JAZZ ON A FRIDAY NIGHT
Friday was a very full day. I’ll work backwards starting in the evening.
Gianni and I have some 30 concerts booked at the beginning of each year at the Cité de La Musique. From my point of view it’s a dreadful place to get to and when Gianni returns to Italy later this year, I wonder if I will go on making the effort ? Then there are concerts - Jazz this time - like yesterday - and I know I will.
The concert was based on the well known concert (for Jazz addicts) Thelonious Monk at the Town Hall in 1959. The concert was called «In My Mind» There is a lot about this on Internet. Many jazz artists have «recreated» the concert and we saw one. Jason Moran. Perhaps he went further than other jazz pianists. He didn’t recreate the original concert but tried to connect to its creator. His use of still photography and recorded audio as well was interesting. We heard Monk’s voice talking to his musicians and often there was improvisation as Moran and his group of 7 musicians listened to the original music through earphones and playing with it. At the end of the concert Jason Moran took a huge cow bell and played down the aisle with his musicinas playing their instruments to the music hall entrance. I found myself next to them and was very excited by their improvisation.
As the program gave no idea of what they were playing, I am not well enough informed to say what each piece was. And even relistening to some on Internet this morning, I do not want to hazard a guess. What I do know though that Jazz without a repetitive theme wouldn’t be Jazz for me. It’s strange as repetition in contemporary or modern music tends to drive me around the bend. In Jazz I listen for it and my feet tap accordingly.
I should add that the first part of the concert was with a large group of students from the Paris Conservatory improvising Monk.
6 young composers had developed improvisations.
Updated worked, not without interest but sometimes a little «cold» ! What did catch my attention was the young percussionist - an English lass - and quite a beauty. But when she played and beat those drums to bits, her lips went down and she looked as if she was murdering something. If she had smiled it would have been a fantastic performance!
The next chapter will be on 2062....
Gianni and I have some 30 concerts booked at the beginning of each year at the Cité de La Musique. From my point of view it’s a dreadful place to get to and when Gianni returns to Italy later this year, I wonder if I will go on making the effort ? Then there are concerts - Jazz this time - like yesterday - and I know I will.
The concert was based on the well known concert (for Jazz addicts) Thelonious Monk at the Town Hall in 1959. The concert was called «In My Mind» There is a lot about this on Internet. Many jazz artists have «recreated» the concert and we saw one. Jason Moran. Perhaps he went further than other jazz pianists. He didn’t recreate the original concert but tried to connect to its creator. His use of still photography and recorded audio as well was interesting. We heard Monk’s voice talking to his musicians and often there was improvisation as Moran and his group of 7 musicians listened to the original music through earphones and playing with it. At the end of the concert Jason Moran took a huge cow bell and played down the aisle with his musicinas playing their instruments to the music hall entrance. I found myself next to them and was very excited by their improvisation.
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| Jason Moran with his bell on the right |
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| Some of the goup dancing too |
As the program gave no idea of what they were playing, I am not well enough informed to say what each piece was. And even relistening to some on Internet this morning, I do not want to hazard a guess. What I do know though that Jazz without a repetitive theme wouldn’t be Jazz for me. It’s strange as repetition in contemporary or modern music tends to drive me around the bend. In Jazz I listen for it and my feet tap accordingly.
I should add that the first part of the concert was with a large group of students from the Paris Conservatory improvising Monk.
6 young composers had developed improvisations.
Updated worked, not without interest but sometimes a little «cold» ! What did catch my attention was the young percussionist - an English lass - and quite a beauty. But when she played and beat those drums to bits, her lips went down and she looked as if she was murdering something. If she had smiled it would have been a fantastic performance!
The next chapter will be on 2062....
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