I'm sorry I couldn't find a good example of these two "live", as Romero Lubambo on guitar is just breath-taking. They are both native Brazilians, she emigrated around age 18, went to Boston, then NYC and then relocated to LA after she married a Jewish record producer Larry Klein.

She's a unique Brazilian singer, in that she's steeped in Jazz styles and has a lower register voice and does some precise rhythmic maneuvers. It's a great sound, but the 'duo' stuff she's been doing for about 13 years, is just pure musical jouissance, its exquisite. I just saw them last Saturday at the Healdsburg Jazz Festival. They've made 3 CDs called Brazilian Duos, Duos II, Duos III which came out about 3 years ago. I've seen them about 5-6 times in this format.

Lubambo I think is based in New Jersey/NYC area, and performs with his group La Paz, which is a trio of Bass Drums and him. Last week, they had my old piano teacher Kenny Barron as a guest artist for the second half of the program. (I think Kenny made a record with them or some of them in the late 90's)

There are MANY much more famous Brazilian vocal divas, but Luciana is quality and quite unique compared to the rest. With this guy on guitar its really something. He's got ridiculous chops, but tremendous feel. Never feels show-offy or technique for techniques sake. They don't perform together all that often, so if it comes anywhere near you - go! It's sublime.

Nice, Kid. I've taken in 2 Souza performances, and you are so right, she's special indeed. Neither was with Lubambo, though, so I'll keep an ear out.

Jesus, educated at Kenny Barron's elbow - and you've mentioned guidance from a few others of note - we are SO not worthy (but you knew that )

You should assemble your 'teacher's band' in a post for us.

drsmooth wrote:Nice, Kid. I've taken in 2 Souza performances, and you are so right, she's special indeed. Neither was with Lubambo, though, so I'll keep an ear out.

Jesus, educated at Kenny Barron's elbow - and you've mentioned guidance from a few others of note - we are SO not worthy (but you knew that )

You should assemble your 'teacher's band' in a post for us.

I went to the very first year of the School for the Arts in Phila. -- At the time, I had just started a few months prior, jazz piano lessons with a local guy named Bill Meek Jr. Bill had been in the original band with Grover Washington Jr. and told me the story of how Grover got his break. The record session that blew him up, was originally for another Sax guy, who no-showed. Something to that effect. So they said, "kid, wanna make a record". After the success, he got all excited to bring his boys in on the success and they all learned quickly the vagaries of the music business. They label told Grover who was gonna be on this record and even had some input on his band he played with. Bill never got the shot... in the time I was with him, we became somewhat close - he was in his early 30's married, had a kid - I used to walk over with him to pick her up from Kindergarten. He played locally here and there and then had a period where he was with Philly Joe Jones, and made it on to one record which I have somewhere in my bins. Bill was a nice guy, and could play ok, but wasn't really a stud of studs. My lessons were $10 hour on Saturdays usually, and he often spent 3 hours with me. Loaned me books and photo books and records about Jazz artists. At 15yrs old he was my insta-education on Jazz. The local chain in Phila and NY called Korvettes had an amazing jazz record section and I didn't have much dough back then, but scored some great records early in my journey. Being piano was my thing, I started with Oscar Peterson and Bill Evans, and Red Garland and Wynton Kelly and when I discovered McCoy Tyner, I found my guy.

In 1982, I studied with Kenny Barron Jr, also a Phila. native at the Jazz program at Rutgers. Also on the faculty at that time was Paul Jeffries, who had worked with Monk in his later years, bassist Larry Ridley, drummer Michael Carvin - I think Steve Nelson the vibist was around. I'm probably forgetting someone. Along with Miami and West Texas State, at the time, it was considered one of the pre-eminent jazz programs in the country. Many of the masters passed through. And - just prior to my arrival, Terrance Blanchard had been there for a spell. My friends there included Ralph Peterson Jr, drummer and made some Blue Note Records, and Trombonis Frank Lacy who later was with Lester Bowie's Brass fantasy. Many jazz legends came through to perform or do master classes, I met Kenny Garret when he first came on the scene, and Art Blakey's band of that period, as well as Woody Shaw and his band of that period --

In grad school I did a year at California Institute of the Arts, but I was a composition major, no longer doing jazz nor playing piano. I took a few lessons with a guy name David Ake, who came from Miami and has had a little career. Charlie Haden was there and a few others. I'd sit in on master classes, talked to Branford one time about the "east coast/west coast" divide.

I ended up transferring from there to Mills College in the Bay Area, and Anthony Braxton was one of my thesis advisors and professors, and we used to hang out in his office and talk about a wide range of things. He's a very special man, gentle soul. Talented musician and composer. He knew I was a little different than most of the other students because of my jazz and philly/nyc background and so we related a bit differently. Toward the end of that time period, I used to perform on occasion with a close friend a talented composer and tenor sax guy from Greece, we performed as "The Two Greek Fisherman", but never recorded anything that made it out - I could find old tapes and put them on SoundCloud or soemthing - it was mostly "free jazz". Almost all improvised and pretty cacophonous.

If I was really as good as I'd like to have been, you'd have heard of me and I'd be on 50albums by now! I knew I wasn't good enough. Kennny Barron, when I auditioned for him, had this office with two grand pianos in it side-by-side, and that's where we'd do lessons. He was self-taught for the most part, and a quiet guy. He didn't know exactly what to do with me, because I was super advanced in some ways, and super not solid foundation in other ways.

I had many many other private lessons and teachers but not Jazz. I did 8 lessons with a famous composer professor named Brian Ferneyhough who writes some of the most complex notated music ever. I had one lesson with Luciano Berio, most famous 20th century composer of Italy.

Anyway -- it's a long time ago. I'm not actively involved with music in terms of composing or performing. Though, I've been the CEO of a music tech startup for many years, but that's also in a low period.

My ear has shifted a bit. I'm less interested in the super cacophonous free stuff - though it has its place and there are times I dig it still. I wouldn't say i went soft exactly, but I would say that some things run their course. I like edgy stuff but in a more controlled way or planned. Depends.

Personal taste is a hard thing to explain, and when you've been exposed to as much as I have, with all the intellectualization around it - my ears aren't like the average bear!

I'm very picky about why I like track A over B, or artist X over Z. I only have so many hours of listening left in my life, and I get impatient with things that I find pedestrian. I like to encourage young players, and if I'm at a cafe w no cover - I'll stick some cash in the jar and clap - but when I see guys just learning to try out standards with the real-book open - and it's like rehearsing in public, and then I have to pay? Or it's really got no "swing" at all - I can get impatient.

One of my oldest friends from Philly is a record producer named Aaron Levinson, and he won a grammy as a producer on The Spanish Harlem Orchestra: Across 110th Street around 2004, it's a slamming Salsa record. He's also the guy behind the Philedalphia Experiment, and later the Detroit Experiement and it was a series for a minute. He owns Range Recording Studio outside of Phila. Another old friend is Saxophonist Robert Landham. He's self-produced a couple of fantastic albums/CDs with his brother drummer Byron Landham. He has been in the Ellington Orchestra, and Odean Pope Saxophone Choir. Another old friend is pianist Rob Bargard, who has played with Nat Adderly, Little Jimmy Scott, Carolyn Leonhart, and as part of the Fine Wine Trio. Made a few CDs, quite good. Really good player.

I've been off the scene for a long time. SF is different than NYC as well. I don't really know all the main guys here, though I'm one degree of separation from people like Marcus Shelby and Adam Theus, Jazz Mafia etc... lots of younger players or even guys in their 30's and 40's I have never heard of or heard...

Lots of cross-over stuff in the last 20 years too - the meshing of Hip-Hop, Jazz, Sampling, and other styles - Louie CK is one of the few TV shows that has some really good jazz for background sound during the show. Sadly, Jazz to some extent, became commodified for the upwardly mobile hipster, the jazz brunch - and such. It's hard -- all of the traditional art forms, jazz, classical, let alone any more avant garde tributaries - have audiences that are smaller and smaller, and tend to be older and educated or with means -- the last of the experimentalist audiences, usually are students, or people of my generation or just older or just younger, and not everything advances. Some of the bigger names of note, don't ncessarily do work that is important or innovative today.

As for Jazz, there are fortunately, enough recordings and there will always be people who just 'show up' and find a way to inherit the baton. Less and less of the old masters alive to work with, get the stories first hand, learn to get the feel right - but the records are out there, and you can learn just by hearing and having the aptitude. Some people will always sound sweeter than others, just get it more deeply, or be able to articulate it. I'm less impressed with bravado and more about placing each note 'just so', and knowing how to really shape a performance or solo. But musicians have a hard life, and every night or ever tune isn't going to be magic, even from the best artists.

Doc - you've posted some great stuff in this thread over the years! Keep it up!

We got tix for Charlie Parker's Yardbird at the Perleman.

WSJ digs it.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/charlie-par ... 1433884239

TomatoPie wrote:We got tix for Charlie Parker's Yardbird at the Perleman.

WSJ digs it.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/charlie-par ... 1433884239

Opera causes me to break out in hives, but I gotta say that sounds pretty appealing, and Parker was a deep listener to any and all musics...so of course we expect a full report TPie. When's the date?

Philly the Kid wrote:

drsmooth wrote:Nice, Kid. I've taken in 2 Souza performances, and you are so right, she's special indeed. Neither was with Lubambo, though, so I'll keep an ear out.

Jesus, educated at Kenny Barron's elbow - and you've mentioned guidance from a few others of note - we are SO not worthy (but you knew that )

You should assemble your 'teacher's band' in a post for us.

I went to the very first year of the School for the Arts in Phila....

Kid, looks like you've had musical journey enough for 3 or 4 lives

Thanks for sharing that. Something I'm confident I'll revisit.



You note your sense that there's significant "silo"ing of contemporary 'commercial' music, and I agree in many ways ... and then someone like TPie comes along and posts about a performance that runs the other way.

One thing that strikes me, as a guy who can basically play the radio and whistle, and little else, is how approachable jazz musicians are. Probably for a number of reasons: enduring in the music can't be mostly about the money, the intimacy of most venues, the music's 'demand' that its best exponents collaborate, collaborate, collaborate, etc. It's not a feature of the music exactly but I know it enhances my interest

erp

gerp

nerp

kerp

I'm not sure I was the biggest Ornette Coleman fan out there, but I dug some of his stuff over the years. I also know how important an influence he was. That period of 59-62, you had Ornette going one way, Coltrane another, Miles another -- those 3 directions formed 90% of the foundation of what grew in jazz for the next 3 decades...

There were people doing other stuff then and now. People shift in and out. 85 is a solid life and to be active in your career til the end or close to. I feel older and older when these masters keep fading away.

Just wanted to officially say Rest in Peace, maestro.

Dewey Redman, Don Cherry, Charlie Haden - all gone. Most of Art Ensemble of Chicago, and now Ornette himself... when McCoy passes my heart will be at its heaviest as he's my guy ... and will be the last link to the seminal Coltrane ... Hard to believe Giant Steps is more than 50 years ago as is Ornette's famous albums from back then... but then 85 is a real number - 50 years ago a guy was 35 and well in to his career...

Been trying to appreciate Ornette ever since Dancing in Yo Head. Still trying. It may be music for musicians.

Got Shape of Jazz to Come on Spotify right now. Certainly more accessible than Dancing.

I love Bird, but Coltrane I love Supreme.

drsmooth wrote:

TomatoPie wrote:We got tix for Charlie Parker's Yardbird at the Perleman.

WSJ digs it.

http://www.wsj.com/articles/charlie-par ... 1433884239

Opera causes me to break out in hives, but I gotta say that sounds pretty appealing, and Parker was a deep listener to any and all musics...so of course we expect a full report TPie. When's the date?

We went yesterday.

Sloppy reading on my part - I was expecting a play, with dialogue, and some jazz music.

But this was straight on opera. All singing, no dialogue, not one note of jazz, although the score was informed by jazz.

Took 20 minutes to get my bearings on this. Mrs. TP has expressed a serious dislike for opera, so I was worried about her enduring this.

Turns out, she loved it. Even though it was in English, the supertitles helped. I loved it too, but I didn't leave the theatre humming any of the tunes. Makes me want to read a bio of Bird.

ICYMI, he died in 1955 at 34 from heroin, cirrhosis, and heart disease. He died in the NYC hotel suite of Kathleen Annie Pannonica de Koenigswarter, a patroness of jazz and bebop. It was a whites-only hotel, and she got booted after it was discovered. Parker laid in a morgue several days before his body was ID'd and claimed.

Kansas City Lightning, the 1st volume of Stanley Crouch's 2-book Bird bio, came out last October. It only takes you to the brink of bebop. I started it, but didn't get far. I'm not a Crouch fan. Plus he works slowly, so volume 2 may not show up for years.

Gary Giddins' Celebrating Bird (1999) is a short party: 128 pages. But for 3 bucks it might be the ticket.


Terry Teachout has written careful bios of Pops and Ellington. He tends to be less mushy than too many of the people who want so much to write about music & musicians they love that they get hero-worship-y. He'd probably do a good job on Parker.

Among the things I did not know until today: This all-too-familiar 'design' -

- has a name. and its name is....jazz. Yeah. I wish it were not so, too.

I'm sure the nice Solo Cup employee lady who 'designed' this in the 90's is a nice enough person, but here's the thing:

this is not jazz. Not in any way is it jazz.

Been listening to just 6 of my 24 Sirius presets in the car for a couple of years.

THis past week, I went to presets 19-24 to check out my 2 jazz stations. Reminded me that "Watercolors" or "smooth jazz" is not much more than slightly reinforced Kenny G. It's soft pop without vocals.

OTOH, the "real jazz" was pretty satisfying, although I spent more time on the bluegrass channel.

While country music continues its path to twangy power pop, new bluegrass is actually superior to the vintage stuff.

drsmooth wrote:.


Terry Teachout has written careful bios of Pops and Ellington. He tends to be less mushy than too many of the people who want so much to write about music & musicians they love that they get hero-worship-y. He'd probably do a good job on Parker.

Now he mocks the Twitter:
http://www.artsjournal.com/aboutlastnig ... ences.html

TomatoPie wrote:Been listening to just 6 of my 24 Sirius presets in the car for a couple of years.

THis past week, I went to presets 19-24 to check out my 2 jazz stations. Reminded me that "Watercolors" or "smooth jazz" is not much more than slightly reinforced Kenny G. It's soft pop without vocals.

OTOH, the "real jazz" was pretty satisfying, although I spent more time on the bluegrass channel.

While country music continues its path to twangy power pop, new bluegrass is actually superior to the vintage stuff.

If you have TuneIn Radio - you can find WRTI, WBBG (Newark I think I got the call letters right?) (it's the NYC NorJersey Jazz station), KCSM (jazz and latin San Mateo) WXPN Phila., and KPFA does quality jazz on Saturday afternoons with Horace Mansfield and Art Sato. (folk and blue grass on Sundays KPFA) WBAI in NYC when the station is even operating (major financial crisis) does some good Jazz programming of varying era. There are others in other parts of country if you use Google.

When I saw "Kenny G" I thought alto Sax Kenny Garret, I forgot about that horrific "smooth jazz" genre. I didn't know it was still going strong? Does anyone listen to that at all??

Jazz, like Classical, is not the purview of older people, usually educated -- or people in the arts and music. It's high art for the most part and doesn't speak to the every-man. Given the proliferation of all the rock genres (which I define VERY broadly, as meaning 20-something bands or now 30 or 40 somethings and behond...) all the EDM, Hip Hop and Country -- folk forms, and Classical and Jazz are specialized.

Jazz at Lincoln Center, or SF Jazz with it's own facility now - can carry the torch, but we're not talking about a popular art-form. 25 years ago, 10K sales of a jazz album was a success.

With most of the masters fading away -- it will be interesting to see who carries it forwards let alone innovates the next steps if there are any...??

I stumbled upon this gal Dorothy Ashby last night. I’d never heard of her, which was somewhat surprising considering she’s not nearly as obscure as I’d assumed (she’s played with Louis Armstrong, Stevie Wonder, Freddie Hubbard, among others). She has more straight ahead jazz stuff than this, but this album is really sick and might be good for those who are more inclined towards an R&B style and not quite into jazz too deep (if those folks even read this thread). Always thought the harp was a pretty cool instrument.

Slowhand wrote:I stumbled upon this gal Dorothy Ashby last night.

I''m not familiar with her, Slowhand, but here's a blog post about her, and about jazz harp generally, for you, from Marc Myers' Jazzwax