It’s the voice of my people!
For me, jazz is all the truth to be found,
Never mind who’s puttin’ it down,
Jazz ain’t nothin’ but soul!
SO WE’RE now on Day 2 or the day after the Panay island-wide (including neighboring island of Guimaras) community quarantine against the COVID-19 pandemic now affecting the country and the rest of the world.
Some are saying the “community quarantine” is just a euphemism for “lockdown”. Of course, discerning folks know better. There’s a whole lot of difference between the two. But we’ll just let them show their stupidity.
I’d rather not talk about the COVID-19 thingy as I do not claim nor pretend I’m an expert on these things. I’m just a writer, a columnist, not a medical doctor or an epidemiologist, and I have absolutely no medical training whatsoever.
I prefer to let the experts do their job and trust the government to do theirs as well. After all, that’s what they’re supposed to do. As a citizen I just follow the guidelines and pronouncements of these proper authorities.
After all, it is assumed that the government abides with the presumption of regularity, not on conspiracy theories.
Having said that, let’s segue to something more pleasant and closer to my heart and other senses…music, particularly the one that leaves the Frappuccino-infused trendy social-climbing so-called millennials staring in utter confusion, and which usually happens when they are exposed to something totally beyond their limited comprehension.
We’ve already talked about the music and artistry of Tal Wilkenfeld and Jaco Pastorius and as I mentioned in my last column, Esperanza Spalding.
From that free online encyclopedia a.k.a. the internet:
Esperanza Emily Spalding is an American jazz bassist, singer, songwriter, and composer. Her accolades include four Grammy Awards, a Boston Music Award, and a Soul Train Music Award.
Spalding began playing music professionally in her childhood, performing as a violinist in the Chamber Music Society of Oregon at age five. She was later both self-taught and trained on a number of instruments, including guitar and bass. Her proficiency earned her academic scholarships to Portland State University and the Berklee College of Music, both of which she attended, studying music.
Spalding released her first album, Junjo, in 2006 on the Spanish label Avya Musica, after which she signed with the independent American label Heads Up, who released her 2007 self-titled album. Her third studio album, Chamber Music Society (2010), was a commercial success, charting at No. 34 on the Billboard 200, and resulting in Spalding winning her first Grammy Award for Best New Artist; Spalding was the first jazz artist to win in this category.
She saw further acclaim for her fourth release, Radio Music Society (2012), which earned the Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Album, as well as the track “City of Roses” winning for Best Arrangement, Instrument and Vocals.
Her subsequent sixth studio record, 12 Little Spells, was released in 2019, and peaked at No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Jazz Albums. The album also saw Spalding nominated for two Grammy Awards, winning in the Best Jazz Vocal Album category.
In addition to writing and performing music, Spalding has also worked as an instructor, first at the Berklee College of Music, beginning at age 20. In 2017, Spalding was appointed professor of the Practice of Music at Harvard University.
Impressive to say the least not only is her musical talent a natural gift but she is technically trained as well in the best music schools.
In an interview; Gary Burton, Executive Vice President at Berklee, said in 2004 that Spalding had “a great time feel, she can confidently read the most complicated compositions, and she communicates her upbeat personality in everything she plays.”
American journalist, music critic and author Ben Ratliff wrote in The New York Times in 2006 that Spalding’s voice is “light and high, and [that] she can sing quietly, almost in a daydream” and that Spalding “invents her own feminine space, a different sound from top to bottom.”
And I totally agree with these comments, watching and listening to Esperanza Spalding perform live is a treat a beautiful woman a virtuoso on the electric and upright bass and she sings as well in a voice that’s a fusion of Diana Ross, Roberta Flack and Elis Regina.
When asked in 2008 why she plays the bass instead of some other instrument, Spalding said that it was not a choice, but the bass “had its own arc” and resonated with her. Spalding has said that, for her, discovering the bass was like “waking up one day and realizing you’re in love with a co-worker.” Her band teacher showed her a blues line for the bass that she later used to secure her first gig. After that, she went in to play the bass daily and gradually fell in love.
And I leave you with these lines:
It’s tempting to think of Spalding as a prodigy. Drummer, composer and producer Terri Lyne Carrington, who first met Spalding during those early Berklee years, prefers a different term: “I call her a genius every chance I get.” (brotherlouie16@gmail.com/PN)
