Re: [Harp-L] Re: Let's talk Little Walter

[Richard Hunter <turtlehill@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

HTownFess wrote:
<Is this rhythmic feel what is called rubato?  I'm not showing off, but
<trying to confirm the usage, which I first noticed in Jerry Wexler's
<autobiography, when he talked about Willie Nelson's singing and
<likened it to Sinatra's in that regard, IIRC.  The Wikipedia entry has
<some interesting quotations on the topic from the classical field.
<
<On Jun 30, 10:20 pm, Icema...@xxxxxxx wrote:
<> This is playing free of the metric time while being responsible to  it.
<>
<> Once you have the feel of the groove and the tempo engraved in your soul,  
<> you have the ability to ignore them and phrase however you wish, as long as  
<> you are able to catlike land on your feet.
<>

No, this is not rubato.  Rubato is about changing the length of the basic pulse, not moving bar lines, which is what Walter did.  

When you hear a classical pianist play Chopin, speeding phrases up or slowing them down to emphasize the emotion of a line, that's rubato.  When Walter changes chords two beats early, that's something different.  Walter's approach to phrasing in this regard is similar to lots of traditional blues musicians.  For an extreme example, check out pianist Champion Jack Dupree's "Live from Montreaux" album.

Regards, Richard Hunter
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