The making of one of jazz's most influential albums
[ 2006-10-13 09:53 ]
ANNOUNCER: Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Shirley
Griffith. If one album had to explain jazz, a strong candidate would be "Kind of
Blue" by the trumpet player and
bandleader Miles Davis. This week on
our program, Steve Ember and Gwen Outen tell the story of "Kind of Blue."
(MUSIC)
VOICE ONE:
"Kind of Blue" has influenced musicians for more than forty years. It is also
a favorite of listeners. The Recording Industry Association of America marked
the sale of three million copies in the United States as of 2002.
(MUSIC)
Like many other albums, "Kind of Blue" was made in two recording sessions.
These took place for Columbia Records in New York City in March and April of
1959.
VOICE TWO:
Stories about the making of "Kind of Blue" say there was nothing unusual
about the project. When the musicians arrived, Miles Davis gave them some short,
simple descriptions of the music they would play. He is said to have written
these notes just a few hours earlier. His piano player, Bill Evans, helped him
write some of the music that would get the musicians started.
Miles Davis did not want to tell them too much about what to play. He wanted
the music to flow naturally. Such improvisation was nothing new for musicians.
Yet the five songs on "Kind of Blue" represented a perfect mix of
improvisational talent and musical experimentation.
The first song is called "So What."
(MUSIC)
VOICE ONE:
Miles Davis played trumpet and led the group. Julian "Cannonball" Adderley
played alto saxophone; John Coltrane played tenor saxophone. Paul Chambers was
on the bass, and James Cobb played drums.
(MUSIC)
Miles Davis had a talent for bringing together great musicians. But it also
meant that he had to form new bands again and again. Band members would become
successful enough as individuals to form their own groups. The band that Miles
Davis put together for "Kind of Blue" was no different.
(MUSIC)
VOICE TWO:
This song is called "Freddie Freeloader." On this song, Wynton Kelly plays
the piano; he replaced Bill Evans.
Listen to how the band works as a team, but also how the musicians play
individually over the music. Listen especially to the competing saxophones of
John Coltrane and Cannonball Adderley.
(MUSIC)
VOICE ONE:
Miles Davis and his band were experimenting with a new kind of sound on "Kind
of Blue." This is the sound of a traditional jazz chord progression:
(MUSIC)
But Miles Davis designed the music on "Kind of Blue" around a modal form.
This kind of system permitted the musicians more freedom. After "Kind of Blue,"
jazz musicians used the modal form more and more.
Here is another song from "Kind of Blue." This one is called "Blue in Green."
(MUSIC)
VOICE TWO:
Miles Davis and his band were not the only artists testing new ways to do
things. There was, for example, the painter Jackson Pollack. His experiments in
form and color were playful but went against tradition, just like "Kind of
Blue."
Pianist Bill Evans himself saw similarities between the music and a form of
Japanese art. Some compared the album to the ideas of Zen Buddhism. At that
time, a lot of Americans were becoming interested in Asian spirituality.
This song is called "All Blues." Listen how naturally the music appears to
develop from one point in the song to the next.
(MUSIC)
VOICE ONE:
Miles Davis was born into a wealthy family in Illinois in nineteen
twenty-six. He received a trumpet for his thirteenth birthday and began jazz
lessons.
In nineteen forty-four, he moved to New York. He entered the Julliard School
of Music. But he left the school the next year to work with great musicians like
Billy Eckstine and Charlie Parker.
In nineteen forty-nine Miles Davis released "Birth of the Cool." This
recording also had a big influence on jazz. At that time, listeners were used to
the often forceful, fast-moving beats of Louis Armstrong and others.
Cool jazz became especially popular on the West Coast.
VOICE TWO:
In the 1950s and 60s, the civil rights movement grew in the Untied
States. Here was a tall, talented, good looking -- and very strong-willed --
African American man. He wore Italian suits and drove European cars. There were
many women in his life, although he was violent with women.
Still, many people saw Miles Davis as someone who stood up to a system that
often kept African Americans from economic success.
VOICE ONE:
Miles Davis died in 1991 in California, at the age of 65. He is
remembered most as one of the best trumpet players ever. Miles Davis played more
softly than many of those who came before him. He also did not work as hard to
hit as many high notes or low notes. He found his unmistakable sound somewhere in the
middle. There was also his sense of timing and the use of silence in his music.
Miles Davis had a talent especially for sad love songs. This one is called
"Flamenco Sketches," the final song on "Kind of Blue."
ANNOUNCER: Our program was written by Robert Brumfield and read by Steve
Ember and Gwen Outen.
I'm Shirley Griffith, hoping you can join us again
next week for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.
trumpet :喇叭
bandleader :
樂隊領(lǐng)隊
unmistakable :明白無誤的
（來源:VOA
英語點津姍姍編輯） |
