Balls 4-8/11/24

[Ein Heldenleben]

Fits America's role in world affairs today beautifully, too........

Yes well if the States were run by the Duke , the Count , the Earl , the King (jazz and rock) it might be a better place ….
not sure about Prince …might be a bit unpredictable..

[Ian Thumwood]

I think Bud Powell is a fascinating subject. He did write some great tunes and seems to be enjoying something of a reappraisal with composers as diverse as Ethan Iveson and Steve Lehman finding inspiration from Powell's music. To my ears, Powell is erratic as a pianist due to his mental health issues yet this makes him so compelling. At his best, he was a virtuoso as great as any classical pianist . With the passage of time, the white heat of his improvisation surpasses Bill Evans in my opinion. I just feel he was a brilliant musician.... jazz's answer to Dinu Lupatti.

I agree that jazz has a place on CofW. However I woukd like to see some composers as diverse as jelly roll.Morton , Herbie Nichols , Andrew Hill, John Hollenbeck, Maria Schneider or Muhal.Richard Abrams considered . In 2024 ,it is faintly ridiculous that jazz composers are not considered worthy of CotW by some in here.

[french frank]

I agree that jazz has a place on CofW. However I woukd like to see some composers as diverse as jelly roll.Morton , Herbie Nichols , Andrew Hill, John Hollenbeck, Maria Schneider or Muhal.Richard Abrams considered . In 2024 ,it is faintly ridiculous that jazz composers are not considered worthy of CotW by some in here.

I've just been scrolling through a list of the various composers featured. Quite instructive. Jazz musicians, like Miles Davis and Charles Mingus, feature more often than they used to but not that often. To me, one of the most useful features of the programme is that it does dig around for minor and forgotten composers. Anyone can read a book about Bach or Mozart if they just want the facts, and CotW is classed as a documentary programme, speech-based rather than chiefly music-based, so its remit isn't just to play full works.

I can't see that the current offering is anything but Radio 3 Wind-Up.

[Ian Thumwood]

French Frank

The jazz version of CofW coincides with the London jazz festival.

[Quarky]

A piece of useless information: Wikipedia lists more than 1,500 composers. It is evident that CotW has done no more than scratch the surface of this huge repository.