Journal 10 – Reflections on Avant-garde Jazz
Listen to three avant-garde pianists: Cecil Taylor, Keith Jarrett, and Sun Ra. Pick your favorite artist and discuss your listening experience.
The University of Alaska Fairbanks is an AA/EO employer and educational institution and prohibits illegal discrimination against any individual: Learn more about UA's notice of nondiscrimination.
© Copyright 2019 Enjoying Jazz
Proudly powered by WordPress | Theme: Gridster by ThemeFurnace.
© Copyright 2019 Enjoying Jazz
Proudly powered by WordPress | Theme: Gridster by ThemeFurnace.
I think Geri Allen is my favorite of the three. She has pieces where her playing is fast and stimulating and others where her playing is more thought out and slower. Compared to the other musicians, I think she has the most rhythm of the three. I think she really shines when she is in a small ensemble. She meshes her playing with other musicians very well.
Corrected response. I listened to all three of them; I guess my favorite is Keith Jarrett, but I didn’t like this style of music. The playing doesn’t seem like there’s any thought or reason to it. It’s very sporadic, and sometimes, because it’s so crazy and fast, it sounds like they’re hitting wrong notes even if it’s within the key. Based on the YouTube comments, it seems like there are people who enjoy this type of music, good for them, this just isn’t for me. I thought Geri Allen was part of this style; I did enjoy her music, but I guess she plays a different style.
I liked Keith Jarrett’s style out of the three. His playstyle can be random at times, but is recognizable and eventually works into a noticeable groove. I like the melody for Keith Jarret’s song the most.
After listening to Geri Allen, Keith Jarrett, and Sun Ra, I found Geri Allen’s music the most enjoyable. Her piano playing combines traditional jazz with modern styles, creating music that’s both interesting and easy to listen to. Allen was part of the M-Base collective, a group of musicians who aimed to innovate jazz by blending different genres and improvisation. Her ability to mix classic jazz elements with new ideas makes her music stand out.
I would say that Keith Jarrett’s solo was my favorite of the three pieces. I thought his piece was the most enjoyable because it was the easiest to follow. Geri Allen’s was even more all over the place. At first, I thought I would have enjoyed Sun Ra’s the most because it started off in a more mellow manner but then it gradually became harder to listen to. I don’t think the audio quality helped either.
I think my favorite pianist from this week’s avant-garde playlist is Sun Ra, though overall, I found this playlist to be my least favorite so far. Much of the music felt chaotic and disjointed, and I struggled to connect with it emotionally or rhythmically. The improvisations from all three artists—Sun Ra, Cecil Taylor, and Keith Jarrett—often felt unpredictable and at times even jarring, as if sounds were being thrown in at random. It was hard to find a sense of structure or melody, which made it difficult for me to stay engaged as a listener. That said, I found Sun Ra’s piece to be the most approachable. It had a softer, more mellow texture compared to the others, with a spacey, almost dreamlike atmosphere. While still experimental, his music felt a bit more cohesive and easier to sit with. Out of the three, Sun Ra’s sound offered the most calming experience, even within the free-form style of avant-garde jazz.
Well, I can safely say that avant-garde jazz is not my cup of tea: stylistically it lends itself to spastic, dissonant, chaotic riffs and an overall jarring style, but I have to admire how technically difficult it is to play that way. Look at the videos with Cecil Taylor and Keith Jarrett: if you watch their hands, they are moving incredibly fast, there is incredible precision and skill in how they are playing.
My favorite of the three was Cecil Taylor’s piece: while it was a little difficult listening through the high-dissonance sections, I thought it was really interesting that he had this specific set of runs that he played around, it sounded like it was around C#6 and D6, it had this moody feel with these high notes that seemed almost frantic. While it definitely wasn’t a song that would calm me down, it was fascinating and definitely paints a mental image with the juxtaposition of brooding and panic.
Out of all three artist I’d have to choose Keith Jarrett as my favorite. His playing felt so emotional and fluid. Listening to him play was super enjoyable. I also really liked his improvisation, they were a bit spontaneous but still beautiful to listen to and follow along.
I thought that Kieth Jarret was my favorite Avant-garde performer that I listened to. Being fairly new to Avant-garde, it was an easier listen than Cecil Taylor and I liked how there were some moments of melodic structure throughout the song. The rest of the band manages to somehow stay together with Kieth even though the structure of the song is all over the place. I also thought that Cecil’s physical expression throughout his performance was excellent even though it doesn’t have anything to do with the musical elements of the piece. Being exposed to Avant-garde has helped me understand a little more about musical expression and its ability to show an artist’s expression though unorthodox methods. I will be looking forward to more Avant-garde music in the future and being able to listen to more of this genre will help me throughout my jazz listening journey.
Not sure if these solos are just not my cup of tea, but I just don’t seem to really enjoy listening to any of these piano recordings. If I had to pick one, though, it would have to be Sun Ra. The other two I would simply describe as “sounding good at sounding bad”. It’s impressive, but the notes don’t seem all that coordinated to create a real song. Sun Ra fell into those categories the least.
While I’m glad some people enjoy this, I can’t even count it as music for myself. The first guy seemed to just be hitting notes and not caring if they sounded good—almost as if my 7-year-old cousin just started bashing on the keys. To pick a favorite would be sort of ridiculous because I would be saying I liked one. This might offend somebody but I disliked Keith Jarret the least because it was less chaotic.
My favorite out of the three was Sun Ra Solo the best way I can describe the experience I had listing to it was I was listing to someone just deciding to make a song right then and there and just start experimenting somethings work somethings didn’t and there wasn’t any obvious rhyme or reason for what was tried next
Sun Ra is so out there. It’s a nice mix of very classical sounds that almost dissolve into the more dissonant sections. The outfit is also so cool. It kinda reminds me of Yes, or Rick Wakeman
I would like to say that Sun Ra was my favorite pianist. He did play very safe, it really didn’t feel like Cecil Taylor was really playing music to me in my mind at least without looking into it too too much, kind of as if my 3 year old brother was trying to play music. Sun Ra just gave what the doctor ordered, nothing too crazy, smooth, clear melody and clear bass support. It was easy to digest. I would consider about the same when it comes to Keith Jarrett, as if he was just trying to put on a show rather than actually play digestible music
My favorite Avant-Garde pianist was Sun Ra, and the solo I listened to from him was “Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child”. His style of playing was very calming but also energetic. In a way, it felt like the piano was having a conversation with itself because of the dramatic changes in chords that actually worked sort of nicely together. I definitely agree with some of the other students takes on how this style of jazz is very chaotic. However, I think Sun Ra takes that sporadic-ness and uses it to make a unique piece that you’ve (or at least I’ve) never heard before.
Of the avant-garde soloists, I think that my favorite was Keith Jarret. Out of the three, I felt most connected with his music, which was a bit easier to follow along and more emotional than Sun Ra’s and Cecil Taylor’s. However, I do not particularly like this style, and while I can appreciate the creativity, it isn’t my favorite, which made it a bit hard to choose.
I liked Keith the most, to be honest I wasn’t fond of any of the pianists playing I just don’t like that loud crazy style when it comes to piano. he seemed to be having a lot of fun with it though so that’s why its my favorite I also like it because he doesn’t seem to care he almost reminds me of a long haired guitar player from the 80s who is just there to shred some solos and head bob and shake his long hair around. Keith didn’t seem to care and the whole thing just looked like improve and he was just smashing randoms keys and just enjoying himself.
I will be honest, I did not care much for the music selections. I could not get into it or really connect much to them. The seemed unorthodox and out of place to me.
However, the one I liked the most of the three is Sun Ra’s piano solo. I was able to somewhat connect to his solo compared to the others. In the first 3 minutes I really enjoyed the calm and kind of slow melody and vibe. I closed my eyes and imagined myself in a silent black and white film. The transitions ran smoothly and flowed. Around 7 minutes the pace picks up and builds suspense. This solo first more like storytelling. It did not need works, the music spoke for itself. Very interesting.
i would say that my favorite would have to be Sun Ra. and while reading the others comments about their music i chose it for the same reasons. I picked Sun Ra because of the calm melody that was being played. it was almost like a song that i would listen to in the background while doing homework. just because it was calm didnt mean that it didnt have suspensful parts. this music was very storytelling with how it was played. and that is why Sun Ra would be my favorite soloist from this list.
My favorite after listening to all three of the pianists would be Sun Ra. His music stood out to me because it wasn’t really in a traditional jazz style. He was extremely creative in the way he played and composed the piano. The way he used electronic sounds, percussion, and group chanting really made the whole listening experience just feel different from the others. Even though his music didn’t follow a regular rhythm or melody, it still pulled me in and want to listen to so many more of their songs.
I think that my favorite was Sun Ra. I love his correlation to outer space and his almost eclectic intentions in his music. Listening to him play piano in Venice was like very harsh at first, sort of emphasized notes in random spots, but then it unfolded and felt so beautiful as it got smoother. I really had no idea what was coming next with Sun Ra. At 5:38 in the video it almost reminded me of like a sunrise in spring after it rained and it is super damp and there is water trickling from the rooftops. Then the music completely flips around and goes into super deep notes. It felt like I was listening to life’s rollercoaster unfold.
Of the selections I’d have to say Sun Ra’s Solo was my favorite. Interestingly enough I was intrigued by the commentary in the beginning of the video and as I listened to him play afterwards it all made sense to me. He played as he described his understanding of this life, and maybe that’s why some people don’t care for it because they don’t relate. He began peacefully as he said he is used to being, and towards the end he was mor erratic which is more akin to chaos of the world. All music isn’t just what sounds good and following constructs. One of my favorite things about music is how it expresses feeling when you can’t quite find the words.
I think Keith Jarret wins my ears with this one. I love his music and how it progressively gets faster in the song “So Tender”. I could really see it being played in a fancy restaurant, setting that romantical in place. He somehow manages to create simple yet intriguing music which is something I can really love. He does seem to give the illusion that he’s speeding up the tempo by playing more notes as the song progresses. Another song by him that being Koln, displays his incredible piano playing skills. The song sooths your soul for a bit and then he will gradually play more steps like a staircase getting steeper and steeper.
I personally enjoyed Sun Ra’s performance the most. I feel that Avant-garde jazz and art in general is often associated with tension, dissonance, and anxiety, but I found his performance in Venice, Italy to be very soothing. The harmonies and melodies are tense, but they have an emotional intelligence to them that make them resonate deeply. I found this performance to be much more dynamic as well, including soft and loud sections along with more dissonant and more consonant sections. Listening to this piece feels like looking through a kaleidoscope – beautifully fragmented.
My favorite artist was Keith Jarrett. Initially, I found his improvisational style challenging because it seemed chaotic and unpredictable. However, the more I listened, the more I started to appreciate how his spontaneous approach built tension and emotion into the performance. At first, the seemingly random notes felt disconnected, but gradually, a unique rhythm and structure emerged that kept me engaged. Even though avant-garde jazz isn’t typically my preferred genre due to its experimental nature, Jarrett’s expressiveness and emotional depth stood out, making the experience rewarding
After listening to the three of them, I don’t think I really loved any of them. If I had to choose, I would pick Sun Ra to be the most interesting. His music overall, was unpredictable and “otherworldly”, not sure if it is in a good way or not. I could never tell what was going to come next, which was kind of exciting and interesting. It sounded like there was a mix of jazz and electronic elements, which is what gave it the “otherworldly” vibes. It was definitely a bold and imaginative style.
Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child was the solo I listened to by Bessie Griffin though, my preferred avant-garde artist. Her singing was not only calming but also invigorating. The sudden transitions in chords and the melodic sound was amazing. I think her voice is incredible and it really makes the song. I fully agree with some of my peers’ opinions that this jazz style is somewhat wild. I contend that Sun Ra harnesses the unpredictability to produce a unique sound that is unprecedented, or at least unfamiliar to me.