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Category: piano

2020

Monday, March 9th

passings

McCoy Tyner, pianist, December 11, 1938-March 6, 2020

John Coltrane Quartet (JC, 1926-1967, tenor saxophone; MC, piano; Jimmy Garrison, 1934-1976, bass; Elvin Jones, 1927-2004, drums), “Impressions” (J. Coltrane), live (TV show), San Francisco, 1963

 

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lagniappe

art beat: other day, Museum of Modern Art, New York

Henri Matisse (1869-1954), Dance (I), 1909; Jeannette, c. 1910

*****

radio

Today, Ornette Coleman’s birthday (b. 1930), it’s all Ornette all day on WKCR (Columbia University).

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2020

Thursday, March 5th

never enough

Frederic Chopin (1810-1849), Nocturne No. 2 in E-flat major; Alfred Cortot (1877-1962, piano), 1929

 

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langiappe

random sights

other day, Oak Park, Ill.

*****

reading table

Error is boundless.
Nor hope nor doubt,
Though both be groundless,
Will average out.

—J. V. Cunningham (1911-1985), from “Meditation on Statistical Method”

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2020

Thursday, February 20th

what’s new

One-word review: Wow!

Omar Sosa (piano), Yilian Cañizares (vocals, violin), “Dos Bendiciones” (Two Blessings), live (studio), New York, 2/18/20

 

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lagniappe

random sights

other day, Oak Park, Ill.

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2020

Wednesday, February 19th

sounds of New York

Herbie Nichols Trio (HN, 1919-1963, piano; Al McKibbon, bass; Art Blakey, drums), “The Third World” (H. Nichols), 1955

 

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lagniappe

random sights

other morning, Oak Park, Ill.

*****

musical thoughts

Thank you all for listening. Your open ears, open minds, and open hearts are essential to resisting the gathering darkness of our times.

—composer John Luther Adams, 2/18/20 email

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2020

Saturday, February 8th

passings

Peter Serkin, pianist, January 24, 1947-February 1, 2020

Live, Tokyo, 2003: Toru Takemitsu (1930-1996), Rain Tree Sketch (1982)

 

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Live, New Jersey (Ridgewood), 2017: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791), Adagio in B minor, K. 540

 

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lagniappe

random sights

yesterday, Chicago, Ill.

*****

lagniappe

reading table

Even in Kyoto—
hearing the cuckoo’s cry—
I long for Kyoto.

—Matsuo Basho (1644-1694), translated from Japanese by Robert Hass

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2020

Saturday, February 1st

If you learned you had a month to live, what would you want to listen to? This would be on my list. (Whatever you do, don’t miss the third movement.)

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827), Piano Sonata No. 31 in A flat (Op. 110); Solomon (AKA Solomon Cutner, 1902-1988), piano, 1950s

1st mvt.

 

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2nd mvt.

 

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3rd mvt.

 

*****

Another take.

Artur Schnabel (1882-1951), piano, 1930s

 

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lagniappe

random sights

yesterday, Oak Park, Ill.

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2020

Wednesday, January 29th

what’s new

Max Richter (1966-, compositions, piano, keyboard) with the American Contemporary Music Ensemble (Clarice Jensen, cello & artistic director; Ben Russell, violin; Laura Lutzke, violin; Isabel Hagen, viola; Claire Bryant, cello), “On the Nature of Daylight,” “Vladimir’s Blues,” “Infra 5,” live, Washington, D.C., 1/22/20

 

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lagniappe

musical thoughts

I’m very interested in the idea of a piece of music being a place to think.

—Max Richter

*****

random sights

yesterday, Oak Park, Ill.

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2020

Monday, January 27th

Why not begin the week with something beautiful?

Julia Hülsmann Quartet (Julia Hülsmann, piano; Uli Kempendorff, tenor saxophone; Marc Muellbauer, bass; Heinrich Köbberling, drums), “This Is Not America” (D. Bowie), live (studio), 2019

 

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lagniappe

random sights

yesterday, Oak Park, Ill.

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2020

Saturday, January 25th

what’s new

Brian Blade & Life Cycles (BB, drums; Myron Walden, woodwinds; John Hart, guitar; Jon Cowherd, piano; Doug Weiss, bass; Monte Croft, vibraphone, voice; Rogerio Boccato, percussion), “My Joy,” “Slow Change,” “Hello to the Wind,” “The Final Four,” live (studio), Seattle, published 1/10/20 (recorded 9/27/19)

 

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lagniappe

random sights

other morning, Oak Park, Ill.

*****

reading table

The moon disappears
into darkening treetops
collecting the rain

—Matsuo Basho (1644-1694), translated from Japanese by Sam Hamill

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2020

Tuesday, January 14th

what’s new

One-word review: Wow!

Fay Victor (vocals), Baba Israel (vocals), Marc Ribot (guitar), Ingrid Laubrock (tenor saxophone), Kris Davis (piano), live (Celebration of the Life of Steve Dalachinsky), New York (Winter Jazz Fest), 1/11/19

 

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lagniappe

random sights

other day, Chicago

*****

reading table

I speak across the vast
Dialogues in which we go
To clench my words against
Time or the lack of time
Hoping that for a moment
They will become for me
A place I can think in
And think anything in,
An aside from the monstrous.

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This is no other place
Than where I am, between
This word and the next.

—W. S. Graham (1918-1986), from “The Dark Dialogues”

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