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Share thoughts on Keith Jarrett

Last night, I saw Keith Jarrett performing solo at the Symphony Center. Tremendously emotional concert with four encores. Now, this is why I'm posting: The person who I was supposed to attend the concert with, informed me, on Tuesday night, that she couldn't go. "No problem", I thought: "Who wouldn't jump at the chance to see Keith Jarrett live", a performer who I consider to be right up there with the likes of Davis, Monk, and Coltrane, all jazz elite and all household names. It took me two full days to find someone who even heard of this guy. I'll continue to hold him in place of high esteem regardless of the comments I get here, but I'm curious: Am I incorrect to place him so highly, or are their others who find his relative anonymity amazing?
phaelon

Showing 3 responses by edorr

edorr
714 posts
 
To me, The Koln Concert to this day is ONE, if not THE most hypnotizingly beautiful pieces of recorded music I own. Inspired by the Koln Concert I started a long journey discovery his music and between the 25+ Jarrett CDs I own I find myself coming back to his European Quartet recordings ("My Song", "Belonging" and in particular "Personal Mountains") and his improvised / orginal recordings with the trio ("changeless", "changes"). The "standards" recordings with the trio never stood out to me as overly original or innovative, and none of the other solo concerts touched me as the Koln concert. I recently downloaded "Paris/London testament in 96/24" and there is some real good stuff there. However, nothing will ever hit me as first hearing the Koln Concert on my crappy record player as a melancholic 20 year old.
edorr
714 posts
 
Let me offer a different perspective. Over 10 years ago I was reading the CD liner notes of a recording of one my favorite musical discoveries of the last decade (Anouar Brahem). Brahem mentions his discovery of Keith Jarrett and hearing a distinct "Andalusian" quality in his modal improvisational music. Note that Anouar Brahem is a Tunesian Oud player, with arabic musical roots.

This struck a cord with me - the similaries between Jarrett and Brahem to me is this melancholic quality (call is "andalusian" if you like), expressed not some much by the notes themselves but by the space between the notes, always leaving you yearning for the climax, that never quite arrives, but keeps you on edge (musical Tantra?). To me the Koln Concert is the epitomy of this emotion, but the last 7 minutes of the title track on "personal mountains" is also a prime example.

Interestingly, I recently discovered an obscure Japanese piano player (Masabumi Kikuchi), that conveys much the same emotion. Try his "Tethered Moon: First Meeting". Brilliant stuff.
edorr
714 posts
 
Masabumi's "After Hours" album is a bit less expirimental than "First Meeting", and devoid of moaning (there is some on "First Meeting"). On second thought I would get After Hours first.

http://www.cduniverse.com/search/xx/music/pid/2438445/a/After+Hours.htm

My three favorite Brahem albums are "Barzakh", "Conte de l'incroyable amour" and "The Astounding eyes of Ria". The latter has been discussed extensively in an ECM thread on the music forum, probably because it was stereophile recording of the month.
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