Tuesday, March 04, 2008
No one is in anyone's shadow here . . .
Over the weekend I had the wonderful opportunity to see Ravi Coltrane at
Jazz at the Bistro. This clip features his current combo: Ravi Coltrane on soprano and alto saxophone, E.J. Strickland on drums, Drew Gress on bass and Luis Perdomo and piano. Ravi looks so much like his dad (the late amazing influential jazz musician John Coltrane). It was surreal. Though he is definitely his father's son he has his own voice. No one is in anyone's shadow here.
Here's what he says about his artistic vision:
"I want to be involved with music that is truly honest – that’s not trying to hard to follow trends or fit into someone’s idea about what jazz “is”. For Bird, Miles Monk, Coltrane and Wayne Shorter, I hold the highest level of appreciation because their love and knowledge of tradition was never greater than their need to follow their own path. The need to be themselves. This is my goal – my inspiration – to acknowledge with love my influences while attempting to move forward – to be open and receptive to shifts in the musical terrain – to make music that is relevant to my present day experience.”
Yeah, man, yeah.
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1 comment:
what i like about jazz is the very thing that Ravi Coltrane describes in the quote in your post - the need to follow your own path. this takes courage in a world built on slavish conformity. to have the vision to walk a new way, and the courage to step out, and...and...and the talent to pull it off, this is artistry!
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