"Django" by The Modern Jazz Quartet, Written by John Lewis

Finally I get to talk about music, specifically Jazz!!!!!! First, a brief history:

Go to this address to listen to their version of Django: 

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

     This is a song called Django, a classic Jazz tune everyone should know. It was originally written by John Lewis after traveling to Louisiana and witnessing a funeral, which is exactly what the song represents--a Louisiana funeral.
     My personal favorite version is that which is performed by the Modern Jazz Quartet. Need I say more? The Modern Jazz Quartet is one of the most famous Jazz groups ever, as most other Jazz musicians flock to play with other musicians and never settle down in one group. This is what makes the Modern Jazz Quartet unique--they have played together since we've been alive, and hopefully always will be playing together.
     The group is all African-American, with Milt Jackson, the vibraphone player, otherwise known as a vibraharpist. He is considered to be legendary and is highly respected. I idolize him in my mind as one of the greatest improvisers of all time, to me. Whenever I improvise, I think of his solos, especially those in his performances of Django.
    Percy Heath is the bass player, whom I refer to as the "metronome". He is completely solid as far as tempo, and I always try to emulate his rhythm. My father actually photographed his son!
     Connie Kay is on drums, and his fills always leave me wanting more, especially between the cadences and transitions between chords and sections.
     Finally, John Lewis himself is the pianist and musical director, which are self-explanatory (Just go up a few paragraphs). He is legendary as well, mostly for his incredible compositions.What more is necessary?
     This song is an intercourse between a sad funeral march and a festive party in F Minor, as Louisiana funerals involve an exciting gala afterward, and then it eventually returns to the chorus--the funeral procession and leaves the reader in pensive remembrance.
     From an improviser's perspective, the song hold many opportunities to jam on Ab Major and F Minor Pentatonic scales as well as F Dorian and Ab Mixolydian modes to choose from. Of course, one can also always use chord tones to play the changes and cadences.
     The performance of the song is phenomenal. The visual effect of the vibraphone is fantastic to behold as well as its pervasive reverberation. The improvisation is, as always with the Modern Jazz Quartet, outstanding, especially (to me) that of Milt Jackson.
     With Jazz, one can never go wrong, as very little of it is written on paper. It is a special thing, as all jazz that is not recorded is lost, as a piece may sound different from day to day, by means of different people playing it, or, probably, because the improvisers have thought of something new to try out. I know these feelings and situations from experience. Playing jazz with friends, if anything, is truly exhilarating, which is exactly what the Modern Jazz Quartet does every time they perform a song.
A Presto,
Simon

Perfect Strangers...or are They?

     Jay and Nick, Nick and Jay...the two men in The Great Gatsby seemingly destined to become friends...or are they? These two "friends", or so it seems, have much in common with each other. Both can, at times, act in a rye, sarcastic way, and the reader comes to appreciate their humor. They are able to exist without much distracting banter, which says that they are relatively misunderstood people. Both of them seem to generally do more listening than active participation in conversation, otherwise known as talking.
     They seem to be very good friends from the moment they meet, which was under rather odd circumstances. They meet at one of Jay Gatsby's parties, and Nick doesn't even know who he is, though he is his host. However, they engage in bonding experiences shortly after, such as flying Gatsby's sea plane as well as going out to lunch. From then on, Gatsby sends Nick personal invitations to his parties. However, is it really friendship? Or Gatsby just using Nick?
     It is revealed that Jay was in love with an early character in the book, Daisy, cousin to Nick. It is then left up to the reader to determine whether or not Gatsby is using Nick solely in order to get to know Daisy. If one were to ask me, I believe Gatsby has a genuine interest in Nick, though he is more interested in Daisy. Because of this, Jay is willing to sacrifice his friendship with Nick in order to establish a romantic relationship with his cousin, and possibly rekindle their friendship at a later date. Basically, what I'm trying to say is that I believe Jay Gatsby has little regard for meaningful relationships with other human beings in the form of friendship.
     How about you? What do you think of Jay Gatsby's and Nick's relationship?

Energizing Others

Creation.
What a word,
the inexplicably fundamental noun of existence.

It is everything and nothing.
It has no form,
though everyone and everything existing proves it to be true.

There is nothing, then everything,
all at once,
stimulating each and every sense,
every microscopic nerve ending,
each cell,
down to the last atom.

It is truly incredible...

How incredible is it,
to be sucked into a vortex at maximum velocity,
after being born at the drop of a dime,
in the blink of an eye,
in a split second,
making slow, soft, gently violent gyrations,
thrusting, spinning, and flipping through the air
with the smooth, arching swoops of a falcon,
plummeting toward the Earth.

How incredible is it,
to lose oneself in a sea of swirling faces
of love ones you've never met.
Dancing and turning and revolving,
in a social gathering with everyone and no one.

How incredible is it,
to softly slow one's momentum,
and on a cushion of air,
land on a young child's soft, crimson, exposed tongue,
and to rest there in gratification,
gloriously satisfied,
           satiated,
                      and comfortably content with life itself.

How incredible is it to invoke fiery feelings of joy in someone you've never known to exist.