Re: [Harp-L] Miles Davis

[Mike Fugazzi <mikefugazzi@xxxxxxxxx>]

I, too, am a huge Miles fan.  I would also consider him, though, in the
.005%.  ;)
----------
Mike Fugazzi
vocals/harmonica
http://www.mikefugazzi.com
Facebook <http://www.facebook.com/MikeFugazziMusic>
YouTube <http://www.youtube.com.user/mikefugazzi>
Quicksilver Custom Harmonicas
<http://www.mikefugazzi.com/fr_customharmonicas.cfm>



On Thu, Sep 27, 2012 at 3:10 PM, The Iceman <icemanle@xxxxxxx> wrote:

> In regards to Miles, he doesn't fall under that category of having
> improvs that just repeat to a large extent with the chunks of phrases mixed
> around. He hated cliches and memorized licks and would fire those in his
> band when he started to hear this coming from them. He also didn't want his
> musicians to practice.. he would tell them "I'm paying you to practice on
> the bandstand, m*therf**ker".
>
> Of all the artists I've been drawn to, Miles was the most "in the moment"
> as far as how he created and what he asked his side men to accomplish. He
> wanted the music to unfold in different directions every night, as is
> evident on those great live recordings that capture him in a 2, 3, 4 or 5
> night gig, playing the same songs, but having them evolve differently all
> the time.
>
> Did you realize that at the time of his death, he was working on a rap
> project which was released as a cd called "Doo-Bop"? He was always
> interested in the most current sounds that were happening on the streets -
> especially amongst young blacks, as he always wanted to break through to
> this particular market. At that time, rap was just coming into its own. He
> always looked forward.
>
> I've pulled a lot of his influence, ideas, approaches into how I play the
> harmonica. As I've mentioned before, if you want a real ear opening
> experience regarding playing in 3rd position (minor blues), listen to his
> soundtrack recording Ascenseur pour l'échafaud, a 1958 french film by Louis
> Malle.
>
>  -----Original Message-----
> From: Mike Fugazzi <mikefugazzi@xxxxxxxxx>
> To: harp-l <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Cc: info <info@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>; harp-l <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>; icemanle <
> icemanle@xxxxxxx>
> Sent: Thu, Sep 27, 2012 3:50 pm
> Subject: Re: [Harp-L] Miles Davis
>
>  I would say that is true of just about any musician.  Tying in to the
> emotion comments this week, that can be spun too.  You can say that a
> person has their own voice and that comes through no matter what they play
> OR that they stink because they sound the same no matter what they play
> over.
>
>  FWIW, I contend most players have very limited vocabularies when
> improvising and quickly end up playing the same things over and over.  We
> give them a free pass when we like them (they have a voice!) and then slam
> them when we don't like it (same thing all the time is boring).  Exceptions
> can be made when they change contexts - like they have a typical 1st
> position solo, or some different chormatic riffs.  Really, though, after a
> few listens, most musicians' improvisations just repeat to a large extent
> with the chunks of phrases mixed around.
>
> On Thursday, September 27, 2012 11:40:27 AM UTC-5, The Iceman wrote:
>>
>> Here's the interesting thing about Miles.....
>>
>> his trumpet playing remained the same (once he found his unique
>> voice)...it was the music that he surrounded it with that he constantly
>> altered.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>