Wynton and Louis Armstrong’s Hot Fives reviewed by New York Times

September 30, 2006 - Louis Armstrong, New Orleans, New York Times, Review

The New York Times has just published a review about Wynton’s recent concert at JALC on Louis Armstrong’s Hot Fives. (free registration required)

9 Comments so far »

Jurzy Girl said

on September 30, 2006 @ 9:25 am

Well Nate is close to needing another punch in the nose. How did he miss all the brilliant performances I saw/heard?! His descriptions of the music were just as dry as they could be. Jonathan played this other instrument, a small piano-like thing that had the sound of bells…Wynton called it something the started with the letter “C.” Anyway, a reviewer should mention such oddities. And no word about the clarinet?! We just don’t hear clarinet played and we certainly do not hear it played as brilliantly or as beautifully as we did during this performance.

Nate must have fallen asleep, he must simply be overworked; or, he left early.

JG
sam chell said

on October 1, 2006 @ 2:23 am

The clarinet player was proficient and received 3 times the amount of space as Louis in the program bio. On the other hand, Louis’ frontline partner, the soulful Johnny Dodds, wasn’t mentioned at all. Marsalis’s clarinetist may have heard the letter of Dodds’ playing on the Okeh Sessions/later Columbia records, but he clearly missed the spirit. In fact, at no point did I hear the bright, passionate sound of Louis himself. The biggest disappointment: not hearing “West End Blues” performed, note for note a timeless wonder from the opening cadenza through its later development in the sublime choruses by Armstrong, Dodds and Hines. The concert was a winner for Marsalis, his musicians and arrangers thanks to Louis Armstrong, but Armstrong’s awesome accomplishment and thrilling evolution never came into focus.
careba said

on October 5, 2006 @ 7:49 am

The “C” instrument played by J.Batiste, could it be a clavichord????? if so, I wished I could have heard that!.

Clavichord hasn´t been very frequented in jazz. I have a beautiful recording (Pablo Records) of an O.Peterson (C) and J.Pass (G) version of Porgy and Bess. Beautiful indeed!!!. What a sound! that of the masters and of the clavichord as an instrument in itself.

By the way, if confirmed the clavichord thing…this wouldn´t have been the first time Wynton incorporates instruments primarely of Reinassance, Baroque or Classical music to Jazz. Wasn´t it early this year when he wrote a part for Oboe in a concert of JALCJO???.
Careba
gloria said

on October 5, 2006 @ 7:28 pm

C and J: Could it have been a celeste? Would sound more like bells, a beautiful little instrument. Just wondered.
Frederique said

on October 6, 2006 @ 12:37 am

yes it was a celeste
careba said

on October 6, 2006 @ 4:41 am

Hi G. and F.,
thanks for your info.
I´ve never heard the “celeste” sound. Does it sounds similar to the “espineta”?. Is it in the same family of instruments?.
Espineta, like clavichord, in the begining were used primarely for practicing, composing or playing at home or in small venues(Camera Music). For what I´ve found, earlier celeste´s use had a kind of the same purpose because of his soft sound.
But still I don´t know how does it sounds. They say like bells, how is its mechanism for sounding?. Had it ever been played in jazz before?
C.
sam chell said

on October 6, 2006 @ 5:10 pm

I suspect its use on the Armstrong-Hines recording of “Basin Street Blues” is one of the first recorded examples. It produced sounds much like the ever present Fender Rhodes keyboards of the ’70’s. It can be heard on pop recordings of the ’40’s and ’50’s but pretty much went out with rock and roll except in the context of kids’ shows (I wouldn’t be surprised if it could be heard on Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood).

SC
gloria said

on October 6, 2006 @ 5:33 pm

Hi C. The celeste or celesta is a small keyboard instrument which sounds like soft bells.
You can listen to an example under “keyboards” at bbc.co.uk/orchestras/guide/keyboards/ … Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Ballet, Dance of Sugar Plum Fairy. For a description of the celesta and its construction check out www.vsl.co.at/en-us/70/3196/3204/3207/5748.vsl (Vienna symphony website in English!).
careba said

on October 6, 2006 @ 8:07 pm

Funny how at times one can think that is carefully listening and comprehending everything about a composition but it isn´t really so.
In the repertoire for celesta entry in Vienna Orchestra web there is a list of compositions I´ve heard a lot of times but never till now recognized the celesta role/sound on them. I´m going to “relisten” them one by one specially searching the celesta sound.
Thanks for your lesson of day!.
C.