music for marimba and chamber music, but after he did an internship at Amazon, he got offers from Amazon and Google. He will be moving up to Seattle to work for Google. That’s very exciting.” An empty nester since 2016, Karukas sold the family home a year after his wife’s passing. He downsized and bought a new house with views of the valley and sunsets in Thousand Oaks, California, where he lives with Jasmine, a cat his wife nicknamed “Cancer Cat” during her battle with the disease. The feline has a musical pedigree of sorts, as she is the sister of the cat saxophonist Euge Groove adopted from the same shelter. As the 66-year-old musician begins a new chapter in life, he clearly understands that often when we step through darkness, we inevitably find illumination. And right now, Gregg Karukas’ light is burning bright. For more information on Karukas, including his complete tour schedule, visit www.karukas.com.
ON TOUR
JULY 14
Festival of Arts: Art, Jazz, Wine and Chocolate
650 Laguna Canyon Road Laguna Beach, California www.foapom.com/eventsmmm/ art-jazz-wine-chocolate/ 949-494-1145
Photo: Christian Nordström
JULY 24
Rhythm on the Vine
(with Jazmin Ghent and Darryl Williams) South Coast Winery Resort & Spa 34843 Rancho California Road Temecula, California www.southcoastwinery.com 844-841-1406
AUG. 7
Festival of Arts: Spotlight on the Grand Piano
650 Laguna Canyon Road Laguna Beach, California https://www.foapom.com/ event/gregg-karukas/ 949-494-1145
Photo: Dan Boissy
Artwork by Natalia Eremeyeva Duarte
C O M E F O R T H E A R T
S t a y f o r t h e MUSIC
C O N C E R T S O N T H E G R E E N
Saturdays at 1:00pm
July 09 July 16 July 23 July 30 Aug 06 Aug 20
Grace Kelly Melissa Manchester Jeff Lorber Fusion Mindi Abair Down to the Bone To Be Announced
A R T , J A Z Z , W I N E & C H O C O L A T E
Thursdays at 5:30pm
July 07 July 14 July 21 July 28 Aug 04 Aug 11 Aug 18 Aug 25 Sept 01
Pretzel Logic Gregg Karukas Bill Cantos Chris Standring Billy Valentine Kleber Jorge Téka Anne Walsh & Tom Zink Scott Wilkie
Wine & chocolate tastings $20
See the entire daily music schedule and learn about reserved seating at www.LagunaFestivalofArts.org
July 5 - Sept 2, 2022
120 award-winning artists Original works of art for purchase Art tours and workshops Special events + more
