Jazz for aficionados

****Jazzmusician, you got into this conversation about a year late; go back about 12 months, and read all the posts in regard to this and you'll be up to date.****

And here I was, silly me, thinking that I would prove Rok wrong re his comment that he sensed anothern ruckus coming; I was simply going to ignore O-10's rehashing (for God knows how many times) of the practicing issue.  I can ignore O-10's ignorant opinions and comments on the subject, but I can't ignore the kind of negativity and dismissiveness that our OP thinks is acceptable in response to a poster's opinion presented in a respectful and informative way.  At some point our OP will have to understand just how arrogant and simply nasty he presents himself.  So far he doesn't seem to care; but, imo, he needs to be called out for it.  

That he is dead wrong about the subject is clear.  It is true that this subject goes back quite some time; however, he brought it up again a mere few hours ago and anyone (including me, had I chosen to not ignore him) would have been free to respond to the recent comment without needing to "go back 12 months".  Or, is the OP suggesting that expressed opinions (his) are not subject to a reaction and response? 

****The ability to improvise comes from inside your head, the ability to act on what’s in your head comes from practice. Every serious musician I have ever known practices all the time.****

jzzmusician is exactly right and I could not have said it better and in a more concise way.  Anyone interested in the truth about the subject needs go no further.  Well done. 

O10,

Got it.  Will do.  Sorry if I offended you.

As an aside, my wife who spent many years as a modern ballet dancer once told me something like this, "You spend hours and hours taking master classes so that when you get on stage you can forget it all and just dance."

I believe it's the same with musicians.  And athletes.  And actors. And...and...and.

-- Bob

Am I a Clairvoyant, or what??

But this is an unfair 'ruckus'.  On one side of the argument we have all the real musicians that contribute to this thread, and folks like Coltrane, Miles, Ellington, Mingus (esp Mingus), and every other Jazz musician in history.   Also every other non-Jazz musician.  They all practiced and rehearsed.   And how could anyone ever write a Jazz tune without practicing it.

On the other side, we have just O-10 and 'His Friend', who never practiced.  Now this could well be true.  I believe him.  But, It is not significant unless we know who this friend is, so we can listen to his recordings.  Hear him play.  If he didn't make any recordings,  hmmmm,  then not practicing becomes even more believable..  

Now if this Friend turns out to be Coltrane, or Miles or Green, then his claim becomes significant.  Otherwise, as I said before, I didn't practice either, and I sounded like it.   And no one has ever paid me one dollar to play.

So if you won't ID this friend, why keep bringing it up and talking about it?

Cheers

Hi O-10:  RE Your post of 5/7 2:08pm about Coltrane not needing to practice.  Here we go again.  

You have repeatedly had two professional musicians on this thread tell you how incorrect your "theory" is.  I seem to remember a couple of other folks who have played an instrument a little contradicting you as well.  Now jzzmusician makes another.  

Once again - even if one has the greatest talent anyone has ever had, this does NOT mean that one does not have to practice.  Your comparison to making chili is absurd.  ANYONE can learn to make chili, and could make it again at any time thereafter.  It does not require any truly difficult cooking skills (trust me - my wife is related to one of the most famous ever chili cooks in the state that is most famous for it, and I know exactly how to make that award winning but very secret recipe).   A much better comparison would be to an athlete such as Kobe Bryant or Michael Jordan, who in addition to being one of the most talented basketball players ever were also some of the very hardest working ever.  Or lets stay in the arts, if you prefer, with Pablo Picasso - unquestionably the most talented painter ever born, yet also a workaholic.  

The idea that practice could take away improvisational inspiration is by far the most laughable comment you make - it reminds me of how proud you are of your lack of knowledge and how understanding you think that makes you.  

A playing level, or an improvisational level that high MUST be maintained/developed on a daily basis.  This doesn't mean there can't be some periods of time off occasionally.  One of my teachers took an entire month off the horn every summer, and I have done that a couple of times myself.  But it takes a couple of weeks to get back to where you were if you do that, so you actually have to have at least six weeks off if you are going to even contemplate it.  So, if your friend truly wasn't practicing that entire summer (which no one else reading this seriously believes), and only performing every few days, then his playing level would have gone down considerably and very noticeably (shockingly so to his colleagues) over the course of the summer.  But I guess you couldn't tell that, and I bet you won't even mind admitting it.  You really don't seem to comprehend what the problem with that is, which is -  if you can't even hear something THAT obvious,  then you have zero credibility on anything else you have to say about the music or the performance or the performer, and no one who knows anything about it is going to take you seriously on those subjects, or really anything else that requires the sense of hearing.  Which is a real shame, as this thread is otherwise a great source of information unlike any other out there that I know of in these or any other audiophile forums, and you are to be commended as the original beginner of it.