I have appreciated the composer Bach for some time, and was startled to learn this week that he was ignored and abused during his own lifetime. The music that he wrote covers a broad range of types and styles, though it was mainly written to be performed in church. It is majestic and mathematical at the same time. Johann Sebastian Bach died poor, and his wife died in a home for destitute women.. On her death bed she was quoted as asking God not for anything for herself, but that her husbands music should live on.
At age 11 Mendelson , took a liking to Bach’s work. It was not till Mendelson's love for Bach's work that it became popular. Unfortunately Mendelson was abused physically and mentally for his appreciation of what was considered musical exercise. Mendelson, a Jew, left the school he attended, was baptized as a Lutheran and began to study the work of Bach. When Mendelson began performing the music of his mentor, Bach was accepted as the genius that he was.
Which other people can you think of that were neglected in their own lifetime, but have been recognized since as having something great to offer to the world of music?
haven't heard the jadis or quad, but i love my cary mono amps. the music just pours out of them like liquid joy. if the used jadis is the same price as the new cary, then i would tend to figure that the jadis cost more than the cary. not that more expensive pieces of gear or necessarily better sounding, but that is the case sometimes. good luck with your decision. i'm sure you can't go wrong either way.
Though he was able to obtain some notoriety and fame, Robert Johnson's impact on the world of music after his death was far greater than the notoriety he garnished while he was alive may have reflected.
Frank Zappa was considered by many to be a clown and childish, mostly due to some of his tongue-in-cheek lyrics. If you appreciate (and more importantly understand) music, you would be hard-pressed to name a more accomplished musician this century. To the enlightened he was a genius, time will tell whether FZ is given the respect he so richly deserves.
My (often dim) recollection of stuff i heard in school does'nt put Bach in the starving artist category. The biographical account at- http://www.baroquemusic.org/bqxjsbach.html doesn't either. He was the Capellmeister of Weimar then Cothen and moved to take the same title at Leipzig (largely so his sons could attend a good university). "His arrival was clearly a major event in the musical and social world". The inagural ceremony was on May 31, 1723. At 36 he married a 20 year old, Anna Magdelena (one of the best sopranos in the country). "There is no doubt whatsoever that he was widely respected as a composer, musician, teacher and specialist in organ construction. This respect was to grow steadily as Bach's reputation widened and he gained the official title of Court Composer to the Dresden Court". His son Carl Phillip Emanuel wrote, "No musician of any consequence passing through Leipzig would fail to call upon my father", "where Bach had a large private music room in which he kept six claviers and several other instruments". He lived to be 65 when the average life expectancy was somewhere under 40. This guy was a BIG player on the German music scene during his lifetime. I'm not saying he wasn't misunderstood or mistreated (everyone is at sometime), but his compositions got played. There are scores of great musicians and composers (living and dead) who have had to get by w/ alot less recognition, eg. (a tiny sample):
Stuart Liebig Michael Vlatkovich Michel Wintsch Fred Frith Edgard Varese Don Van Vliet Maarten Altena Don Cherry Kevin Norton Andrew Hill Louis Sclavis Jean Derome Ben Goldberg Bill Noertker Ken Vandermark (gets props, but not enough) Franz Koglmann Lucas Niggli Devin Hoff Charles Mingus Thomas Chapin Wayne Horvitz
From a view based strictly on recorded performances, Mahler, and to a lesser degree Sibelius, come to mind, especially Mahler, who's music sort of languished until Bernstein started promoting it in the early 60's.
My recollection of Bach's biography agrees with Duanegoosen's, but I was not sure enough to cite it. The story of Bach is that while he, and his children were well regarded in their times, there was a gulf of several centuries during which he was forgotten.
On an ironic note, I don't think we middle aged folks appreciate the accomplishments of Lennon and McCartney, and Brian Wilson. Yes, they gained fame and money, but do we really appreciate their musical genius, or are they just some guys we grew up listening to. I think people will be listening to them for hundreds of years.
Papertrail, like i said earlier, i'm a little dim. Was that Tiny Tim/Minnie Pearl comment aimed at musicians and composers that you have listened to extensively and know to be artistically insignificant? Or was it a harpoon job for submitting a post that offended you?
Sorry! It's Mozart again. The public in Prague loved him. As a child prodigy he played on the lap of Marie-Antoinette (and look what happened to her.) But as an adult he was blacklisted in Europe, except for Prague.
The tragic 1979 death of 31-year-old Minnie Riperton silenced one of soul music's most unique and unforgettable voices -- blessed with an angelic five-octave vocal range, she scored her greatest commercial success with the chart-topping pop ballad "Lovin' You." - written by Stevie wonder as a gift. Riperton was born in Chicago on November 8, 1947; as a youth she studied music, drama and dance at the city's Lincoln Center, and later contemplated a career in opera. Her pop career began in 1961 when she joined the local girl group called the Gems, signing to the famed Chess label to release a handful of singles as well as lending backing vocals to acts including Fontella Bass, the Dells and Etta James.
Harpoon Job? Get up on the wrong side of the bed? I loved your post. I am a fan of several on your list, but must admit that I am not familiar with most of them. Believe me, I will do some research on your list and will definitely indulge myself if I find something I like. My allusion to Tiny Tim and Minnie Pearl was just a weak attempt to be amusing. Minnie Pearl wasn't a great musician, but she was a great human being. Tiny Tim used to hang out with Bob Dylan, and Dylan said that if he had taken himself more seriously Tim could have been more. All apologies for any offense.
Hey i told you i was dim... no offense taken. I think you may be right about the tendancy to take some of the big pop culture artists for granted. Listening to Oranj Symphonette do Henry Mancini or Jewels and Binoculars do Bob Dylan kind of helped drive home how strong both were as composers. Same goes for Gil Evans covering Hendrix.
This man is still alive but worth to mention. Paul Mauriat, in my opinion the best instrumental conductor in the history of music. Not very much appreciated in europe, more appreciated in east asia like japan and china...
The documentary "In the Shadows of Motown" really hit home for me. Here was a group of very talented men,"The Funk Brothers", many accomplished jazz musicians in their own right, and they got almost no credit or money for what they did. Don't quote me, but I think the doc. said that their music sold more records than Elvis, The Beatles, and Michael Jackson combined.
Kate wolf, Bessie Smith come to mind. Two great talents that come to mind that were never fully recognized in their lifetimes. Undoubtibly Kate Wolf would not have wanted celebrity as much as recognition for work well done.
Jack Elliot...well still alive...but developed the style and fusion of Woody Guthrie and southern blues/gospel into the real folk-rock which he has relentlesslty brought to the back roads, bayous, bars, road houses and barns... where the roots and true soul of American music lives.
Dylan, a late commer at Woody's temple, ripped this sound from Mr Elliot.
Ramblin Jack produced one or two albums and is unknown commercially.
And another, as others have pointed out the beautiful Songbird...Eva
Kings X Perhaps the most underappreciated rock band of all time. They did make VH1's top-100 rock bands of all time (#83), but no one seems to know them. They were mis-labeled early on as a Christian band, in the day when that was a commerical death sentence. Maybe one day they'll get the credit they deserve.
Hi Silab, I really like Herbie Nichols and i'm a big Tapscott fan. Haven't got into Newborn yet. A check on his discography has him on at least 40 records, where would you recommend starting?
I have several LPs but there are two that get the most play; "A World of Piano", and The Great Jazz Piano of Phineas Newborn". I'm reasonably certain that both are currently available on CD. This may sound heretical, but not even Tatum blows me away as much as this guy. It is inconceivable to me that this guy is not universally regarded as one of the all-time greats.
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