charlie parker rare

[@madbebopper]

This was at an old friend's apartment in the East Village in the early 50s. He was a fine saxophonist named Dick Meldonian. Dick recorded it himself and he gave me a cassette of this about 30 years ago. Bird eventually tires of the unnamed 3rd party who continues to ask bird dumb questions. It is a precious moment captured in time of a genius in a casual setting.

[@ronfritts1425]

Meldonian was indeed a fine player. Would you please contact me as I've been researching this and other rare live performances by Bird for a book/web project. I too have a cassette copy and would love to speak with you regards your friendship with Dick and content of the tape(s). Thank you Madebopper. Reach me at [e-mail]

[@ronfritts1425]

Apologies for the above typo. It's [e-mail]

[@erforderlich5274]

Thanks for posting!

[@CalebOrvik]

This was recorded at a hotel I thought…

[@zqa12swx]

Bird's sound is so HEAVY, it's like velvet or molasses. Very dense, but not 'overblown'. You can learn a ton just from those 2 concert Eb's he starts with, and that velvety vibrato on the 2nd Eb. He practices as if he's playing a concert. Also, when he plays the opening double time phrases, the time-feel of it all stretches. Instead of thinking double time as "1-e-and-ah-2" with Bird it feels like a diagonal line UP, and then Down. One movement. Starting point, destination; fill in with the right notes etc. There's a video with Barry Harris teaching studies how to play a certain phrase on the piano and he was trying to get them to do / see it as one physical movement A ---- B. vs "note note note note note note" etc.

[@TheRealG2024]

Yes. Exactly. I conceptualize it as one movement in itself and even think of the last note in going to land ON in addition to the first note i depart from and WITHIN THAT travel time i MAY make multiple decisions of the direction i choose to go.

[@sttdvs]

I’ve heard/read a lot of analysis about this recording. Chilly willies and wide eyes/ears aside, I think the most telling trait about this recording is the way he is practicing in general and the way he is practicing scales. The ‘practicing in general’ comment comes from (or in retaliation to) years of hearing the trope of ‘structured practice’. This is a fallacy and I can’t iterate enough that practice is your own personal (highly personal) journey. Navigating the myriad concepts and technicalities prone to each individual instrument, not to mention overall theory, leads one down many paths with many forks in many roads. For anyone to suggest that there is a ‘way’ to practice is ludicrous. We all get there (i.e. on the bandstand) in our own way. Having stated that, the reason I think that this particular recording (and we’ve all heard countless titans practicing) is so interesting is because you can truly hear where CP is coming from. There’s no metronome, there’s no ‘playbook’ (granted this is obviously something that was made in a hotel room before a gig or by some rich kid who paid for a lesson and brought an early reel to reel tape machine) but what CP does here is run down IDEAS. You’ll notice that he starts out every exercise by blowing and honing in on one note - the tonic - for whatever he wants to explore. The other astounding thing is that when he is running scales… the first note is ‘scooped’… i.e. he’s navigating the tonal center in milliseconds for the cascade of notes that will follow. This isn’t someone who is following a ‘rule book’ or contextualizing each exercise. It’s someone who is exploring the instrument on their own terms, playing around and seeing what happens, and trying to adapt that knowledge into a cohesive sound. At a certain point, you’ve got to just play what whatever comes into your head. Should you have a structured 5/6/7/8 hour practice routine? No. Should you have things that you have acknowledged that are quintessential to work on? Yes. How you incorporate them into your practice routine is entirely subjective. Start every practice routine with ‘automatic writing’, an exercise many authors employ. Just play. The notes do or don’t matter. I guarantee you, within 10mins, you’ll have unearthed 10 things you want to focus on for the day. Bonus tip - do the same thing on the first tune at a gig. No one will notice and you’ll feel free as a…BIRD. Stay safe out there.

[@VoodooDewey69]

Charlie Parker sets the bar for all alto players to ascertain in the jazz world . Legend has it that the first time Freddie Hubbard ever heard Charlie Parker and Philly Joe Jones swinging they were swinging so fast Freddy said it was frightening .He was too scared to even break out his horn .

[@cubuffdoc]

This gives me the chills!!! Bird can make scales sound magical. Thanks for posting!

[@Suchapill]

+cubuffdoc Exactly. He is uncanny!

[@allen6924]

That's what I've always said about him. His effortlessly ability to make scales really sing. And how he closes out the scale run, is still in a class by itself. He is "jazz"; even though he didn't like to be called a jazz artist. He was the reason all those cats that came after were playing the way they did.

[@Suchapill]

He sounds like Pan, from mythology. When his lips and fingers touch the instrument music is Everywhere. A cascade of inventive melodies. Joyful.

[@safwannizam2932]

Now imagine him doing this everyday, 10 hours, for a decade

[@abelton20]

Correction: 11 to 15 hours a day, over a period of 3 to 4 years

[@BryceDAnderson1952]

Snoop Dog is worth 650 million....... Parker basically died broke

[@karvakeisari9359]

@@BryceDAnderson1952 which one will be written about in history books 200 years from now?

[@TheSteelDialga]

@@karvakeisari9359 both of them as they are both influential artists in their respective genres

[@cjgreen4331]

@@TheSteelDialga Chad Zoro ending debates

[@javijazztazz]

This is great Parker played a few bars of the Klose Book excercise 23 at 0:27 he played a few bars of the excersice

[@gabrielsternsax]

and he's playing in A major for sax, as oppose to C major like it's written on the book

[@MrJhrbek]

@@gabrielsternsax It as if he is reading the exercise in concert key and transposing it

[@jazzygiraffe8589]

@@MrJhrbek He's certainly got it memorised though

[@ilegak]

i do not think anyone else uses the sax like that...,the quality of the notes....,none can dublicate that sound and musical ideas !!!!!

[@kingpleasure]

"All the way up the horn." Just incredible to be able to hear this.

[@KaRidder234]

For Bird, each key had the very same value. He demonstrated how he played the scales: Not in the usual practice from C to G to D to A to E to B to F#, then from F to Bb to Eb to Ab to Db to Gb, no, he played them from one tone, up to the next half-tone, chromatically. ∽∽ That way of thinking chromatically enabled him to play easily in each possible key. ∽∽ The rest is about the unique way how he put all those things together, how he created all those melodies & rhythms and made them swing.

[@Realblakemoody]

very nice observation and insight. thanks for sharing =-)

[@Suchapill]

Beautiful !

[@blex9125]

ok

[@emilianoturazzi]

actually he didn't play in all tonalities - to play a scale is not the same as to improvise in that key. I practise scales chromatically ever since I was 20, but to play a clarinet solo in E (concert key) isn't the same as playing that scale. Bird's improvisations are in a very limited range of scales: Bb, F, Eb, sometimes C, few exemples in G and Ab... I don't remember any in E, Gb, Db (but am sure there are for this key - Body and soul at least), B or D...

[@gatozagarra7635]

@@emilianoturazzi I dis some classaes with Barry Harris in NY as well as Netherlands and what surprise me was his concept on the down runs.Just like Barry teaches,ends on the srongest points of the tonal center you are playing. .

[@ВадимОпалев-б6и]

...прошло много лет, а Чарльз звучит совершенно современно, и так будет много лет. Это и есть настоящий гений ❤

[@cooljazzr]

Amazing. Shows he didn't just make up those incredibly fast 32nd note runs. He worked on those in practice sessions. That run at 0:17! Just wow!

[@saxmandiggle1573]

I like his references to classical music.

[@christopherfischer6998]

Exercise 23 of the Klose book!

[@lastknowngood0]

Nice anything rare by Bird is very much appreciated!

[@stormyfeather9035]

Fantastik Kenny and Red.Wow...

[@RICHIELOVESAXWORLD1]

Yeah I practiced Bird everyday for Years...The only way to Fly..

[@kwamethver2.033]

Cheese.

[@purplecloud191702]

blowing out cobwebs. doesnt matter what exercise he playing.

[@allen6924]

That's what I've always said about him. His effortless ability to make scales really sing. And how he closes out the scale run, is still in a class by itself. He is "jazz"; even though he didn't like to be called a jazz artist. He was the reason all those cats that came after were playing the way they did.

[@TRAVISLANE6]

a master getting ready play!

[@maxLeifermann]

For future reference to anyone reading this, Google "video2mp3" for free online service where you type in a KZbin address and it makes a recording of it for you. I've used it several times with no hassles. I also like this recording btw!

[@purplecloud191702]

this is sooo cool, blowing out the cobwebs.doesn't matter what exercises he playing.

[@nyshoefly]

This is a sax lesson he gave I believe. This is awesome thanks for posting!

[@isaiahrichardsonjr1742]

nyshoefly salmon interview not a lesson. It was at the apartment of a man named Meldonian early 1955. Parker was ill

[@jamesjonesrocket]

@joehenderson1 lol no problem pal, I was so excited when i heard this, i thought everyone else should!

[@Suchapill]

+jamesjonesrocket Thanks!!!

[@rdr555]

Genius. Proving he could play in any key.

[@colorizedenhanced-timeless2409]

Good evening, jamesjonesrocket. it is surprisingly distinctive video. thank. :)

[@8art]

Another possibility to "touch" Bird:) Thanks jamesjonesrocket for sharing! I love YT!!

[@Thanks-Tokyo]

Brilliant!

[@Thalmanmusic]

Excelente ! Gracias por compartirlo. Me hizo recordar sesiones de amigos en hoteles compartiendo y tocando el sax.

[@LaloRojasSax]

Un tesoro... Muchísimas gracias!!!!!!!!

[@Thalmanmusic]

Increíble coincidir en esta publicación.....eeepaaaaa

[@LaloRojasSax]

Jan Thalman Eeeeeeeeepaaaaa!!!!!

[@eytonshalom]

God Lives.

[@scottrobinson2060]

1:26-1:31, you can hear the beginnings of Ornette...

[@EricAllenDolphy245]

ONE ☝🏾 with the Horn

[@dr.brianjudedelimaphd743]

I can hear Bird’s voice, this is not fake

[@stevenalexander7413]

Totally legit. You can hear his voice

[@skippruitt2391]

There's is absolutely no doubt who is playing that horn😊

[@quame5565]

seems legit

[@profeso07]

GREAT !!! Thanks

[@devilshark6694]

parker was blues mixed with classical. tempting concotion

[@jiyujizai]

❣️😃

[@bobbymobay]

Let me guess....Klose?

[@theachkonia7017]

ჩარლი პარკერ! 🎼❤️

[@thomasforsythe6353]

I don't think Miles has been challenged like the line and tempo of Donna Lee. He pulled it off though

[@cooljazzr]

Can anyone hear what they say at the end?

[@mambojazz1]

what are they talking about?

[@jazzygiraffe8589]

Interesting that he practiced that fast. It's known you gotta practice slow to build good technique but I thought you'd also have to practice really slow to sustain it.

[@skippruitt2391]

There were probably things he did play slow, but he may have been demonstrating something at the time.

[@gatozagarra7635]

He wasn't practicing.He's checking somebody's sax

[@breakfastplan4518]

Says who? This isnt some amateur student of music you're listening to here. This. Is. Bird. lol

[@jazzygiraffe8589]

@@breakfastplan4518 Says literally every teacher I've ever studied with. I think Gato Zagarra and his previous speaker were right

[@breakfastplan4518]

@@jazzygiraffe8589 you should listen to your teachers then... Because there is no iron rule that says practice must be slow.

[@otanygirl]

Hm. Warming up is quite a very private thing, isnt it?

[@aaronamccoy]

chromatics

[@gatozagarra7635]

Not at all

[@spb7883]

Session details for those interested can be found here: www.plosin.com/milesAhead/BirdSessions.aspx?s=550000 Originally issued (as the uploaded notes) on this album: www.discogs.com/Charlie-Parker-The-Last-Notes-1953-1954/release/3318350

[@LaloRojasSax]

spb 78 💪🏾👏🏿👌

[@l.j.2917]

Wow! How and where did you find this?

[@mjazzguitar]

One story has it he thought there was only one key. A musician told him there were twelve so he practiced in all twelve when at the time they only played in a few keys.

[@danielpuyol4227]

Dialing tone ?

[@SirDerp909]

"Download the Dominos app ...." SHUT UP!

[@extanegautham8950]

there is a modern Bird wanna-be, Charles McMpherson out of Detroit...his practising, compare to this? is like a 6 year old to a master. An inmpressive difference, not to mention in tone, as well as swing. No offect to Chuck, but Wow..

[@MrManguera9]

FAKE.

[@grantkoeller8911]

What is fake about this, this is Bird......you can hear it.......

[@mambojazz1]

that is Bird. No mistake if you know his sound. Also his voice

[@mambojazz1]

Wrong.

[@247hdjazz]

CARL, YOU'RE AN IDIOT MAN!

[@sixstring4]

You wish...i never heard anybody play like this, except Bird.

[@anthonypayne4665]

It’s only rare to those who haven’t heard or seen it before

[@georgedendulk3657]

Well sir! R u on the scene?! Hell Yeah!

[@anthonypayne4665]

@@georgedendulk3657 that’s what happens when you reply to stuff when you’re drunk