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Great player! He is about to be featured in a concert at Carnegie with the American Symphony that recreates some of Ellington’s large scale works. On drums, Wynton’s ‘s little brother Jason.
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**** These guys appear to be getting older. ****
😊
In more ways than one.
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If you’re serious, it’s actually a fabulous tone. It’s his intonation that is weird. He plays consistently sharp. It got even worse in that respect later in his career, but he swings his ass off.
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**** Is the difference in meaning between TONE and INTONATION in music the same as it is in speech? ****
Interesting question. Not quite the same, but related.
The meaning of “tone” can be said to be the same in both speech and in music. One could say, for example, “Miles’ voice had a raspy tone”; or, “Johnny Hodges had a sweet tone on alto”; just as one could say the same about the character of the sound of a person’s voice. In both cases it refers to the timbral quality of the person’s voice or player’s tone.
“Intonation” has to do with pitch (higher/lower). In speech, the meaning of intonation refers to the rise and fall of the pitch of a person’s voice; used for expressivity and is a big part what we call a person’s ethnic “accent”. In music, “intonation” has to do with the rise and fall of the pitch of the notes in a musician’s playing or singing. HOWEVER, in music this deals with the accuracy of the player’s pitch relative to an agreed upon standard/reference. In an orchestra, before the beginning of a concert, the oboe gives the tuning note; an “A”, most commonly (but not always) A=440 hz. The entire orchestra will use that pitch as a reference; not a little bit higher or lower. In a Jazz setting, the piano’s tuning is the standard. The piano is usually tuned to A=440, give or take a couple of hertz. It is the only instrument in the band that has no flexibility to adjust the tuning on the spot, so it becomes the reference. The bass player and horn players will tune to that reference. The saxophone player’s “A” should be exactly the same as the piano’s. If the piano is tuned a little high, a saxophone player has to push his mouthpiece further unto the neck of the horn, thus shortening the length of the instrument slightly and causing the pitch to be higher. If the piano has been tuned a little low, the saxophone player has to pull the mouthpiece out a little on the neck, thus essentially making the length of the instrument’s tubing a little longer which causes the pitch to go lower. The goal is always for everyone to be “on the same page” pitch (intonation) wise.
Johnny Hodges not only had a sweet tone, but his sense of intonation was great. Jackie Maclean, on the other hand, always played sharp; his pitch center was higher than that laid down by the other instruments. He just heard things that way. Some players have a tendency to play a little under, or a little over the communal pitch center. They simply hear things that way. Most times its subtle and sometimes even manipulated for effect. Other times, when it’s too far in one direction or the other it can be perceived as a “tone” issue when, in reality, it is an “intonation” (pitch) issue. If he were playing by himself with no piano or bass establishing a pitch center, it wouldn’t be noticed (unless the listener has “perfect pitch”).
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Brooklyn, fourth largest city in America had a symphony orchestra from the mid 1800’s (Philharmonic Society of Brooklyn, later the Brooklyn Philharmonic) until 2010. The Brooklyn Phil was a very fine orchestra known for its innovative programming. Some would argue that it was its emphasis on new works resulting in smaller and smaller audiences that led to its demise. Some interesting factoids about Brooklyn:
Brooklyn is home to over 700 cultural arts institutions and a hotbed of modern Jazz.
Speaking of the Brooklyn Dodgers: the name came about because of its once maze of street cars, pedestrians had to constantly “dodge” the vehicles.
Brooklyn has two “Leaving Brooklyn” highway signs. One reads “Leaving Brooklyn, Oy Vey!”, and my favorite, “Leaving Brooklyn, Fuhgeddaboudit!”
And, of course, its the birthplace of the hotdog 😊
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Sang, not sung. Unless you had written “…..every song he should have sung”. Past participle.
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I just posted a third clip and it took out the one before it. Still trying to figure it out.
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There’s swing, and then there’s SWING:
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I suppose that it could be argued that a protest is not much of a protest if it is not in plain “view”. However, some, including some artists, choose to not mix their art with politics; not in an obvious way, anyway.
“I merely took the energy that it takes to pout and wrote some blues.” - Duke Ellington
Great record, btw.
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You may be interested to know that “Dance to the Music” is one of only two or three Pop or Funk songs to feature the clarinet (!). Great stuff!
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Big Apple is…….well, it’s been better. Cleaner, at least. What a guy, indeed, but I always figured you were legal 😊.
“It Ain’t Necessarily So” @ 1:20. Plunger mute, perfect for the Blues. Best.
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Awesome Stormy Monday Blues! Awesome Clark Terry! Thanks.
Now, what Gershwin (hint) tune does Clark quote? 😊. Brilliant.
(Hope all is well with you)
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Yes, they usually do have a relationship to the tune being played. While improvising, the harmonic progression of the tune being played may cause the player to think of a melody, or fragment of a melody of a different tune which has the same (or similar) chord progression. Sometimes it is done to add a bit of humor to the proceedings. Maybe as an “inside” joke for the sake of the other players, or for a variety of other intents. For instance, in your clip Stormy Monday Blues, Muddy Waters sings “They call it Stormy Monday………Saturday I go out to play” and Clark answers with “It ain’t necessarily so, it ain’t necessarily so”. Great improvisers have very quick and creative minds, as you know.
The place where Wynton’s and the boys play is a very nice part of town. Lincoln Center is great. Other parts of the city still haven’t recovered from the COVID shutdown and things like public transportation have taken a big hit. Still impressive, no doubt.
Speaking of Clark Terry, Wynton’s boys and the plunger mute:
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