by Dave Manson
The free jazz of the 1950s, '60s and '70s is now being reconsidered,
re-examined, and re-thought for inspiration and direction in the works of
composer/performers such as John Zorn, Ken Vandermark, Dave Douglas, Matthew
Shipp among others. During these free and experimental periods, process and
exploration merged into an outpouring of work. Categories such as "jazz" and
"new classical" did not comfortably apply to much of this music. During this era
of exploration, strong voices emerged. Some have remained faithful to creative
music through the years and are finding younger audiences who truly appreciate
their life's work. Cecil Taylor was one of the first to pull jazz into the "free
thing" zone (Jazz Advance - Transitions, 1955) and luckily he continues to share
his innovative vision of sound and music with us today.
Cecil's music can be thick and complex, clustered, angular, percussive, and at
times almost overwhelming to listeners. For the initiated, his music flows from
a source deep within the soul. His contribution to music includes performances
and recordings with Steve Lacy, John Coltrane, Dennis Charles, Sunny Murray,
Jimmy Lyons, Andrew Cyrille, Archie Shepp, Roswell Rudd, Mary Lou Williams, Eric
Dolphy, Bill Dixon, Tristan Honsinger, Tony Oxley, Han Bennick, Derek Bailey and
many others. His Unit Structures (Blue Note, 1966) is considered a landmark
recording in modern music for its compositional strength and improvisational
beauty. He has survived the wrath of critics over the years and has emerged
victorious as a unique voice of our times.
It was my great pleasure to work this past summer with Cecil at a three week
residency at the Atlantic Center for the Arts, an arts colony in New Symrna
Beach, Florida. On the first day of the residency, rather than an obligatory
self-introduction, Cecil asked us to simply "improvise an introduction to the
group" on our instruments. Later he asked us to move about the room, dance and
spontaneously create poetry in addition to performing on our instruments,
helping break down the ingrained practitioner concept of music that permeates
Western thought.
At 71, Cecil has more energy than people half of his age and seems to swing
between the Dionysion and Apollonian poles. One day he is reserved and
concerned with health and exercise, the next he is smoking, drinking, and
talkative. When he is not performing, he entertains all with observations about
central jazz figures (including scathing anecdotes about Wynton Marsalis) as
well as high society in New York. He is a bit of a rascal on one hand, yet also
quite sincere and down-to-earth at the same time. In the proximity of Cecil,
you definitely feel the presence of a strong creative force.
Practically every day I played across the piano from Cecil while working on his
new compositions written for the residency stay. His music was difficult to
comprehend at first since the ensemble was attempting to translate it into
traditional notation. Cecil actually works from a shorthand notation system of
his own as many composers do. After one of the group's members deciphered the
system, he acted as translator and we collectively met and discussed the shaping
and evolution of Cecil's music for the upcoming performance. Cecil could have
specifically directed us through this process, but he patiently allowed us to
discover his music ourselves.
Cecil's music is often described by critics as European-influenced and lacking
tonal organization, but nothing is further from the truth. Cecil's music is
kinetic and deeply personal. Its rhythmic drive and pulse is derived from his
physical approach to playing the piano. It may be difficult for one to hear a
distinct pulse, but that is only a matter of perspective. We feel pulse, (in a
rudimentary way), as an alteration of steps - left, right, left, right - as in
marching. As bipeds who move from place to place, we are programmed daily to
feel this binary pulse. It is inevitable that we feel tempo this way, but how
might we interpret pulse if we were centipedes with ten feet? Cecil's rhythms
are based on the physical activity of playing the piano. With his fingers, he
creates patterned pulses that underlie his performance.
Cecil's current music is quite tonal, not atonal. While playing he often hums a
central pitch as his sweeps through complex patterns in his left and right
hands. These patterns are based on set distances between notes called intervals.
For example, on a central or axis pitch of "F" he might create a sweeping
pattern of the following intervals: Perfect 4th, Major 2nd, tritone, and minor
2nd. These patterns may be mirror images of each other moving upward and
downward on the piano from the axis pitch. With this approach tonality gradually
bends and moves in a gentle manner as intervallic patterns shift and adjust. The
tonal result may be likened to the "stained glass" effect of modern classical
composer Oliver Messian combined with the "sheets of sound" of John Coltrane,
but that would be incomplete. His rhythmic approach might also be compared to
that of a master tabla performer, but that also falls short of explaining his
work. If you hear Cecil's music as being static, (as some people have
complained), then focus on these ideas and you will hear more direction in his
playing.
There is a certain "working out" or development in Cecil's playing - not unlike
the German Romantic composers of the 19th century works. Like a spider building
a web, a sort of connectivity occurs in the music. Cecil reacts to motifs like a
spider feeling the vibration of a fly in the web. He weaves thick patterns of
sound that often leave little room for any other performer. This is a major
challenge when working with Cecil and only a few successfully meet it. Jimmy
Lyons, Tristan Honsinger, Denis Charles, Tony Oxley, William Parker, and Han
Bennick come to mind as musical partners strong enough to meet this challenge.
Cecil's amazing technique as a pianist allows him to react to spaces and create
form in performance as was evident in a performance at Rollins College this past
summer. After an inspiring performance by the Sam Rivers Trio, Cecil began a
solo performance. His first work was familiar to me as I had heard it during
his practice time at the ACA (yet another reminder that Cecil's work is not
totally free improvisation). When the piece ended, Cecil launched into poetry
and movement. Something gave way in Cecil during that exercise and became free.
This was immediately evident as he began his second work. As he played, several
people in the audience slowly turned around and began looking up at the ceiling
and corners of the concert hall while he played. Somehow Cecil was creating
pedal points that seemed to hang in specific areas of the room. Cecil's third
work also had this same spatial element not unlike the late Renaissance
polychoral church music of the Gabrielis from 16th century Venice. You will not
hear this aspect of Cecil's music in recordings. Perhaps the limitations of
microphone placement and the stereo field simply can not capture it.
On the last day of the residency, I stopped by his cabin at the arts colony and
caught him cleaning and mopping the wooden floors. The son of a restaurateur,
this childhood chore still brings him order in the midst of a frenzied schedule.
Cecil and I had lunch and chatted for about five hours. He talked of playing
club music in Harlem with broken keys on the piano and being perched six feet
high with the piano bench an inch from the edge of the stage. He mentioned his
first piano lesson at age five and how his mother instructed him that he "was to
be a lawyer, doctor or dentist" and how the piano was to be "only an avocation".
He described the experience of hearing the "wonderful sound of Albert Ayler" for
the first time as he washed dishes in a Harlem restaurant. For a very short
time, Cecil even had a band with members that included Albert Ayler, Eric Dolphy
and John Coltrane! Cecil still laments the passing of Jimmy Lyons, a brilliant
saxophonist who practically dedicated his career to Cecil's music.
Cecil is an iconoclast who has spent a lifetime hearing a sound within, pursuing
it and bring it forth. He doesn't need to validate its existence or expend
energy defending it. Critics and fans alike agree that what he does is
spirited, unique, and genuine. His live performances are to be cherished.
A short list of recommended recordings of Cecil Taylor
Jazz Advance (1955, Blue Note CD reissue 84462 2): Steve Lacy, Buell Neidlinger,
Dennis Charles
Coltrane Time (1958, Blue Note CD reissue 84461): John Coltrane, Kenny Dorham
and Louis Hayes
Unit Structures (1966, Blue Note CD 84237): Unit
Conquistador (1966, Blue Note CDP 784260-2): Unit
Silent Tongues (1974, Freedom CD 41005): solo recording at the 1974 Montreux
Jazz Festival.
Garden (1981, Hat Art 1993/94): solo recital
For Olim (1986, Soul Note 1150): solo recital
The Hearth (1988, FMP CD11): Tristan Honsinger, cello; Evan Parker
In Fluorescence (1989, A&M CD 5286): William Parker and Gregg Bendian
David Manson is a composer, trombonist, leader of avant-jazz group SHIM and
director of the EMIT series of experimental music.