(Piano, vocals, 1917–65) Nat ‘King’ Cole (real name Coles) was one of the few jazz artists to become a household name as a popular singer, and was one of the first black American artists to have his own radio show (1948–49), and later television show (1956–57). He was born into a musical family in Alabama, but moved ...
James Joseph McGuinn (b. 1942) was raised in Chicago and became a fan of folk music as a teenager. He asked for and received a guitar from his parents after hearing Elvis’s ‘Heartbreak Hotel’. In 1957, McGuinn entered Chicago’s Old Town School of Folk Music, where he studied five-string banjo and guitar. McGuinn’s skills and solo performances attracted the ...
Alternative-metal guitarist Adam Jones (b. 1965) was born in Park Ridge, Illinois. He learned violin in elementary school, continuing with the instrument in high school, before playing acoustic bass for three years in an orchestra and later teaching himself guitar by ear. Jones studied art and sculpture in Los Angeles before working in a Hollywood character shop sculpting ...
Rather a ‘catch-all’ category that includes many musically diverse bands from the 1980s and 1990s, ‘alternative’ is generally an American term referring to any remotely leftfield and non-mainstream band, whereas ‘indie rock’ originally refers generally to the UK bands recording for smaller, independent labels, again usually meaning non-mainstream bands. Alternative encompasses many sub-styles. To complicate matters, ...
Alternative music is often seen as a controversial idiom, reflecting those who have sought to change the existing styles by fusing it with others, or approaching it from a different angle. It is criticized by purists who believe in the folk ideal, but supported by those who argue that stagnant music is a dead music and that it ...
The music of the indigenous peoples of North America is tightly bound to their struggle for self-determination, human rights and land, as well as the traditional ceremonies that were created to develop spiritual ties with nature, to provide strength for battle and to relate great victories. The arrival of Europeans altered the details, but not the essence. ...
Once hip hop had expanded beyond apparently using the hook lines from Chic’s ‘Good Times’ as the basis for just about everything, it quickly became as diverse as any other black music genre. Its evolution in recording studios took it way beyond the scope of conventional instruments. Can’t play piano like Herbie Hancock or bass like Bootsy ? So what ...
Sonata form was the most important principle of musical structure during the classical period, and has remained so up to the present day. It applies most often to a single movement, part of a sonata, symphony or quartet, but an independent movement, such as an overture, may also be in sonata form. Its principles affect ...
There are many different instrumental interfaces through which it is possible to control synthesized or sampled sounds – the most common being the piano-style keyboard. The electronic musician is also able to access a wide range of sounds through electric guitar, string, percussion and wind instruments. These devices are, to a large extent, quite recognizably conventional, ...
(Tenor saxophone, 1904–69) ‘Hawk’ played with Mamie Smith’s Jazz Hounds in 1922 before joining Fletcher Henderson’s band in New York. Louis Armstrong’s presence in the band had a major effect on Hawkins’ playing; by marrying a swing feel to his heavy tone, informed by his advanced understanding of harmony and chords, Hawkins became a star soloist and the ...
(Vocals, 1915–98) Frank Sinatra was best known as a popular singer and film actor but established his jazz credentials early in his career. He combined the smooth, Italian bel canto style with a sure sense of swing, toured with Harry James and learned about breath control from Tommy Dorsey (1940–42). He worked with arrangers Billy May, Gordon ...
Since his emergence in the mid-1950s, alto saxophonist and creative composer Ornette Coleman has risen above controversy to become a respected elder statesman of jazz. Born in 1930 in Fort Worth, Texas, Coleman taught himself the saxophone through trial and error. By avoiding chord structures and set rhythms in favour of melodic experimentation, he developed the new ...
(Alto saxophone, b. 1956) Chicago native Coleman worked in funk and R&B bands before switching to jazz and learning under tenor sax great Von Freeman. He moved to New York in 1978 and worked with the Thad Jones–Mel Lewis Orchestra and Sam Rivers. He had a key tenure in the early to mid-1980s with Dave Holland before forming his own ...
c. 1627–98, Italian Poet and librettist Count Nicolo Minato wrote 11 texts for the Venetian opera houses, including Cavalli’s Pompeo Magna (‘Pompey the Great’, 1666). In 1669, the Emperor of Austria, Leopold I, appointed Minato his court poet, and some very exciting opportunities opened up for the count. At that time, the court composer ...
One of Mozart’s most brilliant achievements in his mature operas is the way he harnesses the symphonic energies and key structures of the Classical sonata style to reveal character and propel the action forward. The sextet from Figaro is a famous example: here the sonata design is a perfect musical equivalent of the stage action as the initial situation spawns confusion ...
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Classical, Rock, Blues, Jazz, Country and more. Flame Tree has been making encyclopaedias and guides about music for over 20 years. Now Flame Tree Pro brings together a huge canon of carefully curated information on genres, styles, artists and instruments. It's a perfect tool for study, and entertaining too, a great companion to our music books.
David Bowie
Fantastic new, unofficial biography covers
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