[Monday Notes No. 59] Both born at the turn of the century, Louis Armstrong and Bessie Smith recorded this duet on W.C. Handy’s St. Louis Blues in 1925. By the 1920s jazz was changing from the mainly collective music of the New Orleans groups to music where more emphasis was placed on individual improvisation.Continue readingBessie Smith & Louis Armstrong, St. Louis Blues
Tag: trumpet
[Monday Notes No. 55] Gerry Mulligan was the inventor of the piano-less jazz group. Giving up the harmonic instrument, his quartet consisting of two woodwinds, double bass and drums favored polyphony and the freedom of the soloists, thus creating a new and different sound. Let’s analyze his performance of Bernie’s Tune.Continue readingBernie’s Tune, Gerry Mulligan and cool jazz
[Monday Notes no.54] Donald Byrd was one of the most important trumpet players of the hard bop period. In his composition Ghana, the trumpeter leads the most typical of ensembles, the jazz quintet consisting of trumpet, saxophone and rhythm section.Continue readingDonald Byrd, Ghana. A classic hard bop piece.
[Monday Notes No 41] Many Blue Note records of the 1960s opened with a catchy tune: funky, soul or Latin sounding. The intention of the label was to contrast the spread of Rock, showing that Jazz could also be fun and easy listening music. Lee Morgan’s The Sidewinder follows this trend.Continue readingLee Morgan, The Sidewinder. How to build a jazz solo
[Monday Notes No 37] Autumn Leaves entered the jazz repertoire rather late, the original French version dates from 1946, while the English version became established in the mid-1950s. In this respect, Autumn Leaves is a young standard, in fact most of the jazz repertoire dates back to at least the 1940s, if not earlier.Continue readingCannonball Adderley, Autumn Leaves. A jazz standard from France
[Monday Notes No 33] In jazz, the voice often performs like a musical instrument, e.g. Billie Holiday has been known to imitate Louis Armstrong’s trumpet. Sometimes the reverse happens and it is the instruments that try to imitate the human voice. This is what happens in Little Girl Blue, performed by Chet Baker.Continue readingChet Baker, Little Girl Blue. The instrument as a voice
[Monday Notes No.32] Chet Baker was a great trumpeter and singer who lived a tormented life. Addicted to drugs for over 30 years almost continuously, he went from the heights of beauty and success to the depths of desolation and degradation. Let’s listen to his interpretation of a song written by Rodgers-Hart, Do It the…Continue readingChet Baker, Do It the Hard Way. The voice as an instrument
[Note di lunedì n.22] Miles Davis was the most visionary and prolific band leader jazz music has ever produced. A musician who is impossible to classify, from his debut as a bopper alongside Charlie Parker he changed styles repeatedly with exceptional results, moving through modal jazz, electric and experimental jazz-rock, to rap and pop. We…Continue readingYou’re My Everything, a ballad from the Miles Davis point of view
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Dizzy Gillespie, Salt Peanuts
[Monday Notes n.12] Singer Billy Eckstine gave the leadership of his orchestra to Dizzy Gillespie in 1944. Swing orchestras used to perform a catchy, danceable repertoire, but Dizzy was constantly experimenting with new and daring sounds. One night the audience rose up, complaining about the many instrumental pieces and demanding a sing-along. Dizzy, who had…Continue readingDizzy Gillespie, Salt Peanuts