Bol Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 (edited) I am wondering whether people ever have such an experience. I used to love Anthony Braxton's early 1970s quartet recordings with Holland, Altschul, and G. Lewis or Wheeler -- especially the rhythm section of Holland & Altschul. For the last few weeks, I'm finding this music just not very exciting -- almost (not quite, but almost) as uninteresting as Dave Holland's recent recordings. Whenever I listen to their recordings now, I find them a tad forced, a tad uninteresting. This quartet used to be one of my favorite jazz groups -- along with Miles Davis's second quintet and Ornette Coleman's 1959 quartet. Do you ever have such experiences -- a sudden drop in your interest in what used to be a favorite group? Does the interest and excitement return eventually after a while? I feel like I've lost something special in losing my interest in this group -- sort of like becoming blind to certain colors. Edited September 16, 2009 by Bol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidewinder Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 (edited) Familiarity and all that - I guess I can relate to the feeling re: Dave Holland's recent stuff, for me his music was more exciting live (however I did find the big band CD had that excitement factor). It will be interesting when I get hold of the Braxton Mosaic box to see how I react to that particular music now. Certainly, the 'Montreux/Berlin' 2LP set with George Lewis was an exciting listen 'back in the day'. Edited September 16, 2009 by sidewinder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John L Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 I am wondering whether people ever have such an experience. I used to love Anthony Braxton's early 1970s quartet recordings with Holland, Altschul, and G. Lewis or Wheeler -- especially the rhythm section of Holland & Altschul. For the last few weeks, I'm finding this music just not very exciting -- almost (not quite, but almost) as uninteresting as Dave Holland's recent recordings. Whenever I listen to their recordings now, I find them a tad forced, a tad uninteresting. This quartet used to be one of my favorite jazz groups -- along with Miles Davis's second quintet and Ornette Coleman's 1959 quartet. Do you ever have such experiences -- a sudden drop in your interest in what used to be a favorite group? Does the interest and excitement return eventually after a while? I feel like I've lost something special in losing my interest in this group -- sort of like becoming blind to certain colors. Yes and yes. Yes, there are times when some of my favorite artists suddenly start to bore me and, yes, usually the excitement usually returns after laying off of their recordings for a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeweil Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 Same here. I had an almost complete collection of all 1950's Hard Bop on Blue Note, and grew tired of it at some point and kept only the highlights. Some of the albums I sold now start sounding alright again, but the heyday of my taste for this style is gone forever. Just take a break and then go listen again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PHILLYQ Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 I go through the same thing and I stay away, check out something different or new and then return. However, it could be that you've lost your taste for them, and if so, well there's lots of other stuff to listen to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillF Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 Even the greatest stuff palls with overexposure. For me, the greatest recordings ever are by Parker on Savoy and Dial, the Herman Four Brothers herd and the Miles Davis nonet, but as I've been listening to them for half a century, the magic isn't there anymore. The answer for me has been to move on to other stuff which I never listened to in the old days; e.g. the Tristano school and West Coast cool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffcrom Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 I go through short periods when I don't want to hear jazz at all, so I turn to blues, classical, rock, or something else. After a couple days I'm usually ready to swing again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brad Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 I go through short periods when I don't want to hear jazz at all, so I turn to blues, classical, rock, or something else. After a couple days I'm usually ready to swing again. Ditto on that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JETman Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 Same here. For me, enjoyment of music is very much mood driven. Right now (and for the last several months) I just can't listen to bop or straight-ahead jazz. It is just boring me to tears. Things are crazy at work, so I'm finding solace in re-discovering the early, HAPPY Beatles tunes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 Why should everything always be the same, every day, forever? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JETman Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 Why should everything always be the same, every day, forever? Because it's human nature to want to be a control-freak Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Tapscott Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 (edited) Earlier this year, I went through a period of about a month or two when nothing sounded interesting to me, not even my favorites. It's was the first time in 35+ years when I didn't really care whether I heard jazz or not. I always take a number of discs with me on my summer vacation, and I did so this year, but I didn't feel motivated to listen to them at all. Everything sounded flat and dull. Nothing seemed to excite me. My attitude to jazz kind of mirrored my spirit, which felt rather dull and gloomy. But I persisted and dutifully listened to a CD or two a day. Thankfully, the interest has returned again and I actually felt it happening one day as I listened to Kenny Dorham Live at the Cafe Bohemia. So I thank Mr. Dorham and freinds for that. I guess the lesson is stick with it, even through the low times, and know that the spark will return. Edited September 16, 2009 by John Tapscott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 I haven't been able to listen to straight-ahead hard bop for a couple years now, doesn't do a damn thing for me anymore...maybe one of these days. I'm happy exploring the modern wave of rock/progressive/metal acts right now. The pendulum will swing back to jazz eventually...or it won't...either way I'm content. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papsrus Posted September 16, 2009 Report Share Posted September 16, 2009 At the risk of being overly analytical about all this .... It seems as though different kinds of music have a different effect. People often say they enjoy pop tunes for the exact reason they become disinterested in improvised music -- its familiarity. With pop music, the tunes remind them of something in the past. They hum along, know all the lyrics. The more familiar they are with the music, the more they enjoy it. Similarly, I know fans of classical music who thoroughly enjoy the same piece of music played over and over through their entire lives. There's no diminishing of the enjoyment at all, probably for somewhat similar reasons as apply to pop, but on a much bigger scale. A classical music fan would be able to speak to this better than I. With jazz or improvised music, part of the enjoyment comes from the improvised nature of it. The unexpected twists and turns. The process of discovery. As the listener becomes familiar with a piece of music, the very thing that makes it interesting fades upon repeated listens. The "wow" factor is diminished. There are folks who don't even really bother with recorded jazz. It must be experienced live, they say. In the moment, and all that. There are other aspects of improvised music that contribute to its enjoyment, of course -- something that swings hard, or a beautiful melody, or the magical interplay among the musicians. All sorts of things, I suppose. But I think this sense of boredom with music can be particularly acute with improvised music simply due to the nature of the music. So it's to be expected. The cure? For me, it's about variety. I can't really listen to a steady diet of hard bop, or big band, or anything, really. I just mix it up as best I can. New sounds open up new awareness. That sort of thing. I might feel differently about it all if I'd been listening intently to jazz for 40, 50 years, but luckily (I guess) I haven't. A little long-winded, and nothing that hasn't already been said, but hopefully something here ... ah ... strikes a chord? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn Posted September 17, 2009 Report Share Posted September 17, 2009 A little long-winded, and nothing that hasn't already been said, but hopefully something here ... ah ... strikes a chord? E7#9. At least I think that's the chord it struck. Actually, I can definitely see that being a factor for some people. I like many different styles of music, so when I get bored with one I have plenty of other options to explore. When I was heavily listening to jazz all the time it was because I had become COMPLETELY burnt on rock music and was looking for something else to spark the passion. Jazz filled that void nicely. Then eventually (10+ years) the straight-ahead jazz stuff started to sound boring...and the rock stuff I was hearing was REALLY exciting again. So I appear to have come full circle. Of course my mood changes hourly, so the only thing I can be sure of is that I'll feel differently about it in a little while. LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillF Posted September 17, 2009 Report Share Posted September 17, 2009 With jazz or improvised music, part of the enjoyment comes from the improvised nature of it. The unexpected twists and turns. The process of discovery. As the listener becomes familiar with a piece of music, the very thing that makes it interesting fades upon repeated listens. The "wow" factor is diminished. Wise words, paps! Not for nothing did Whitney Balliett call his book on jazz The Sound of Surprise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockefeller center Posted September 17, 2009 Report Share Posted September 17, 2009 Even happened to Rupert Holmes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walt Richmond Posted September 23, 2009 Report Share Posted September 23, 2009 I think it's more of a matter of coming and going for me. I'll get tired of an artist and not listen for a long time, and then hear one song or think of a song, and then that artist is all I'll play for several days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Lark Ascending Posted September 23, 2009 Report Share Posted September 23, 2009 I'm in the 'change genre' when things sound jaded group as well. Though it's often enough for me to change within genre - after a few weeks on the hard bop a gear change to ECM or Ellington normally has the desired effect. Having bought far too many records over the last 40 years I can always find something to freshen my ear buds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AllenLowe Posted September 23, 2009 Report Share Posted September 23, 2009 (edited) In reality, and maybe because of the ridiculous amount of music I have listened to in the last ten years in order to do 2 very large reissue projects, I am sick of almost everything that is jazz-related. It's weird, I can rarely listen to a jazz performance for more than 30 seconds without wanting to go ahead to another. I feel as if I have heard every phrase and note that any improviser will ever play. on the other hand, I just started playing again, so my challenge is to produce music that does not bore me (just everyone else) - I wanted it short, loud, pithy, deep, dark, and rough. (no call girl jokes, please) Edited September 23, 2009 by AllenLowe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matthew Posted July 30, 2010 Report Share Posted July 30, 2010 (edited) For the past year, I can't seem to get myself to play anything by Bill Evans, and I have way too many cds by him. Strange how you can really dig someone for the longest time, then suddenly, its just not happening anymore... Edited July 30, 2010 by Matthew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
papsrus Posted July 30, 2010 Report Share Posted July 30, 2010 (edited) For the past year, I can't seem to get myself to play anything by Bill Evans, and I have way too many cds by him. Strange how you can really dig someone for the longest time, then suddenly, its just not happening anymore... Funny. I just listened to the Vanguard and Waltz for Debby discs last night and this morning, and they were more magical to me, the music more beautiful, than ever. I can definitely relate to your "I have way too many CDs by _____" comment. I find that with some artists, less is more. Edited July 30, 2010 by papsrus Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Teasing the Korean Posted July 31, 2010 Report Share Posted July 31, 2010 When you've accumulated a lot of records, the key is to get familiar with stuff but not too familiar with it. And then to mix it up stylistically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jazzbo Posted July 31, 2010 Report Share Posted July 31, 2010 Do you ever have such experiences -- a sudden drop in your interest in what used to be a favorite group? Does the interest and excitement return eventually after a while? I feel like I've lost something special in losing my interest in this group -- sort of like becoming blind to certain colors. I have had this sort of experience. It's almost always reversed in time, I return to enjoyment of the material that had failed to intrigue me. I believe, in my case, it has an emotional cause. There's been some sort of shift, often that I'm not really distinctly aware of in some ways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Bill Barton Posted July 31, 2010 Report Share Posted July 31, 2010 Because I listen to so much new music this rarely happens to me. When I do go back to old favorites they usually sound great. The really "deep" ones never fail to reveal new treasures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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