Charlie Parker

Summary

Dominique Pagani makes Charlie Parker the figure of bebop. What he takes from him is the melodic improvisation that enriches the blues framework and compensates for the metre12. He sees in him an example of harmonic and melodic risk-taking3 and contrasts his virtuosity, forty notes a second with a modulation on every beat, with the playing of the rock pianist4. He points out that this complex music was danced to in working-class dance halls5, that Parker never touched an amplifier and that he kept a close eye on Bartók, Stravinsky and Monk. He calls him an exploited genius, later replaced by three-note variety music6. He counts him among the accursed artists and notes that Parker said he never played so badly as when he was on drugs7. He names him among the Americans he loves, as proof that America is not reducible to WASPs or to Atlanticism. He also uses him as a yardstick: Milt Jackson is "the Parker of the vibraphone", and Dolphy played in his style.

1. 1Everything is allowed but nothing is possible: Michel Clouscard (2)29 Jan 2012 · 40:40
2. 2#5 Libertarian liberalism, libidinal consumption and music…27 Sept 2014 · 21:00
3. 3B for Bach16 Dec 2014 · 8:12
4. 4#5 Happiness versus the death drive in music11 Dec 2020 · 37:57
5. 5Everything is allowed but nothing is possible: Michel Clouscard (2)29 Jan 2012 · 47:28
6. 6Radio Galère: Michel Clouscard (2)7 Jul 2012 · 30:06
7. 7#4 Sound ghettos3 Dec 2020 · 1:16:17

Summary produced automatically from 27 of the passages below, to be reviewed; the numbers link to the moment in the session.