Author: MarlboroughMan
Date: 2014-12-13 01:37
That post by seabreeze is perhaps the finest post I've ever read here, detailing the importance and mastery of Pete Fountain. At the very least, it is the most gratifying I've read here. Many, many thanks.
To humbly add my perspective on all that he has just shared with us, I'd say that if I was forced to name an era of Pete's playing that I loved most, it would be the late '50s through early '60s. I love the early Coral records, and his sound was just...well, if there is such a thing as perfection he came really close to it for me then.
But on a deeper level, it's what Pete taught me by his playing that I'm so grateful for. His command, his complete control of musical materials in the manner he wanted to (and seabreeze is absolutely correct about his fusion of jazz styles--it was revolutionary.) I'm grateful for each of the eras of his sound development--even the ones I'm not as drawn to--because each time Pete's sound changed, it proved something new about the horn, like mapping new territory for the rest of us. Very few players ever have that depth of meaning, and very few map that much territory.
And all of this is really dealing with Pete the clarinetist--as a musician he's more than his contribution to the horn. There is a depth of joy to Pete's playing, and an inimitable warmth an character that is rarely reached. Sonny Rollins comes closest to my mind, and I think they share something of the same humanity as artists, despite all of the cultural barriers and stylistic differences.
But wow...what a post, seabreeze. Thanks again.
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The Jazz Clarinet
http://thejazzclarinet.blogspot.com/
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