It can be tricky to find your place as a musician in a city dedicated to mostly one genre: rock and roll. For jazz saxophonist Max Schlenk, he’s set out to build spaces where artists across genres can connect and blend sounds. Catch him performing with his band, Qualified, for the first time this Friday at Beachland Tavern.
Schlenk started playing instruments in fifth grade and initially chose the clarinet after Squidward, a cynical sea creature from Spongebob Squarepants. He spent years playing clarinet before auditioning for tenor saxophone. After his first solo performance, he said something “just switched on.”
“I just could see the music in my head and I knew I wanted to do this,” Schlenk said. Shortly after, he was gifted two albums: The Capitol Years by Cannonball Adderly and The Sidewinder by Lee Morgan.
Over the last few years, Schlenk has managed to make it work as a full-time musician in Cleveland. Between performing live and teaching at The Music Settlement, Schlenk is now trying to cultivate a genre-diverse community for local artists.
He grew up around jazz musicians, and as he got older, noticed it was hard to break into the scene and find new opportunities. A lot of the jazz musicians – especially saxophonists – are veterans with loyal gigs, making it less likely that one will open up, he said.
It took him a few years performing in the rock scene before he decided to set out on his own and build something new.
“The show is just a way to bring us all together on this unified mission to showcase how great Cleveland’s music scene is and why we’re deserving of more support. I’m trying to collaborate with as many artists as I can.”
Prior to teaming up, members of Qualified met performing at Crobar’s Soul Train Avenue event. The band consists of Schlenk (saxophone), Iszaiah Armstrong (bass), Nick Frank (guitar), Gabe Jones (drums), D’Angelo Maxwell (talkbox), Rob Morrow (auxiliary keys), Jordan Wright (keys) and Vandarrel (trumpet).
On Friday, people can expect “a giant crazy collective of R&B and gospel musicians,” Schlenk said. Joining Qualified is Thicarus, self-described as a horn-driven six-piece. The show also happens to double as a birthday show, as Schlenk and Thicarus members all have January birthdays.
Tickets are on sale ($15 advance or $20 at the door). Doors open at 8 p.m. and the show starts at 9 p.m at Beachland Tavern in Collinwood.