esrosedotblog

KEITH

Still on the vacation from movie films.

Today I saw

The Art of Improvisation (2005)

featuring the life and work of Keith Jarrett.

I have been an admirer for many years.

This wonderful documentary focuses on Jarrett in a way in which I do not think he has allowed before. He is not reclusive but has never been 'easy' to interview or to talk about his work.

Of course, this is right in line with my opinion that actors should act, writers should write, musicians should play and that is that. We should not have to hear their political opinions or know about their personal lives. Most of all we should not make them talk about their art.

Here, Jarrett does not disappoint. He really does not talk about his work so much as discuss the works which we hear. He confines his insights to talk about 'the zone', 'the groove', and so on. We all know intutively what that means. We have been there, if only a little bit, whether in another field of endeavor or playing and listening to music.

I dabble and have dabbled more at improvisation and I know that anyone can do it.

What anyone cannot do is transmit a self that they do not have onto and through the music.

In this film, we watch very generous (and well done) film clips of Keith and his fellows at work. We can see directly that this is one extremely intense and fully realized genius.

We are not hearing the music as much as we are hearing him; his being. He says as much when he tells us that 'music does not make music; the musician makes music'. An obvious point which is often missed.

One only needs to hear two or three different interpretations of the same work; classical, pop, whatever, to know this.

Improvisation increases this reality by a power of 'n'. Where 'n' is the energy and artistry of the improviser.

There is some personal material. We see him as a boy. We 'talk with' his brother. We meet his wife. We see his progress over the years with the two quartets and the two trios.

We get to meet Jack DeJohnette and Gary Peacock his later collaborators.

This is one of those films that we do not want to end.

A 7 or 8 out of a Netflix5.

I will probably buy the disc.