"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