The 48-Hour Residency, Home Edition

48 Hour Residency, Charlie Ballantine and Joel Tucker from Harrison Center for the Arts on Vimeo.

You may be familiar with our 48-hour residencies, when we invite artists and musicians to come to Indianapolis, spend 24 hours exploring the city, then the next 24 hours creating art or music inspired by the city. And this time around, you may be familiar with the artists themselves, since they are Indy natives!

Local jazz guitarists Joel Tucker (Tucker Brothers) and Charlie Ballantine came together this month to write “Maple Crossing,” inspired by the Great Places 2020 district of the same name. The pair, who have both lived in the area at some point, decided to go straight to the source, sat down in Tarkington Park and let their surroundings speak to them.

Tucker explained that the inspiration was “relatively ingrained in both of us” as they have, over the years, enjoyed the parks, gotten to know the people and supported the businesses that make up Maple Crossing. A favorite of his, the Melody Inn, exposed him to a wide variety of music which led the duo to incorporate styles other than just straight ahead jazz. Even the time signature gives a nod to the blues, which he explains jazz musicians have traditionally looked to for inspiration. Dramatic chord changes in their composition reflect the changes that have taken place in the neighborhood over the last couple of decades.

As both Tucker and Ballantine described the creative process, it was moving to hear how they were able to incorporate the influence of the area’s past, present, and potential for what the area can be looking forward.

This 48-hour residency was produced in partnership with the Indianapolis Jazz Foundation and Indy Jazz Fest.