Let me describe the cover of Bob Brozman's latest CD "Lumiere." It's a photo of 27 bearded men, all in white suits. Each is wearing a fez. And each is holding a different instrument. If you look closely, you'll notice something else.....
They're all Bob Brozman.
Brozman recently spoke with The World's Marco Werman about his one man orchestra. And how travelling around the world has made him a collector of instruments.
BROZMAN: Like a plumber has a lot of tools, I've accumulated instruments over the years to achieve the sounds I'm looking for. Sort of painting with colors, only using sound waves instead of light waves.
WERMAN: And how many of these instruments would you say are a result of your travels?
BROZMAN: Well quite a lot are a results of collaborations. On the right I'm holding a weird, parallelogram shaped instrument. That's a 10-stringed harp from Finland and that's just something I found there. The first track on the CD is based on what it's like to strum that harp and I built an entire orchestra around it.
WERMAN: So, is the Bob Brozman Orchestra all of you with a lot of overdubs?
BROZMAN: Yes, indeed. Many people around the world have overdubbed, but in this particular case I was trying to paint with layers. Also, in playing all the parts myself, when I needed to have a crescendo or vibrato I know my own breathing, I know my own phrasing. You could rehearse that for months and months with 30 real people, but it would be way too labor intensive.>