Late

I almost plunked for the Gillespies. Listened to the sound samples and liked much ... but my guilty conscience prevented me, especially because — when I order those Free America discs ... ka-ching!

Yes. shiny and black, biggish, with orange circle pasted onto it, and with a hole in the centre. What on earth are you talking about? "Shiny and black"? "Orange circle"? Some kind of cookie? No, wait — pizza? Could you eat it? Why would you eat music? You've got me stumped. Still would like to eat ... hear it though.

Would love to read your thoughts and/or review of any of these when the time is right ...

I just thought it was a typo: Jimmy Blanton Jimmy Blanton (1918-1942) was de eerste bassist die de moderne "walking bass" introduceerde: 4 kwartnoten in de maat met op de 1ste tel de grondtoon van het akkoord, waarbij een lijn wordt gespeeld die leidt naar de volgende 1ste tel met de grondtoon van het volgende accoord. Daarnaast was Blanton één van de eerste bassisten die solo's speelde en waar features (stukken geschreven voor bepaald solo-instrument) voor werden geschreven. Vóór Blanton was men al wel begonnen met het spelen van iets wat op walking bass leek maar, dit was eerder een vervolg op de two-beat (2 halve noten in de maat spelen, met op de 1ste tel de grondnoot) dan echt de walking bass met 4 verschillende noten en alteraties zoals Blanton dat deed. Jimmy Blanton bezat een enorme 'drive', en was een virtuoos solist, strijkend en plukkend lijkt hij te praten via zijn bas. Zijn solo's zijn zeer melodieus en hij was als bassist zijn tijd ver vooruit. Er zijn zeer weinig opnames van Blanton bekend, maar historisch zijn de duo opnamen met Duke Ellington (tussen '37 & '39): krakkemikkig oude opnames waarin je vaak Blanton met zijn voet hoort meetikken. Door opnametechnieken uit die tijd zijn het over het algemeen korte opnames van hooguit 3 minuten. Toch zijn het allemaal meesterstukjes, waanzinnig mooi en intens gespeeld. De opnames waarop Blanton meespeelde waren een van de eerste waar een bas als soloinstrument werd gebruikt. Jimmy Blanton maakt in zijn solo's bijzonder mooie melodieën, waarin de samenhangende lijnen een prachtige harmonie vormen. Elk van zijn solo's vertelt een klein verhaal. In de ongeveer 2 jaar dat Blanton met Ellington (en anderen) speelde, heeft hij zijn stempel gedrukt op het basspel en zo de basgeschiedenis veranderd. Eigenlijk is wel te zeggen dat het moderne basspel zijn roots heeft bij Blanton. Blanton overleed op jonge leeftijd aan de gevolgen van tuberculose.

This one looks like a nugget ... Was it ever available as tangible product?

kh1958 — minus the Byrds and Jazz et Cinema 2, that was my order from Dusty Groove about two years ago ... but not for those prices! The Lucky Thompson Modern Jazz Group might just be my very favorite of the bunch. (Of course, the Byas discs always leave me .) Guy, that Clarinettes a Saint-Germain-des-Pres is a good one. I haven't spun it in quite some time, though. Time to get it out again. I guess tomorrow will be Paris in Oregon.

Up for reading on the series.

Anyone care to post their thoughts/reviews on any of the Bill Evans' hybrid SACDs? (Or link to a review?) Thanks!

Alright already ... tell us which ones you ordered! I haven't ordered any ... yet.

Exceptionally behind the times in this thread (oh, almost 4,000 posts), but I just heard Gianni Gebbia's Arcana Major/Sonic Tarots Session for the first time this weekend. It is indeed, as the expression here goes, The Poop. Unlike so many other solo saxophone projects, I especially like that Gebbia is willing to keep his improvisations short. One to return to.

Just put "Hawk's Variations (Part One)" on the answering machine ...

Agreed. The music is great though. The Anderza is a fantastic disc. To my ears, Anderza is one of the few altoists who used a Dolphy influence to good effect: he keeps his own "voice," but also exploits those wild interval leaps and altissimo range that Dolphy is most noted for. One to have in the collection for sure. (But be forewarned: Jack Wilson plays a fair amount of harpsichord ... )

The title that was the biggest surprise for me was: Bernard Peiffer-Bernard Zacharias: Modern Jazz At Saint Germain Des Pres. Very light-hearted, humorous playing, though not at all slapstick or roll-your-eyes over-the-top. The only title I've been disappointed with (mind you I only have 14 titles from this series) and sold back was the Michel Legrand ... too sacharine for me. The Blue Stars titles will definitely not be to everyone's taste, but I like them when in the mood for that sort of thing.

... and then the trio was transformed to Giuffre, Richard Davis, and Joe Chambers. Curious, and interesting, connection. Really? I never knew that. Wonder what they sounded like: Giuffre and Joe Chambers... the mind fairly boggles (in a good way). From what I've read (an Art Lange article, I believe, as well as a blurb by Manfred Eicher somewhere), that was Giuffre's last trio configuration before his semi-"retirement" into teaching. The trio (Giuffre, Davis, and Chambers) performed around 1965, I think — and, Giuffre returned to the tenor as his "main" horn, while the trio itself explored more conventional blues. I've also heard/read that there was some compositional cross-pollination of sorts between Giuffre and Chambers at this time. Too bad, at least to my knowledge, that no recordings exist.

I'm guessing that the price reduction is due to ... these discs being on their way out? At any rate, of the many discs in this series, my favorites are the Don Byas discs (romantic; beautiful), and the Lucky Thompson discs. The Andre Hodeir discs are interesting, but probably not to everyone's tastes. Check out sound samples at amazon.fr — just plug in "collection jazz in paris," and you should get them all ... Also, check out the "Jazz et Cinema" discs, particularly the one with Kenny Dorham ...

92 titles, for either $4.99 or $5.99, from our favorite bards. Here.

Oops. Didn't realize that little guy above ... exploded. (I'm still happy for you, Ubu. Me? I'm = .)

Freck. Oh, OK. I'm happy ... for you!

... want ... now ...

And they have such great lattés ... (He says as he prints it out anyway.)

Oh ... I see. My mistake. Well then, here is a meager attempt at translation through the picto-morphogram collage method:

Thanks, Mike. For starters, here's a list of Fantasy's SACD Hybrids. And here's Analogue Production's list of hybrid SACDs. Darn, I thought Everybody Digs Bill Evans had made it to hybrid SACD. Has it? If not, I'll keep waiting ...

... and then the trio was transformed to Giuffre, Richard Davis, and Joe Chambers. Curious, and interesting, connection.

... that would be H or B. Herman Poole "Sonny" Blount, with his last name pronounced "blunt." Most members of the Arkestra called him Sonny, didn't they?

With Shakespeare (and you probably already know this), I strongly recommend bringing in a disc (an audio disc) of a performance by professional actors. I find this much better (i.e. more successful, more meaningful) than watching a video. It has students focus on the use of language, and you can pause any time you want without too much disruption, and discuss certain passages that deserve closer attention. Nothing is worse, in my opinion, than having students slog through reading it aloud in class. The Langston Hughes poem that Jim's referring to was actually incorporated into the opening of the play by Lorraine Hansberry (which of course you know). It is a good lens by which to view shifts of action in the play, almost as if "A Dream Deferred" is a microcosm at times for the larger concerns of the drama itself. For this one, I think it does help to bring in the movie with Sidney Poitier (though it edits out some scenes). But ... I'm sure you have your own ideas, which is great (and important). Bringing to class the other activities you seem to have in mind (film, music, art) I think is a good idea, especially for high school students who attend the same class five days a week. It can hold their attention (not easy), but the challenge is making the connection useful between the primary work you're studying and the cross-referencing work you're introducing. You'll have a great time — even if it gets frustrating, because it will still be educational (at least for you). High school students like to talk ... or drift off into space. For some, you'll be able to switch on the lightbulb above their heads, and for others you won't even be permitted the chance. Teaching requires — beyond a solid knowledge of the subject at hand — endurance and performance. That is, psychological endurance to creatively surmount your doubts, and performance, just like an actor, in front of an audience every day. When you connect with some students, and you will, there is nothing more rewarding. You have the opportunity to become a (relatively) permanent part of their memory. But ... maybe I haven't really addressed your question(s). I guess I mean these words simply as encouragement.