Davis Dam

Miles Davis - Kind of Blue One of the greatest albums in jazz - Miles Davis’s Kind of Blue has received innumerable commendations ever since its release in 1959 and has been admired by jazz fans far and wide. Miles Davis and his sterling band that consisted of top performers at that time together brought this masterpiece to the world. This album features Miles Davis on trumpet, Julian "Cannonball" Adderley on alto saxophone, John Coltrane on tenor saxophone, Wynton Kelly and Bill Evans on piano,…

Ornette Coleman (or in full- Randolph Denard Ornette Coleman) was born in Texas on the 9th of March 1930 and died last year (2015) on the 11th of June, in New York. He was a saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. He released loads of albums over the span of his career and is known to be one of the most important initiators of free jazz. When Ornette Coleman was a child he played alto, then moved onto tenor saxophone in his teenage years. His early style of jazz was influenced not only by…

Born Cabell Calloway III, on December 15, 1907, in Rochester, NY, Cab Calloway was a multitalented individual. Not only was he a big band leader during the swing era of jazz, but he was also an actor, author, drummer, and singer. With humble beginnings in a large family, Calloway was exposed to music at an early age. His parents expected him to follow his father’s footsteps into the world of law, but after some time at Chicago’s Crane College, Calloway realized his true passions were in the…

If I were asked to determine what Broadway show best represents my life, I would reply simply, Rent. Loosely adapted, my role would be to portray main character Roger Davis . I say this because Rodger and I are similar in the way that we both have a hard time coming up with new and original content. While Rogers issue revolves around his music, my issue is with essays. Ironically, we both know new material is necessary for our occupations, but due to certain circumstances we are both unable to…

Scott DeVeaux is a professor and an author who specialized in jazz and American music. He is currently teaching at the University of Virginia. His book The Birth of Bebop: A Social and Musical History that was published in 1997 had won the American Book Award, an ASCAP–Deems Taylor Award, the Otto Kinkeldey Award from the American Musicological Society, and the ARSC Award for Excellence in Historical Sound Research. His other published books and articles include Jazz, which was co-author with…

If you are a jazz guitar artist, or just enjoy jazz and play to some degree, you can create your own business teaching jazz guitar! There are many things you can do, from teaching guitar lessons to creating a guitar video, to writing jazz lyrics, to creating a book or CD or DVD teaching other people how to play jazz (or as some people refer to it, modern jazz). Let's say you already play or sing in a jazz guitar band or group of some kind. Start by handing out a few business cards at your…

Miles Dewey Davis III was born on May 26, 1926 in Alton Illinois. Miles Davis was the son of a music teacher and a dental surgeon. He grew up in a middle-class household. At the age of 13 his dad introduced the trumpet to him. Elwood Buchanan wanted to help develop Davis’s style, he was a friend of Davis’s father. Davis played professionally during high school. Dizzy Gillespie and Charles Parker liked Davis’s work and invited him onstage to perform when a band member was is and wasn’t able to…

Duke Ellington’s Past: Duke Ellington was born on April 29, 1899 into a middle-class family that lived in Washington D.C. Growing up Duke was a very talented boy. He began learning the piano at the age of 7 age and he was also interested in art. Because of his gentlemanly ways he was nicknamed “Duke”. When he was 15 he wrote his first composition which was called “Soda Fountain Rag”. At the age of 17 Duke was awarded an art scholarship to the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn in New York but he denied…

Jessika Grindstaff October 3, 2014 History of Jazz The Evolution of Free Jazz Free Jazz is a form of jazz that involves collective improvisation without a set chord or rhythm structure. This type of jazz was born during the social, political and civil movements’ era, the sixties. There are many reasons that free jazz was formed, the main one being the limitations in other forms such as bebop, big band and swing. Free jazz was influenced by the works of Cecil Taylor, Ornette Coleman and John…

trio Power Tools with bassist Melvin Gibbs and drummer Ronald Shannon Jackson. In 2001, Pete started a group called Children of Agharta to explore the electric Miles Davis repertoire (WHE, 2001). In 2007-08, Cosey contributed to the CD Miles from India, which celebrates the music of Miles Davis. As history shows, the music of Miles Davis was always part of Pete's life, evidenced in his recordings and professional career; he always went back to the interpretation and exploration of Miles's music.…