That Jazz - Monkey Max Music and File Download

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Part II: Jazz Greats and Great Jazz: An Evolutionary Riff
Figure 8-4:
Ornette
Coleman’s
music is
loosely
structured.
Ornette Coleman on the fringe
Born in Fort Worth, Texas, in 1930, saxophonist Ornette Coleman grew up
hearing Texas blues and R&B. He played in bands led by guitarist Pee Wee
Crayton and others. But unlike other young musicians who play and record in
established styles before finding a sound of their own, Coleman made fringe
music almost from the start.
Coleman’s music paralleled abstract painting — art with no tangible subject.
Instead, feelings, impressions, and emotions posed as the subjects. Coleman’s
music has only the loosest structure, sometimes as limited as a simple strand
of melody or repeated funky rhythms. Players improvised practically all the
music.
Harmolodics, as Coleman (see Figure 8-4) calls his musical system, lets musicians
respond to their intuitions and to each other as they invent new harmonies
and melodies on the spot. Coleman’s music challenges listeners to
be patient with open ears and an open mind but reaping the rewards.
Everett Collection