AllenLowe Posted September 13, 2012 Report Share Posted September 13, 2012 (edited) just wondering - and if I AM the only one I will retreat to a monastery for the next 6 months with a vow of silence. or, more likely, I'll just go back to doing the same stupid things I've been doing all along. Edited September 13, 2012 by AllenLowe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sonnymax Posted September 13, 2012 Report Share Posted September 13, 2012 just wondering - and if I AM the only one I will retreat to a monastery for the next 6 months with a vow of silence. or, more likely, I'll just go back to doing the same stupid things I've been doing all along. I can only speak for myself, but I don't find him boring at all. I own quite a few of his albums, from solo and trio dates to his quintet recording with Dave Douglas and Rich Perry. I've also seen him perform live twice, and both times I came away feeling moved and entertained. You want to talk about "boring", try Ahmad Jamal. He's the one who does it for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alocispepraluger102 Posted September 13, 2012 Report Share Posted September 13, 2012 (edited) just wondering - and if I AM the only one I will retreat to a monastery for the next 6 months with a vow of silence. or, more likely, I'll just go back to doing the same stupid things I've been doing all along. when fred rips into one of those lovely broadway show tunes, i really perk up. when he wanders into leaves of grass, i doze off in about 2 seconds. Edited September 13, 2012 by alocispepraluger102 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul secor Posted September 13, 2012 Report Share Posted September 13, 2012 Haven't heard him recently but, when I've heard him in the past, he sounded as if he played like a banker and I've never had much of an interest in his playing. He seems to have his fans. Good for him and for them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted September 13, 2012 Report Share Posted September 13, 2012 I find most people boring, to be honest with you. That's why I play Name Three People, to learn about new people, people who are not yet boring to me. I'm sure they'll become boring soon enough, but until they do, it's like leaving a faucet running to keep it from freezing up, something you just gotta do! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Kart Posted September 13, 2012 Report Share Posted September 13, 2012 I thought his Rodgers and Hammerstein solo album was very good, especially liked the way he approached the pieces -- with insight and understanding, didn't try to jazz them up. His way with Monk did nothing for me, though. One of his trio records, "Dancing in the Dark," all standards, appealed to me for the same reason the R&H album did -- the subtle, insightful conceptual approach to the pieces themselves. He's not really a "blowing" musician IMO, perhaps too much of a neatnik, but genuine and thoughtful FWTW. Brief encounters with his more ambitious, pretentious projects were off-putting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuck Nessa Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 What Paul said and I don't care. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fasstrack Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 just wondering - and if I AM the only one I will retreat to a monastery for the next 6 months with a vow of silence. or, more likely, I'll just go back to doing the same stupid things I've been doing all along. Ha! The chickens have come home to roost. Let's see if Mr. Hersch can take criticism as well as he dishes it out to fellow musicians. No, he's not boring in the least to me, but a brilliant talent w/great ideas who has brought off countless interesting projects despite being at death's door. I gotta love a guy who can come out of a coma and turn it into gold and a My Coma Dreams tour. That's a sharp cookie! The only thing boring to me was printed unkind assessments of great pianists and other players I found a bit self-congragulatory. A musician that good is better off IMO letting the MUSIC speak. That part of Mr. Hersch I like best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colinmce Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 I'm just not big on piano trios period and am frankly not big on many straight ahead players from his generation as a whole (broad and sweeping as it gets, I know..and fodder for a whole 'nother thread.) so I feel no need to own more than one album of his (Whirl, which I like well enough). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B. Goren. Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 IMHO this one is not boring at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brownie Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 He does not light my fire Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnS Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 He does not light my fire Same here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillF Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 (edited) Pleased to read this thread. Seems to vindicate my decision not to buy a ticket for his upcoming solo concert here. Admit the venue has something to do with my decision - solo piano in a massive concert hall. I would have gone if he'd been in one of the various small rooms where jazz is played round here - but they can't afford international stars, can they? Edited September 14, 2012 by BillF Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fent99 Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 I might yet go and see him and have never seen him before (the Queens Hall in Edinburgh isn't so big). I'm mixed on him I've heard some stuff I like and some stuff I don't. Talented surely, but like a lot of players who get recorded regularly, not everything released is particularly profound. You could say the same of Jarrett and Corea to name but two (though arguably nearly everybody)... Preferred the recordings I've heard live since he has to play off an audience and tries to connect with them. There's a thing he does where he plays Nardis and segues into an Ornette composition which sticks out as something I really enjoyed. (Might be on the NPR VV performance from a couple of years back) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
king ubu Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 It's kinda weird, I tried ... but yeah, while I can hear things I like here and there, subtle moments of beauty, so to speak ... I can generally agree with what brownie said, I guess Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Ayers Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 Just auditioning his disk of 'Concert Music' with Naxos. So far soft-grained stuff and not my cuppa - but he has strings to his bow, nicht wahr? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Bresnahan Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 I used to play parts of Fred's 3 disc set "Songs Without Words" quite often but I have to admit, I haven't spun it in a while. I prefer him with a horn so I really like the work he's done with Jane Ira Bloom. "The Red Quartets", "Nearness", Modern Drama" & "Mighty Lights" (with Charlie Haden and Ed Blackwell rounding out the rhythm section) are all very good as long as you are not soprano sax adverse. Their duet album, "As One" is pretty but I can see it boring some people. I guess it depends on what you want out of it. If you want some mostly mellow noodling, it'll fit the bill. If you want steaming, foot-tapping music, it'll be boring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AllenLowe Posted September 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 well, at least I can stay out of that retreat: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete C Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 One of my favorite contemporary pianists. His solo Monk album is brilliant. His work with Nancy King is exquisite. His trio work always pleases me. Bill Charlap I often find boring. Pleased to read this thread. Seems to vindicate my decision not to buy a ticket for his upcoming solo concert here. Admit the venue has something to do with my decision - solo piano in a massive concert hall. I would have gone if he'd been in one of the various small rooms where jazz is played round here - but they can't afford international stars, can they? And I would urge you to jump at a chance to see him solo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AllenLowe Posted September 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 to me he always sound like he's playing solo. are they sure he came out of that coma? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete C Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 (edited) are they sure he came out of that coma? I don't think you're being cruel only to be kind... If you want Harold Mabern, listen to Harold Mabern. etc., etc. ... Edited September 14, 2012 by Pete C Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daniel A Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 Since Allen is outspoken about Fred Hersch I hope it's OK to comment on this thread in the same manner. I find the subject of this thread boring. It would have been interesting to hear some thoughts from the thread starter on why Hersch's playing does not appeal to him, something that would perhaps had inspired deeper discussion about Hersch's playing style. I think Hersch is an uneven player that sounds so much more inspired on some occasions, but more often seems to have an intellectual/conceptual approach to improvising (or so it sounds to me). I think he plays with great feeling on the '4 in Perspective' album with Kenny Wheeler. It's a live album; maybe he's more relaxed live than in the studio? I haven't heard enough of his playing to be able to tell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AllenLowe Posted September 14, 2012 Author Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 (edited) well, I have no problem with your suggestion that I get more specific - I was just perusing his web site; really the first time I have listened to him after hearing him praised to the skies by rational people; so I was surprised I found his work so soporific. it had almost a new-age veneer, though it was superior new age. No edge, no sense of deep search. Just a very competent skimming of the surface. also, just to add, per Pete C, above, I can't stand Mabern's playing either; I don't like pianists who play with their palms. Edited September 14, 2012 by AllenLowe Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JSngry Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 I don't like pianists who play with their palms. I'm the same way with pianists who pick their noses and then go and put their fingers right on the keyboard. Nasty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A Lark Ascending Posted September 14, 2012 Report Share Posted September 14, 2012 I think he plays with great feeling on the '4 in Perspective' album with Kenny Wheeler. It's a live album; maybe he's more relaxed live than in the studio? I haven't heard enough of his playing to be able to tell. I was at that concert in Oxford. It was freezing - in a strange C of E church that had decoration that looked Greek or Russian Orthodox. I enjoy Hersch, but not all of the time. I go for ages without listening to him and then have a splurge. He is at the softer edge of things and I can see why he wouldn't appeal to many listeners. I particularly like that Rodgers and Hammerstein disc - lots of jazzers do Rodgers and Hart but very few to Rodgers and Hammerstein. I suspect the rich, Romantic harmony is off-putting; Hersch seems to like exploring that zone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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