With me a situation looks without remedy until, out of the blue an answer occurs. I'm learning not to obsess on situations and , instead, wait until a solution boils up .
nice to see a young Bill Evans being interviewed. whoever recorded this and saved it all these years is an absolute legend!! think of all the important media lost to time....
This, is a wonderful interview. Thank you so much for presenting it here! I had the luck to meet Bill Evans and the whole trio, in the early 1970s, in Monterey, California. But at the time I had no idea who they were! Middle of the day, middle of one week, during our college Music Appreciation class in Monterey, our instructor says "Lets all go to the auditorium to meet someone." The entire hall was dark, except for a light over the piano on stage. The dozen or so of us walked up to the trio members, waiting dutifully at piano, bass and kit. Maybe they had been rehearsing for the upcoming Monterey Jazz Festival? Anyway I had no idea who they were. I was a budding musician with a few years of "pro" night club experience, but only in rock music. I also played violin, only in classical music settings. I reason I was in Monterey at all was from having played tenor saxophone in the 28th Army Band (think John Phillip Sousa) in the late 1960s. So who the heck were THESE musicians? Right on cue, they played part of a tune as we arrived, for one or two minutes. We were invited to ask questions, to Mr. Evans mainly, who answered with great patience and solemnity. "When did you start to play Piano?" and "Whose music do you mainly play?" was about as lofty as we 20-year-olds could seem to muster. In any case, as time went on over the following years, I certainly learned exactly who Bill Evans was, and still is to me. I will always cherish getting to meet and talk with him. Ahh... those were the days!
@@TheSteelDialga Thanks! But when it comes to creating this seamless bridge between classical music and jazz I think Bill Evans was a master and maybe even a pioneer.
I just read this book called “Peak: Secrets From The New Science of Expertise”. It’s all about effective ways to practice skills to best achieve mastery in this or that field. Book had some interesting ideas but overall I found it kind of tedious. Man, I wish I had bumped into this clip of Bill Evans before reading the book - he could have saved me the trouble of reading it. Because he pretty much summed that entire book up, and he only needed three minutes to do it!
I like you. Those are a great choice of two humans to bring up. I'm sure that you yourself would be an interesting person to sit down and talk with over some tobacco and drinks, although I don't drink anymore for numerous reasons, but I won't get into that. Live your best life and take care of yourself, be just as interesting to the people who come across you as much as these two men evoke feelings of fascination or inspiration in you, because you have good taste.
@@jeremymaez5311 Thank you very much, i am as glad as i am proud that you are strong enough to put your wellbeing first. And thank you even more, it's been some time since someone said i'm interesting. It's friend's day here on Argentina and i am actually going to spend the night over some cigs and booze (rare is the occasion when and if i do this), except this time i will do it by myself. Well, with Chekhov or Wes Anderson to be exact. But your comment made me and this night, all the less lonely and all the more humane
From a musician's point of view - it was very hard, impossible in fact to really understand what he was meaning. He knew how to simplify and analyse the psychology but just like you never know anything about the music a composer creates just be getting to know the person that creates it, so too you can't really feel what Bill Evans felt as his brain was unique. His brain-wiring was different from anyone else's. He was both left-handed and ambidextrous at the same time. I think the same rules apply as did studies of Oscar Peterson - namely you could practice 8 hours a day for 30 years and you still won't be able to play like Oscar did. As Steve Davis the Snooker champion said, "There's such a thing as natural ability". I know what he meant!
@theprior46 Hi, I'll straight up tell you that I know what Evans meant. And I might as well say that this could also meant my brain is wired closer to what his' was wired but nevertheless, I also agree that almost everyone who trained 8 years a day for 30 years wouldn't be able to play at Oscar Peterson's level, but I would also say that I could play even better than him in 5 years. I'll prove that in the next few years. My Piano music channel will probably start by the end of 2024. For now though, here's my theoretical explanation to what Evans was talking about: So far, despite centuries of musical collective knowledge, we still know very little about harmony and melody. So the question "what is Music?" is still unresolved. In that scenario, Evans is talking about a more Completionist approach to Harmony knowledge, when referring to the problems in this clip he's trying to tackle questions such as "if one would master Harmony in jazz piano, how would he go about it?", which lead him to the answer that one would have to tackle every music problem from the outside (human general knowledge of music), one by one, until mastery. All that for him to play by ear at will and with complete control. So at least according to this brief clip, all Bill was trying to accomplish was basically achieving Mastery in music, at least relating to jazz piano practice at the time. He also picks himself out to be not the most talented but the most consciously persistent with this particular quest, as I suspect he's trying to point out that most talented musicians are not interested in such questions as they find their talent sufficing despite them never achieving conscious levels of Music Complete Mastery. I'd argue that Evans was on to something and had the potential to achieve this project with full potential, but he only mastered music within the context of jazz piano limited to his own sensibilities, perception and zeitgeist at the time. I, on te other hand, plan to achieve true Complete Musical Mastery that goes well beyond my particular perception, sensibilities and that surpasses even any genres an musical traditions particularities, as well as surpassing even current zeitgeist in every regard. Well to be exact, my musical knowledge will be the NEW zeitgeist in due time.
On the contrary imo Evans is perfectly understandable. Idk 'bout "different brain wire" and "natural ability". Everyone knows Bird's famous "Talent is like a pair of shoes: Polish everyday" which is spot-on. In that vein: Also brain wires come with practice. Plus, I'd argue, if I'd practice 8 hours a day for 30 years, I'd wouldn't play like Oscar or Bill - but like me! That'll be a good and natural service to music.
I think people vieuw practice just as repetition. But practice is an activity which reflects on your lifestyle the way you approach it. And I think you can learn how to play like Oscar in 30 years but it’s about balancing your energy and being knowledgeable about your capacity in a way that comes from experience that’s unique to each their own. And using that knowledge to find that a practice method which guides a natural progression and that stimulates ideas to figure out passively during the day or while sleeping. And then the next day improving step by step. By not going at it straight ahead without experience. Because tackling answers you don’t know about causes failure and makes you associate factors with the proces that just cause extra baggage. I think simplyfing bill evans like that crosses off his efforts to gain knowledge about the proces of improvisation and being very aware mentally every day on its factors and facing challenges .your perspective is narrow minded in my opinion and it’s a bad way of looking at capacity of people and all different options we can take to develop as unique humans with different talents that are not always seen.
He never said this. However - even one of music's domains is in fact warmongering - I suggest if music and making music would be rooted strongly in society, sure there would be less violence.
@@erforderlich5274 I think meditation would do much more. Bill maybe not said it straight out but insinuating it. It’s optimistic and I understand that but Hitler I think was artistic in some way and, well…
@@renakmans3521 I agree about meditation - although getting into the 'zone' or 'flow' when playing music (or listening to it) can also be a form of meditation. The content and style of music can help change one's state, or support the state one is already in - as can many forms of art. You're right, Hitler was artistic. He'd applied to the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna but wasn't accepted. He painted very well except for how he drew people - but his artistic skills could've been further developed there had he gotten in. He later wrote that when he wasn't accepted at the Academy, he felt his dream to be an artist had been dashed. Of course, that doesn't even remotely excuse what he chose to become. In any case, I don't imagine dictators listen to Evans' "Peace Piece," or the Bacharach/David "All Kinds of People," or any one of the many songs about world peace just before going out and preaching hatred, etc. But to return to your point, yes, I think meditation is great, and schools which have implemented it into daily practice for young kids have shown dramatic drops in neighborhood crime and an increase in kids expressing happiness and getting along with each other. Having classes in music/other arts in schools also has shown great positive effects. Whether meditation or the arts, both can certainly have wonderfully positive effects on people.
He think he meant that he felt unable to take on all the big problems in the world, but that if he just tried to do his thing as best he could, then it would create some positive effects in the world. That’s all. It’s the same reason why someone tries to do any job well, be a good citizen, a good parent and be a nice person. It all has a net positive impact on the world.
Words wise, I'm going to guess most people understand what he's saying. But most of us don't have the same skill and experience as him (musically) to make complete sense out of this. Musicianship is a vast field with a lot of depth. To be a good composer you don't need to be an excellent player. And an excellent player won't necessarily be a good composer.
at the end he seems to be suggesting that instead of focusing on problems we can't solve like war, hunger, poverty, we should focus on a problem we can understand, like mastering the piano. I have some sympathy with this position though I think they are different orders of 'problem'
He probably meant it from a more personal angle; as a single person, what can he do to make a living with? He alone, couldn't solve war, hunger, poverty. But a least he can master the piano.
I think he meant that by mastering his craft, it will allow him to influence those outside problems. More so than he would without the platform his abilities grant him to influence the world.
He was talking about him personally. Not "us". His assertion is, since he wouldn't be any good in politics, he'd better hones his best skills, which eventually lead to a better world in a more indirect, musical way. And boy he's right! Every time I hear his rendition of "Danny Boy" I feel empyreal! I radiate love, happiness and contentment the rest of the day to everyone ...
I don't think he literally means that he shouldn't _care_ about these things or think about them, but that he can't _focus_ on all of them--he's only one person. Instead he has to pick something that makes the world a better place and use that as his point of influence. Then he can say, hold benefit concerts to prevent war, or use his influence as a pianist to convince other musicians to vote for anti-poverty candidates, etc.
3:00 he was talking about focus and using those "noble causes" as examples of ideas you might be attracted to but will diminish your focus and then you'll never hit your real goals.
