Italian PianoThe history of the piano begins long before the history of jazz. However, the jazz piano represented a real revolution, greatly expanding the limits of the instrument and bringing new impetus and new styles. Therefore, I have tried to discuss the relationship between classical piano and jazz piano. At the end of the article, I…
How do you play a song on the piano? In this lesson we will see how to use the piano to accompany a singer, but also how to adapt a melody so that it can be played only with the piano, in an instrumental version.
[Monday Notes no. 150] From Gagarin’s Point Of View is a piece written in 1999 by Swedish pianist Esbjorn Svensson. The piece is dedicated to the Russian astronaut Jurij Gagarin, the first man to travel into outer space.
[Monday Notes no. 61] Bill Evans combined jazz and the harmonies of European classical composers such as Claude Debussy and Maurice Ravel. No wonder then that many of his compositions have the 3/4 time, used in Europe but almost non-existent in jazz, at least until the 1950s. Let’s analyze his jazz waltz entitled Waltz for…
[Monday’s Note No. 49] Take Five is one of the few pieces in the jazz repertoire to have the unusual time of 5/4, hence the double meaning of the title, which in English means “taking five minutes off” but also hints at the rhythmic tempo of the piece.
[Monday Notes No.48] Georgia on My Mind was composed by the great songwriter Hoagy Carmichael in 1930, but Ray Charles’ interpretation in 1960 surpassed the original in popularity, the pianist-singer turning it into one of his biggest hits.
[Monday Notes No. 31] The Modern Jazz Quartet was one of the longest-running jazz ensembles on the jazz scene. John Lewis was a promoter of the third current and was pursuing a contact between European classical music and jazz.
