GregMinton
06-24-2005, 05:19 PM
Did anyone go? Amazing concert...brilliant musicianship all across the chart. Everyone was in top form. Maybe others can fill in details, but they did do Green Dolphin St. with a bossa-nova-type improvisation section, Straight No Chaser with super-speed, and, of course, When I Fall In Love.
He began the concert by coming up the microphone and saying, "I normally talk a lot before concerts, but I won't today. I've been mellow recently, and it's not like a warm scotch mellow. It's like a sad mellow, and it's been recurring ever since Bush's election...and it's been becoming normal."
He then segued into a rant about the New York Times: "A bunch of little bitty newspapers all over the country reviewed my CD, but all the New York Times gave me was a little blurb in their Playlist section...if you know what I'm talking about, it's a little section where they just briefly tell what the CD is like. My CD, just to show how much thought they put into it, was put under "Latin Duos". I wrote a letter complaining, but I had a note sent back to me that my letter was over the 200-word limit. My reply, though was that, since my first letter was a critique on reductionism, reducing the letter won't work."
Jarrett did go off on the audience, though...there was an announcement before the concert, "You are reminded that there is no flash photography." So, of course, after the first encore, there were about 15-20 flashes from all directions. They went backstage, came out, bowed, and went backstage again. They came out again, and Jarrett, this time walked immediately to the microphone:
[Loosly, as I don't remember his exact wording]
"Can you not read, New York? It was explicitly stated not to take photos. How about you come up here and the three of us can take photos of you? You wouldn't like the flashes in your eyes or the intrusion of privacy. The French can understand this concept, why can't you, New York? I mean, you can read! Maybe you can't write, but you can read. Now, do you want another encore?" Everyone cheers. "Anyone who is sitting next to someone who takes a picture has the right to do whatever they want to that person and you won't be responsible for your actions."
They then jumped into an extremely fast version of Straight No Chaser. They extended it into a completely, freely dissonant song. It reflected quite well the unhappiness of Keith Jarrett at his fans' lack of respect. As they were walking backstage, he gave the fans a victory-pump with his left arm, obviously proud that the fans had respected his wishes this time.
The third encore was a piece that they've always liked to include in their repertoire: "When I Fall in Love". Great rendition of a classic, but when Jarrett walked up to the microphone this time, we didn't know what to expect. However, this time, he simply said, "Thank you."
Stunning show, and during a few of the songs, during my deep listening and trying to savor the moment, I couldn't help but just burst into a complete smile.
On a related note, there was an announcement in the Playbill that Jarrett will be performing his first North American solo concert in a decade at Carnegie Hall on September 26th.
He began the concert by coming up the microphone and saying, "I normally talk a lot before concerts, but I won't today. I've been mellow recently, and it's not like a warm scotch mellow. It's like a sad mellow, and it's been recurring ever since Bush's election...and it's been becoming normal."
He then segued into a rant about the New York Times: "A bunch of little bitty newspapers all over the country reviewed my CD, but all the New York Times gave me was a little blurb in their Playlist section...if you know what I'm talking about, it's a little section where they just briefly tell what the CD is like. My CD, just to show how much thought they put into it, was put under "Latin Duos". I wrote a letter complaining, but I had a note sent back to me that my letter was over the 200-word limit. My reply, though was that, since my first letter was a critique on reductionism, reducing the letter won't work."
Jarrett did go off on the audience, though...there was an announcement before the concert, "You are reminded that there is no flash photography." So, of course, after the first encore, there were about 15-20 flashes from all directions. They went backstage, came out, bowed, and went backstage again. They came out again, and Jarrett, this time walked immediately to the microphone:
[Loosly, as I don't remember his exact wording]
"Can you not read, New York? It was explicitly stated not to take photos. How about you come up here and the three of us can take photos of you? You wouldn't like the flashes in your eyes or the intrusion of privacy. The French can understand this concept, why can't you, New York? I mean, you can read! Maybe you can't write, but you can read. Now, do you want another encore?" Everyone cheers. "Anyone who is sitting next to someone who takes a picture has the right to do whatever they want to that person and you won't be responsible for your actions."
They then jumped into an extremely fast version of Straight No Chaser. They extended it into a completely, freely dissonant song. It reflected quite well the unhappiness of Keith Jarrett at his fans' lack of respect. As they were walking backstage, he gave the fans a victory-pump with his left arm, obviously proud that the fans had respected his wishes this time.
The third encore was a piece that they've always liked to include in their repertoire: "When I Fall in Love". Great rendition of a classic, but when Jarrett walked up to the microphone this time, we didn't know what to expect. However, this time, he simply said, "Thank you."
Stunning show, and during a few of the songs, during my deep listening and trying to savor the moment, I couldn't help but just burst into a complete smile.
On a related note, there was an announcement in the Playbill that Jarrett will be performing his first North American solo concert in a decade at Carnegie Hall on September 26th.