Okay, I lie. We talk about a woman. A bit. Norah Jones. But everything is music related. I am sitting with pianists Allen Youngblood and Jason Cheng, and saxophonist Tom Nunan, wetting our lips with a little juice of the vine mid-afternoon when a debate heats up around whether it is appropriate to label Jones, Kenny G and the like as ‘jazz artists’. Allen Youngblood says it is just a marketing strategy: those so-called ‘pop jazz’ artists lack an important element in their music – the ability to improvise.

Tom butts in to point out that to many people, genres are becoming meaningless: “Look at the online stores, there are millions of possible categories to choose from. And I don’t know the difference between Afro, Cuban, Latin or Brazilian music.”

Jason interjects that some musicians are just too difficult to categorize. “What about Burt Bacharach?” “Oh, he is my early hero – at that time he was pop, right?” shouts Tom. Yes – and now big record stores put his albums into the easy listening section, for which read ‘we don’t know where to put this’. And what about Stevie Wonder? “Soul… But I Just Called to Say I Love You is pop. Or maybe there should be a separate Stevie Wonder section,” Allen giggles. I can imagine the poor staff at HMV losing any sense of where the CDs should be put. “Well, put them in the jazz section…”Allen shows some sarcasm and everyone laughs. “Or the classical section.”

The conversation shifts to interchange in performance. Of course, rapport between artist and audience is important in any performance, but, especially in jazz, interaction among musicians is vital. Tom recalls an experience in Hong Kong: “One time I was playing in a gig and saw a guy with his instrument beside him was listening real hard to our music. I asked if he wanted to play with us and he told us he actually played at the jazz festival at South Bank Centre in London. He played like a monster!”

Speaking about the South Bank Centre, I ask them how much venues matter. To all three, playing in a smaller venue is better than a big concert hall, as it is more immediate for the audience. “It’s like watching a NBA game. You can sit upstairs and watch it on the big screen, but I can do that at home too,” Allen says. “You want to sit at the courtside and see the sweat.” Jason remembers being in the audience at a recent gig: sitting very close to the performing musician, he was electrified by the energy. Though a live recording of Erroll Garner in 1972 has a similar effect. “He made the piano sound so different from anyone else. There are a lot of piano players who don’t use the piano to its full potential, but he played it like [it was an] orchestra. The chorus, the texture and everything,” Jason says. “His approach was about being happy, and he wanted to communicate with the audience.”

Surprisingly, all three performers enjoy playing in restaurants and weddings – but only with the right audience – even if it is just kids. Tom recalls a wedding where the kids knew every jazz song he played. To these musicians, playing at such family-oriented events can be a way to educate children about jazz and nurture the music in their hearts. But then what would they do if someone in the audience yells out for a Britney Spears song? “Ignore it,” Allen, sipping red wine at three in the afternoon, answers without hesitation. And if they don’t applaud at the end of the gig? “I don’t care if they don’t clap their hands. I can see their feet tapping,” says Allen.

Jason Cheng, Tom Nunan and Allen Youngblood will be playing at the Grappa’s Winter Jazz Festival on February 9 and 10 at Grappa’s Cellar (Jardine House, 1 Connaught Place, Central). Shows start at 9pm. Tickets cost $268 for one night and $388 for both nights. Call 2521 2322 for tickets. See Listings for full schedule.