I remember sometime last month, I was doing a little Facebook surfing and was surprised that one of my good friends, who is a great jazz musician himself, was up at 2am listening to jazz great Herbie Hancock.
Why at 2am of all times was his listening to jazz and what makes Herbie so great, I asked myself and him? His reponse, “Can’t a music lova from anotha mutha have his late night soul brotha no. 1 moment of solidarity and clarity?”
Reading his comment, I had a moment of clarity – I really don’t know that much about jazz music, but I sure as heck should. In comes April showers and the Smithsonian Jazz Appreciation month . Throughout April, our We Miss you Wednesday posts will be dedicated to jazz greats that are no longer with us.
Today, we get ready for April by paying homage to Dizzy Gillespie. Easily considered one of the great trumpeteers of the 20th century, John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie was born into a musical family and was most recognized for his “dizzy-ing” rhythmic shifts and harmonic risks.
He gained popularity as part of the Charlie Parker Band in the 40s, a band credited with exposing bebop, a modern jazz style, to the masses. One of Dizzy Gillespie’s trademark was his unique trumpet, bent at a 45 degree angle. Supposedly, caused by an accident, the bend gave Dizzy a sound he liked, so he kept it.
Check out the video below of Dizzy performing “Tin Tin Deo” with bassist Christopher Wesley White. An All-Star band continues to perform Dizzy’s music and includes many of the artist’s collaborators and admirers. Hopefully by the end of the month, myself and you will have a greater appreciation for jazz – an American style of music that has played vital role in our country’s history.
4daLove
