For the past 20 years, Béla Fleck and the Flecktones have become one of the most prolific bands in the history of American music. The group has released 13 albums - two of which have reached number one on the Billboard Contemporary Jazz Albums chart - and has won four Grammy awards since 1997.
However, the band fronted by Fleck, widely considered one of the greatest living banjo players, has received praise in genres beyond jazz and is known for blending a variety of popular musical styles into something new all their own.
"We are so excited by so many different kinds of music -- it has been hard to restrict ourselves," Fleck said. "We don't think much about crossover appeal in terms of the 'biz," but we do want our music to reach out to people."
Fleck added that the band's tendency toward instrumental music stems from the same sentiment.
"It allows the listener to have a different experience, more personal I think because people have been making instrumental music for a long time, and for good reason," he said. "Removing vocals from the equation allows the listener to have his own interpretation of what the music means."
The Flecktones, whose members are Fleck, renowned bassist Victor Wooten, percussionist Roy "Future Man" Wooten and saxophonist Jeff Coffin, has seen several line-up shifts since its formation in 1989. Founding member Howard Levy, who played harmonica and keys, left the band in 1993, and Coffin splits his time playing with The Flecktones and Dave Matthews Band. Last month, however, all five band members reunited for a European tour.
"It was really interesting to play music from 1988 to 1992, our first musical offerings," he said. "And [Levy] is an inspiring guy. The crowds were great and it was a trip to go back in time."
The band is now bringing the tour back to the United States, and the set list will consist of songs from "Jingle All the Way," the group's first Christmas album that was released last year.
The album is one of the band's two chart-topping records. Fleck said working with such classic and beloved holiday songs was a change from the band's usual creative process.
"We didn't write the music [and] this allowed us to collaborate in a new way because when someone brings their song into the group, they tend to have a leadership role in the arranging," he said.
And, even though a 20-year tenure means an undoubtedly crazy history of touring, writing and recording, Fleck said the band sees no need to take a break from its fast-paced lifestyle.
"We are all at a peak time, and I don't see a reason to stop. Some things we will do separately [as solo projects] and some together," he said. "Right now we are together and it is very special."
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