Astor Piazzolla

[George H. Smith]

I don't know how many of you are familiar with the Italian composer and musician Astor Piazzolla, but you might want to watch this clip. I first learned about Piazzolla a couple years ago, after I happened across an album he recorded with the legendary baritone saxophonist Gerry Mulligan in 1974. The lyrical and intensely passionate results are exhibited in this video from the album. This is not the sort of music I would listen to every day, but at certain times it can be very cathartic -- e.g., late at night with wine or green tobacco. (I have no personal knowledge of the latter, of course, but I hear such a thing exists.)

Some of you may not care for this, but I know some of you will like it. How Mulligan could produce such beauty, subtlety, and lightness of touch from such a "heavy" instrument never ceases to amaze me. Mulligan revolutionized the role of the baritone sax in jazz, and, though best known as a performer, his contributions as a composer and arranger are equally remarkable. After dropping out of high school, he began working as a professional arranger at age 16. Mulligan was one of the driving forces behind "Birth of the Cool" (1948) -- one of the most influential albums in the history of jazz. Then there was Mulligan's formation of his highly unorthodox pianoless quartet (with Chet Baker) in the early 1950s.

This example (c. 1952) shows how Mulligan used the baritone sax to fill the role normally filled by the piano. The lyrical counterpoint, which became a characteristic of "West Coast Jazz," could be a thing of simple beauty, as you will see here:

Ghs

[George H. Smith]

I just located this haunting tune, "Close Your Eyes and Listen." This is my favorite track from the Piazzolla/Mulligan album "Tango Neuvo" (1974).

,"

Ghs

[Michael Stuart Kelly]

George,

You're bringing back memories.

When I was in the orchestra in São Paulo, we accompanied Piazolla a few times. So I've met him--right near the end of his life. Not a bad dude for an Argentinian.

(Brazil and Argentina harbor longstanding hostility toward each other--an uneasy rivalry when light and outright murder when excessive. I once lost my woman from a 7 year relationship to an Argentinian, so I can't stand them. )

There's a fascinating comment about Piazolla you might find as interesting as I did. I produced a famous protest singer in Brazil, Geraldo Vandré, who had become fairly good friends with Piazolla. Geraldo told me that Piazolla taught him something about music no one else had--that there is a noticeable difference between music that comes from people who live around mountains and people who live near the ocean. Piazolla came from the mountains and Geraldo came from the seaside.

That's not a hard and fast rule, but it does throw your mind into a knot once you focus in on it and listen to certain kinds of music or musicians.

Michael

[George H. Smith]

George,

You're bringing back memories.

When I was in the orchestra in São Paulo, we accompanied Piazolla a few times. So I've met him--right near the end of his life. Not a bad dude for an Argentinian.

(Brazil and Argentina harbor longstanding hostility toward each other--an uneasy rivalry when light and outright murder when excessive. I once lost my woman from a 7 year relationship to an Argentinian, so I can't stand them. )

There's a fascinating comment about Piazolla you might find as interesting as I did. I produced a famous protest singer in Brazil, Geraldo Vandré, who had become fairly good friends with Piazolla. Geraldo told me that Piazolla taught him something about music no one else had--that there is a noticeable difference between music that comes from people who live around mountains and people who live near the ocean. Piazolla came from the mountains and Geraldo came from the seaside.

That's not a hard and fast rule, but it does throw your mind into a knot once you focus in on it and listen to certain kinds of music or musicians.

Michael

I'm impressed.

I slipped and called Piazzolla an "Italian" composer -- an obvious and careless error. I can't think of any Italian composers who were important innovators in the genre of tango.

Ghs

[George H. Smith]

I don't know how many of you are familiar with the [Argentine] composer and musician Astor Piazzolla, but you might want to watch this clip. I first learned about Piazzolla a couple years ago, after I happened across an album he recorded with the legendary baritone saxophonist Gerry Mulligan in 1974. The lyrical and intensely passionate results are exhibited in this video from the album....

I posted this video on the JazzWestCoast list shortly after I posted it here. The bassist Bill Crow, who worked with Gerry Mulligan for many years, responded with this interesting observation:

Interesting shot of Gerry's right hand... you can see how he uses his right thumb on a couple of the keys, rather than the usual right forefinger for which they were designed. Gerry moved the neck strap staple on his horns so the balance point caused the mouthpiece to fall toward him, rather than away from him, making it unnecessary for him to push the horn into his mouth with his right thumb, and thus freeing it up to use on the keys.

Bill Crow

I watched the video again and, sure enough, Bill noticed details that almost every other viewer would miss. I am fascinated by such details, and it is fortunate that there are still some old- timers around to discuss such matters with.

Ghs

[George H. Smith]

I just posted the following on the JazzWestCoast list. The connection to Piazzolla will become apparent as you read on. The second YouTube link I give is to a Piazzolla number, for example. The instrument that Labro plays here is, I believe, called a "button accordion." Labro also plays the bandoneon, an instrument popular in Argentina that Piazzolla was famous for. I don't know what distinguishes the bandoneon from other accordion-type instruments, but Michael might.

Ghs

----- Original Message -----

From: "George H. Smith" <smikro@comcast.net>

To: <JazzWestCoast@yahoogroups.com>

Sent: Sunday, May 01, 2011 5:35 PM

Subject: Julien Labro

The French-born accordionist Julien Labro recently sent me

information about an e-newsletter he is starting. I have been

familiar with Mr. Labro's remarkable work for some time,

primarily through some Cd's he recorded with the Hot Club of

Detroit. After I heard this group perform in Bloomington

nearly two years ago, I wrote a very favorable review and

sent a copy to the e-address for the group. Mr. Labro

responded, and we had a brief exchange of emails.

I have had some additional exchanges with Mr. Labro over the

past couple days. I wanted to be sure that it would to be

okay to post his info on the JWC list. His reply is

reprinted below, with his promotional material below that.

(I don't know if all these links will work in a reposting,

but most should.)

I mentioned to Mr. Labro that the role of the accordion in

jazz has been discussed before on JWC. Given Mr. Labro's

wide ranging interest in music -- he is one of the world's

leading authorities on the music of Astor Piazzolla, for

example -- he is interested in any comments JWC members may

care to make.

Here is a video of Mr. Labro playing with Frank Vignola and

other gypsy jazz performers.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQ8_LZZAUFc

And here is a video from a solo concert:

I have invited Mr. Labro to join JWC. I am not certain he

will do so, but if he doesn't, I will forward any comments

to him.

Ghs

----- Original Message -----

From: "Julien Labro" <julien@julienlabro.com>

To: "George H. Smith" <smikro@comcast.net>

Sent: Sunday, May 01, 2011 9:35 AM

Subject: Re: Welcome to my E-Newsletter

Hello George,

Good to hear from you. Thanks for your email and yes I do

remember your review. Hope all is well.

This JWC yahoo group sounds amazing! Thanks for sharing some

of the anecdotes.

Please feel free to post and share my E-Newsletter with the

JWC list, it would be great.

I'd love it to spark some discussions about the accordion

and jazz. I certainly would love to receive feedback and

comments.

Thanks!

Best,

Julien

Welcome To Julien Labro's E-Newsletter

Is this email not displaying correctly?

[1]View it in your browser.

[2]Friend on Facebook

[3]Follow on Twitter

[4]Forward to a Friend

Idiomatically conversant with jazz, classical music,

world music, and

complimented by an unmeasured expertise of the music of

Astor

Piazzolla, _Julien Labro_ has established himself as one

of the leading

figures of his generation on both the accordion and the

bandoneón.

Links:

1.

http://us2.campaign-archive1.com/?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=5eff184ef6&e=3440f2770d

2.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=c4089e56c2&e=3440f2770d

3.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=0fd399fc89&e=3440f2770d

4.

http://us2.forward-to-friend.com/forward?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=5eff184ef6&e=3440f2770d

Welcome

Fans and Friends, welcome to my first newsletter. I

wanted to let you know

that my newly updated website is up and running. Check it

out [5]here. The

homepage is also a blog that will offer the latest news

and activities so

check back often. It will create an opportunity for you

guys to react and

leave comments to some of the posts, I welcome comments

and feedback.

Links:

5.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=ab8bf744fb&e=3440f2770d

April has been a busy month filled with many different

musical programs! I

have always enjoyed crossing musical genres. Classically,

I had the

privilege to perform three different programs with 3

symphony orchestras

from Cape Cod (MA) to Champaign (IL), what a treat! On

the jazz side, I had

the pleasure to perform with the [6]Hot Club of Detroit

on a double bill

with the [7]Anat Cohen Quartet at Detroit's magnificent

Orchestra Hall. It

was an amazing experience and a blast especially jamming

all together to

finish the concert. Check some pictures from the show

[8]here.

The following day was a concert with [9]t[10]he Oblivion

Project, a band

that specializes in recreating the music of Astor

Piazzolla with a

jazz/motown twist at the Detroit Institute of Arts.

Links:

6.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=0581d6b0b3&e=3440f2770d

7.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=f23b5b1b5d&e=3440f2770d

8.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=db6373e97a&e=3440f2770d

9.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=5c2167d8b6&e=3440f2770d

10.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=0d361a5150&e=3440f2770d

Speaking of Piazzolla, I am also proud to let you know

that Canadian pianist

[11]Catherine Wilson and her group "[12]Ensemble Vivant"

came out with their

latest CD release this month entitled "[13]Homage to

Piazzolla". It has been

a pleasure writing and arranging music for them and

especially working

closely together on the Piazzolla material.

Links:

11.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=f69ee48a4f&e=3440f2770d

12.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=ba330fd037&e=3440f2770d

13.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=6a80718752&e=3440f2770d

I was also excited to receive the CD soundtrack of

"[14]Patagonia" by the

great film composer [15]Joe LoDuca. Joe wrote some great

accordion parts for

this flick and I can't wait to watch the entire movie.

It's only been

released in the UK so far but we should hear more about

international

distribution soon.

Links:

14.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=a60edae17b&e=3440f2770d

15.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=e0d077cc53&e=3440f2770d

Thank you for your continuous support. Hope to see you

all soon!

[16]JL interviewed on The Craig Fahle Show -WDET FM

Links:

16.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=830d85d61f&e=3440f2770d

Tango is considered to be one of the great music styles

of the world.the

compositions are as sultry as the infamous dance. WDET's

Martina Guzman

interviewed Julien Labro from the Oblivion Project.a

Detroit group

considered to be foremost Tango band in the Mid-West.

[17]Link to Audio

Links:

17.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=31400f18d4&e=3440f2770d

[18]Performance Pics

Links:

18.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=6ad337e12f&e=3440f2770d

Check out the pics from [19]recent performances, I always

like "live shots"

and I'd love to add some pics you may have from previous

shows and concerts

that I have been a part of. If you have any, I'll be

happy to include them

in a gallery. Please email them to

julien@julienlabro.com. Thanks!

Links:

19.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=d208faee23&e=3440f2770d

[20]JL interviewed on "Live and Local" by Kevin Kelly -WILL

FM

Links:

20.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=50dc917c2d&e=3440f2770d

On the Tuesday edition of "Live and Local," I'll be

talking with the two

soloists appearing on Tuesday night's concert in

Champaign by The Prairie

Ensemble, guitarist Shawn Purcell and bandoneon virtuoso

Julien Labro. And

we'll have live performance highlights from past shows,

featuring Shawn and

Darden Purcell. [21]Link to Audio

[22]follow on Twitter | [23]friend on Facebook |

[24]forward to a friend

_Copyright © 2011 Julien Labro , All rights reserved._

Links:

21.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage2.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=15d9aefdf2&e=3440f2770d

22.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=6c33c14176&e=3440f2770d

23.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage1.com/track/click?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=b07e24976f&e=3440f2770d

24.

http://us2.forward-to-friend.com/forward?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=5eff184ef6&e=3440f2770d

_Our mailing address is:_

julien@julienlabro.com

Email Marketing Powered by MailChimp

http://www.mailchimp.com/monkey-rewards/?aid=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&afl=1

[25]unsubscribe from this list | [26]update

subscription

preferences

| [27]view email in browser

Links:

25.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage.com/unsubscribe?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=f1f872f650&e=3440f2770d&c=5eff184ef6

26.

http://julienlabro.us2.list-manage2.com/profile?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=f1f872f650&e=3440f2770d

27.

http://us2.campaign-archive1.com/?u=136a61548bd722c119ad3d965&id=5eff184ef6&e=3440f2770d