what is it with jazz musicians and paris?

If you ever look at a lot of jazz music titles, one might begin to notice that a lot of the songs have the word "paris" in it. It appears that Paris may be the paradise for artistic creativity. And for many african american jazz artisits, or any black artist Paris was paradise. The people in this romantic city did not see these extraordinary performers for their color, like in america, but for their art, and what they brought to the table. I once read in an article that a white man from america said that the people in France "treated, or spoiled" black americans, and thats not even the case. Black people who artistically superior will express their talent where it will be appreciated, rahter than ridiculed. Even for non african american jazz musicians of the 30s, 40s, and 50s were inspired by the romantic scenery of Paris. I been to paris, when I was 4, and all I remember is how much my parents loved every bit of it, and I know its because of the music, and hopefully when I become financially stable, i will too enjoy Paris.

i am guessing where it went off to...

Whenever i hear this song by ella fitzgerald, I think of my grandpa and how he plays all these old jazz albums when I was small child. This song really brings me back to a time of peace and innocence that i can never go back to. In the begginig of this school semester a young man in my class mentioned, where did our innocence go? It was a rhetroical question, however I feel as though our innocence left with the music that our generation in take. Almost everything that our generation listens to is about sex, drugs and money. Music is not about music anymore, its not about REAL life, or the love we have for one another. Lullaby a birdland, and other music of this genre brings me to that place where my innocences is still in existance, and to a place where negativity is not praised.

the feeling of jazz

Just because I am classically trained does not mean that I do not have the appreciation of jazz music. I really feel as though jazz is the african american classical music, but in itself its richer. I can relate to jazz more on an emotional level rather than a technical. Meaning jazz music has a uncontrolled more relaxed, and freesrtyle rythem, like me, I never know what I am going to do on any day except going to class, but anything else, my life is not built on a specific stucture like most classical music. And I think thats why most african americans can relate to the musical structure of jazz, its free, you can do almost anything, there are no limits, abd it makes you feel...more than think. So i am going to switch it up a little bit, and center some of my focus on jazz...the feeling of jazz

This cello concerto is one of the most played cello concerto written byt Antonin Dvorak, and it his last solo concerto. One of his colleges begged him to compose a cello concerto because he loved the medium tone of the instrument, it was not to high too bassic. And he wrote this piece in New York in the late 1800s.

a composition by paganini

niccolo paginini

niccolo paganini was like a rockstar of the 19th century romance period of classical composition. He created many of the hardest compostions of music for the violin, and other string instruments. But the main reason why I am mentioning this artist because he was far from the traditional classical music player. He was known to be a womanizer and a gambler, even though he made a lot of money from concerts and the peices that he wrote, he was down on his luck and gambled away his violin. My violin instructor told me when I was 14 years old, that paganini also composed one of his songs in jail, and he was also known for a lot music tricks with his hands.

Nokothula Ngwenyama

it explains itself

listening in

So today I was listening to one of my good friends quartet rehearsal at Towson University. The members of the string quartet are Asia Douglas on cello, Joseph Lauver on viola, Katie Gray 2nd violin and Yuting Wu playing 1st violin, rehearsing Quartet No.6 Op. 6 Composed by Anton Dvorak. Listening to a group of colleges rehearsing rather than performing brings me to a different place. A familiar place though. Watching students trying to be an intuitive player rather just playing the notes, and listening to each others parts, and relating the viola's part with the 2nd violin's. And monitoring a rehearsal, you are bassically listening out for mistakes, and the minor and major details while they are playing. When i am just listening in, i feel more of a critic rather than an audience. But soon, i will be able to record them playing, and post it.

passion is a must

Antonio Vivaldi is one of the greatest venetian boroque composers, and personally my favorite. He was a well gifted violinist who was beleived to have asthma, so he was not an active child, but he continued to play the violin. When he became an ordain preist he was sent to an orphanage that was owned by the church, and he was titled maestro de violino or the master of the violin, and taught the girls at the orphanage. Most of his peices that he put together were for the young women at the orphanage.

The main reason why I fell in love with Vivaldi besides from his artisitic nature of composing music is because of his life story. How he basically gave his life to help the less fortunate through music. And when ever I pick up my instrument I always wanted to know what is the good of me playing this. How can I help others with this craft, and when I was a small child I did not know. Most musicians I know, who are classically trained musicians rather become teachers then work for music companies or play in big orchestras. I use to think that these music teachers that work at these piblic schools were just the failures, and could not audition in to the right progtrams, but it is not like that. When a person becomes a music teacher, they are bassically sharing their life and skills to a person who does not have these fine skills and techniques, they are bassically teaching their passion. And when I looked up Vivaldi's bio in highschool, I started to feel the same passion of sharing my art through the form of teaching. I began to give private lessons to my little cousins and neighbors... and soon I started teaching children who were less fortunate and gave them free lessons. And they were like a couple of sessions each before concerts and recitals and I was able to give my advice to these young people.

the convention

I was 11 years old when i fist heard this violin concerto at a orchestral convention that my performing arts middle school took me and my class mates. This peice is beautifully composed by saint saens, and it makes me think about how much I missed going to classical concerts as a child, and I wish I had the means to continue to listen to professional musicians more than what I do now.

what do you say... i learn somin' new

over the weekend i was at my granparents house and i was talkin about this blogger project with them, and told them how i was going to write about classical music and ballet and what not... so my family are originally from haiti...(cant speak french nor creole... i am in total ingorance of my heritage...) and my grandfather always emphasizes the thought that i dont know anything about my culture, and then he told me about a crazy story that haitians compose classical music, and i really dont know if he was telling the truth because he always tells us something crazy about what haitians did, and me being ignorant i was jus laughing at this old man, and was like ok grandpa...
then i deciced to go home and actually google black afrcian american violinists, and the first thing that came up was a creole native violinist who family originated from the french west indies...haiti to my beleif and he was a known prodigy and composer, his name was Edmond Dede. He actually learned his skill from a free black man, Constanin Debergue who conducted free creoles in the south. He began studying music with an italiam native Gabici, but it angered a lot of whites in the south that a black man was participating in the classical arts...so many haters...
Dede was a typicial starving artist, working low income jobs just to keep his funds steady to participate in the art of violin such as making cigars, and playing an instrument is not a cheap thing to participate...from personal experience. During his cigar making time he composed a melody called "mon pauvre couer" (nope cant pernounce it...still very sad), and this is the oldest known sheet music composed from a black person. he later went to france and married a french woman and son, who also became a composer like his father.

taking your training to another level

when i fist saw charlli east on you tube i was like amazed how a young black artist, one of my friends who does a lot of spoken word poetry told me about her, and I had to look her up myself. I love her work, and she is like a big inspiration in my life, and it makes me want to pick up my violin again, and restart my music career. and i you tubed black violin, and they remade a bradenburg concerto, i believe its the first movement, and I am currently not sure what key its in, but i posted it up because it was a dreaded composition that i played in highschool because I lost my principle chair to a sophomore within my section. I was a little disapointed, but I got my chair back before the concert, but the remake of this concerto makes me laugh because I whish I could have payed around with a lot music, and made it fun in highschool.

this composition was one of my favorite pieces in highschool. when i first played it, i was a freshman, and it was the biggest struggle because I was not use to playing music in minor keys, and it seemed like it consisted of a million of accidentals, so getting my fingers use to playing at fast speeds was ridiculous, and I think it was level 5, when i was use to playing level 2 and 3 from middle school. but i really love this song, the main reasons was because I was struggling like shyt trying to get the intonation and rythym at the same time.  this piece also brought me closer to three beautiful ladies that i love and cherish to this day who are amazing musicians as well. and we use to struggle in various quartets within our highschool career