There is no genre freer and more fluid than the jazzso rooted in the piano ragtime with some tints of folk music North American that invaded the streets with the traveling bands. The tour of the blues and the spirituals gave birth to what we recognize as jazz.
The jazz it evolved as much as African-American communities did and the streets were the ideal setting to embellish the melody —what later became known as improvisation when the saxophone and the banjo of four strings entered the bands—until in 1923 it managed to consolidate itself as a popular and consumer genre.
This was the escape of the slaves who emancipated the senses through music, today it is a genre that inspires us to inhabit the world in unexpected ways and that remains one of the most spontaneous trenches of cultural resistance in music.
Its variations are infinite and having a favorite is like closing yourself off from improvising on the paths of life and losing the enjoyment of one of those instruments. That is why bandcamp gives us the files top 10 songs from jazz that defined the month of September.
“They will watch us go by” (Album: The Crystal Guachos by William Klein)
Crystal Guachos
The ideal balance between blues and the folk ancient with a simple modern improvisation. The members of the band highlight the sublime rhythm and embellishments of modern melodies with a touch of old composition that goes towards the creation of a sound that ends up being familiar.
“Towers” ​​(Album: Ordon Ritual Orchestra of Svetlost)
Svetlost
A mix between the avant-garde spectrum of the 70s meets an intense rhythmic sound with constant cymbals and tapping. The saxophonists merge into long notes with abrasive percussion.
“Real/unreal” (Album: The Ambiguity Manifesto by Taylor Ho Bynum 9-tete)
Taylor Ho Bynum
This author is an expert in shaping the improvised with sudden scales of chaos that end in excellent cohesion. He tilts the melodies into an abyss where he accidentally strikes a perfect and mysterious harmony.
“Raindrops in Uncommon Times” (Album: Still Point: Turning World by Joel Harrison)
Joel Harrison
The strength of jazz modern comes from Harrison and Shobhakar who feed their collaborations with a strong influence of Indian classical music together with some folk Y blues at an intense pace that escalates every second.
“Stratford East” (Album: it’s morning by Led Bib)
led bib
This album is like a high voltage current. The jazz rock is expressed through the electricity and energy of Sharron Fortnam’s vocals, plus guidance from the electroacoustic Dinosaur quartet. This is the British jazz star.
“Kalmar Union” (Album: The Big YES! from The Big Yes!)
The Big Yes
As a result of experimentation during a musical tour, the quartet made up of saxophone, trombone, bass and drums dazzle the scene of the jazz with melodies that live the madness of the street. Yet within the aimless flow of the melody, the quartet’s timing comes together to create the album’s sense.
“Life” (Album: Oneness by Matthew Halsall)
Matthew Hallsall
This is the best —modern— version of the jazz spiritual and modal that pays homage to the great Miles Davis in nightclubs. These melodies sink into extraordinary tones with the deep notes of the saxophone.
“Song of Hope” (Album: Song(s) of Hope from Joao Lencastre’s Communion)
Joao L.
The sound of the drums is part of the New Movement that Joao has been developing for a few years. He perfectly aligns his drums with guest instruments like the piano. A delight for those who enjoy the birth of subtle rhythms.
“East in North” (Album: Ripples of Husmo HAV)
smoke
A perfect album to accompany walks through the city and rides in transport. It begins with a constant rhythm like that of clocks that gradually awakens with the intervention of the trumpeter, to later give way to the keyboard and so on until a link point.
“Deo Volente” (Album: Mokum In Hi-Fi by Ben van Gelder & Reinier Baas)
Mokum
Violent and mysterious beginnings that unleash the fascination of jazz towards a stage that prepares us for a spectacular climax. Wave rhythms that seem to flow like falling water, musical spectrums in which the saxophone and the guitar they come together and move us from one place to another without stopping.
Keep reading: Improvise and don’t be afraid to be wrong: lessons from the jazz to experience life in all its magnitude
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