“Jazz is a good barometer of freedom,” had said Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington*, legendary jazz composer and pianist, who left half a century of music in his trail along with magical, powerful concerts which shook Harlem in the heyday of jazz.
Jazz indeed is the music of freedom. As Ellington saw it, it embodied certain ideals of freedom and independence through which it evolved, and according to him, “the music is so free that many people say it is the only unhampered, unhindered expression of complete freedom yet produced in this country”.
The term jazz, it is said, originated from a slang term jasm in 1860, essentially meaning ‘pep and energy’. It is, at its heart, a music of release with a staggering history of blood, toil, and tears and of freedom, hard won. Think deeply of the America of the 19th century: legions of slaves working for their bread and thinking wistfully of their dignity in the sultry and vast plantations of New Orleans. Think of the music in their souls, think how African-American dreams of freedom improvised and intermingled with mainstream and white American folk traditions: the blues and the Chicago styles, and finally came to fruition as an intense and intoxicating musical genre that we know today. It remains as it was then: music promising hope and freedom, an art form which evokes identity and ekes out a desire to express.
Jazz crosses over and breaks many boundaries: Ellington himself embraced the phrase “beyond category” as a liberating principle, and referred to his music as “American Music”, rather than be constrained by a category. The idea of jazz and indeed perhaps of music and art is to liberate. To be free of prejudice in thought and action, to be allowed to be oneself, to shake off the shackles of defined roles: is there a greater peace than that?
Jazz India Circuit lives and breathes the idea of discovery and rediscovery through liberation – that tantalizing promise of hope when one seeks expression as an individual. In every context of humanity’s history, freedom has been and remains the most definitive quest. For a lot of us, jazz lets us discover ourselves, look deep within and articulate without stumbling. Yes, jazz is freedom!
* Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions. In the words of Bob Blumenthal of The Boston Globe “In the century since his birth, there has been no greater composer, American or otherwise, than Edward Kennedy Ellington.”
爵士乐是不是学院派嘴里高深莫测的炫耀之术。
关于爵士乐的定义，描述和吹嘘，汗牛充栋并不过分。其复杂性，甚至定义都很难一言而概。其音乐范式的和弦之复杂和讲究程度，感觉只有60岁以上的老学究才能上手。其乐器技巧的要求更是常常远远超过古典音乐，然而，爵士乐根本不是学院派手里的孔雀羽毛。爵士乐是自由本身。
JAZZ IS FREEDOM
“Jazz is a good barometer of freedom,” had said Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington*, legendary jazz composer and pianist, who left half a century of music in his trail along with magical, powerful concerts which shook Harlem in the heyday of jazz.
Jazz indeed is the music of freedom. As Ellington saw it, it embodied certain ideals of freedom and independence through which it evolved, and according to him, “the music is so free that many people say it is the only unhampered, unhindered expression of complete freedom yet produced in this country”.
The term jazz, it is said, originated from a slang term jasm in 1860, essentially meaning ‘pep and energy’. It is, at its heart, a music of release with a staggering history of blood, toil, and tears and of freedom, hard won. Think deeply of the America of the 19th century: legions of slaves working for their bread and thinking wistfully of their dignity in the sultry and vast plantations of New Orleans. Think of the music in their souls, think how African-American dreams of freedom improvised and intermingled with mainstream and white American folk traditions: the blues and the Chicago styles, and finally came to fruition as an intense and intoxicating musical genre that we know today. It remains as it was then: music promising hope and freedom, an art form which evokes identity and ekes out a desire to express.
Jazz crosses over and breaks many boundaries: Ellington himself embraced the phrase “beyond category” as a liberating principle, and referred to his music as “American Music”, rather than be constrained by a category. The idea of jazz and indeed perhaps of music and art is to liberate. To be free of prejudice in thought and action, to be allowed to be oneself, to shake off the shackles of defined roles: is there a greater peace than that?
Jazz India Circuit lives and breathes the idea of discovery and rediscovery through liberation – that tantalizing promise of hope when one seeks expression as an individual. In every context of humanity’s history, freedom has been and remains the most definitive quest. For a lot of us, jazz lets us discover ourselves, look deep within and articulate without stumbling. Yes, jazz is freedom!
* Ellington wrote over 1,000 compositions. In the words of Bob Blumenthal of The Boston Globe “In the century since his birth, there has been no greater composer, American or otherwise, than Edward Kennedy Ellington.”
在体会什么会完全失眠呢？而且还是完美的，想到去看极光：）
这曲能感受到摇曳的灯光下，
婆娑的树影伴着恋人跳舞的影子
谢谢你来美坛，我又可以细心品味你的音乐了：）
这是一个现场版本，第二段时，伴奏她的正式版本统一格式从头到尾
有机会一定再玩玩歌曲。
个人体会
学院派爵士和弦，很讲究，但是我不讲究了。任何和弦，只要玩熟了，就可以自由，自由了就爵士味道了。
经典爵士当然是大量的切分音，造成的动感和不稳定感。但是，我这一首用的节奏就是普通舞曲的非常规整的节奏，节奏本身没有切分成分。不过弹奏时，对旋律节奏的掌控熟练了，也就可以弹出不稳定感。所以，还是要自由。自由了，爵士需要的这些感觉就可以随手弹出来。
我入门水平功力尚浅，高手玩爵士，就是普通的歌，没有7和弦，没有切分音，弹出来照样浓浓爵士味道。那种就是骨头里的爵士了。