Last Call

I have mixed feelings about this month's Omen column. I'm sad when I look back at 2011 and note the musical artists who have gone on to what Pink Floyd called the “great gig in the sky” during the past year. On the other hand, this occasion gives me a good reason to revisit the lives and work of some truly great artists -- those who lived fully in what Leonard Cohen calls "the tower of song."

You've read the big names in other publications: Amy Winehouse – a wonderful singer who often seemed to be channeling Janis Joplin in more ways than one – joined Janis in the “27 Club” in July. Clarence Clemons – often the most entertaining person at a Springsteen concert – split about the same time.

I don't have the space for a terribly long list here, but here are some of the people whose passing June and I noted this year:

Paul Motian was the drummer in the legendary jazz trio that included Bill Evans and Scott LaFaro. His playing was innovative, yet often so subtle and supportive, audiences didn't notice him. Unlike most drummers, he seldom took a solo. Paul had a long career with many of the most important figures in jazz: Keith Jarrett, Miles Davis, Lee Konitz, Stan Getz, Monk. Here he is with Keith Jarrett and Charlie Haden in 1972, including a rare Paul Motion drum solo:





Two very interesting and influential composers set down their pens for the last time in 2011: Milton Babbitt and Peter Lieberson.

Milton Babbitt's compositions are gloriously complex. He liked to call himself a “maximalist” to highlight the contrast between his music and that of minimalists like his contemporaries Phillip Glass and John Adams. His titles alone make fun reading: Septet, But Equal; The Joy of More Sextets; Sheer Pluck (a piece for guitar); Whirled Series. You may not find his brand of serialism to your taste, but you might enjoy this documentary about Babbitt:



Peter Lieberson was a student of Babbitt's and began his career as a composer in very much the same vein as Babbitt – highly structured, programmatic pieces which were highly regarded in the musical community. In the early 1970s he was drawn to Buddhism and studied under the tutelage of the eccentric Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche. His Buddhist practice had a strong influence on his compositional techniques; his compositions became fresh and emotional, and far more accessible for most of us than those of his old mentor Babbitt. Lieberson wrote an article for Shambala Sun in 1977 which describes his journey: http://bit.ly/zu5U1N. A nice remembrance of Lieberson – which includes a recording of a poignant performance of his "My love, if I die and you don't," performed by his wife Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, who preceded him in death – is on Alex Ross's blog: http://bit.ly/eybsHb.

Other people we should have listened to more when we could:

Tom “T-Bone” Wolk, bassist and guitarist with Hall & Oates for 30 years. Here's a sweet tribute from H&O, where they simply intercut old video of Tom with a tune they are doing after his passing:






Montserrat Figueras, Soprano and co-founder (along with her husband Jordi Favall) of the Hesperion XX early-music ensemble:





Phoebe Snow, singer, who chose to care for her disabled daughter rather than pursue her career:





Gil Scott-Heron, poet and musician (was his funeral televised?):





Poly Styrene, punk diva:




Nickolas Ashford, songwriter (with Valerie Simpson) and singer, owner of the Sugar Bar in NY City:




Jerry Leiber, co-writer with Mike Stoller and others of some of your favorite songs, including "Kansas City", "Stand By Me", "On Broadway", and “Is That All There Is?”




George Shearing, pianist and composer of “Lullaby of Birdland”:





Pinetop Perkins, legendary blues pianist:




Ferlin Husky, singer:




Wilma Lee Cooper, singer who popularized “Big Midnight Special”:

The War Tuba

No comment:

Exotic instruments: Serpent, Baryton, Mandobass, Marine Trumpet

Check out these videos of wonderful and exotic instruments: 

The serpent:

The baryton:

The mandolin family – including mandola, mandocello, and – oh, how I want one of these – mandobass:

Perhaps the most annoying musical instrument ever invented is the marine trumpet:

The Theorbo

I love big instruments that make low notes, so it is perhaps inevitable that I'd be attracted to the theorbo. This instrument is essentially a lute with a long extension to its neck to which is attached a number of bass strings. 

Here's a video of Daniel Zapico playing the theorbo in a trio setting:

The Kora

Probably my favorite African instrument is the kora - a west African harp-like instrument with 21 strings. Each kora player typically builds his own instrument from a calabash gourd (often decorated on the inside with magical incantations and formulas), wood, and fishing line for strings. A Malian kora player named Toumani Diabaté ( http://www.toumani-diabate.com/ ) is considered by many to be the master of this beautiful instrument. 

Find out more about the kora at Kora Jaliya ( http://www.kora-music.com/ ).

The Organ

I love the pipe organ for its musical power and the sheer size and complexity of its workings (which can put the piano's 10,000 parts to shame). June found two organ-related shows that we now listen to every week: Pipe Dreams ( http://pipedreams.publicradio.org/ ) is a weekly two-hour show on many U.S. public radio stations, devoted to mostly classical pieces performed on “the king of instruments.” 

Popular music and interviews with organists (recently including Rick Wakeman of the bands Yes and The Strawbs) are the mainstays of the 30-minute program The Organist Entertains ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006wr9w ) on BBC2. As always with BBC, the shows are only kept online for about a week.

Shared by June

The Piano

Are you a fan of the piano, that grand 88-keyed black and white monster that fills many a parlor and concert stage? Perhaps you'd enjoy a tour of the Steinway factory narrated by John Steinway himself:

Some of the footage in that video seems to have come from Note by Note: The Making of Steinway L1037 ( http://notebynotethemovie.com/ ). It's good movie to rent or download; you'll meet the fascinating and diverse group of people who create the world's greatest pianos in an unassuming factory in New York City. Did you know that a full-sized grand piano can have up to 10,000 moving parts?

If you'd like to add some beautiful piano recordings to your iTunes library, Piano Society ( http://pianosociety.com ) has an excellent website, with over 5,000 high-quality piano recordings available for free download.

Vince Guaraldi

I can't let the holiday season pass without a nod to the musician who may have provided many people's first exposure to jazz: Vince Guaraldi ( http://www.vinceguaraldi.com/home.htm ), who wrote and performed the whimsical jazz soundtrack to A Charlie Brown Christmas (as well as 16 other Charlie Brown shows, and the hit tune Cast Your Fate To The Wind ). Vince split the scene far too early at age 47, but has influenced many pianists and composers.

Here's Vince with Bola Sete doing Star Song in 1963:

And here's a very rare film of Vince backing the incomparable Ben Webster:

Jazz Radio Stations

Don't forget the broadcast jazz radio stations (of which there are, sadly, fewer and fewer each year), starting with our own KMHD ( http://www.kmhd.org/ ).

New Jersey's oldest public radio station is WBGO ( http://www.wbgo.org/ ), with a full-time jazz format.  

WWOZ ( http://www.wwoz.org/ ) describes itself as "the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Station," but don't expect non-stop Dixieland; they have a varied and exciting playlist.

Jamie Collum and Clare Teal on BBC2

BBC Radio 2 has a couple of weekly 1-hour jazz shows that are well worth checking out.

Young British singer/pianist Jamie Collum has a weekly show ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00rr86v ) where he displays his awesome knowledge of jazz history as well as his own eclectic tastes. You'll hear the best of the past, present, and future of jazz on his show.

Singer Clare Teal has a terrific show focused on big-band jazz ( http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00m62h5 ). BBC tends to keep these shows available online for only about a week.

Shared by June