Klarinet Archive - Posting 000447.txt from 1995/02

From: "Michael A. Cassara" <michael.cassara@-----.COM>
Subj: Syd Polk's comments on Bird and Diz
Date: Tue, 28 Feb 1995 20:22:00 -0500

Syd said
>The main reason trumpets and saxophones were the primary bebop instruments
>was because Dizzy Gillespie played trumpet and Charlie Parker played
>saxophone. Since these two basically invented the genre, everybody
>emulated them. If Bird had been a clarinet player, things would be
>different.

>For those of you who poo-poo the influence of two men, keep in mind
>that soprano saxophone in modern jazz was unheard of until John Coltrane
>recorded an album where he played it ("My Favorite Things"). Suddenly,
>everybody and his dog were buying sopranoes.
>
>Syd Polk

Syd,
I am confused by your post. If Bird had played the clarinet we would not
know bop as it is known today. Instrumentation is often taken for granted
when writing stylistic approaches. Bird was Bird. If he played the
clarinet do you think play with the same instrumentation and have it sound
somewhat good?
Choosing your instrument and who you play with is almost as important as
what you say when you play. When Coltrane picked up the soprano he was
finding a voice that he could use for that setting. He felt that the
soprano sax was best to play My Favorite Things with. Ornette Coleman
started playing trumpet as was well know for creating styles of free form
jazz on alto sax. He had no formal training. I know very little on this
part of his career. I'm certain however he was looking his musical voice.
One of the factors attributed to the dying out of the Bird-Diz era of bebop
is the fact that after many years it has gotten somewhat repetitive and
people frankly got sick of it. Do not get me wrong, I love playing tenor
and letting loose on Ornithology or something, but I find that I would
rather concentrate on finding my own voice.
I personally feel the clarinet is best used in jazz when it is able to show
its bright and wonderful woody tone. This is why I'm so crazy over Eddie
Daniels. This is my interpretation of the instrument and how I would like to
use it. I usually grab my tenor and start to blow. I'm not saying the
tenor doesn't have a pleasant side. I am simply stating that I like that
sound better.
Non musically, people have a tendency to yell if they are upset about
something. If you could catch that screaming voice in a jar and play
music with it, could you take the same voice and play the adagio of K.
622? As Dan Leeson stated a few months ago in the midst of the Stoltzman
controversy, These are all matters of opinion. These are my opinions.

Michael A. Cassara,
Cleveland, Ohio

   
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