Precede i concerti di sabato 22 alle ore 18:00 presso la sala consiliare del Comune di Barga un incontro con il musicologo
Francesco Martinelli talking in Italian about Dexeter Gordon
che traccerà il profilo di uno dei grandi maestri del jazz con una conferenza su “Dexeter Gordon”.
Nell’occasione verrà presentata l’edizione edizione italiana curata da Martinelli per la collana Siena Jazz/EDT della biografia di Dexter Gordon scritta dalla vedova Maxine, ripercorrendo la carriera del grande sax tenore narrata nel libro attraverso una scelta di registrazioni audio e video.
Dexter Gordon (February 27, 1923 – April 25, 1990) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. He was one of the first players of the instrument in the bebop idiom of musicians such as Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Bud Powell. Gordon’s height was 6 feet 6 inches (198 cm), so he was also known as “Long Tall Dexter” and “Sophisticated Giant”. His studio and performance career spanned over 40 years.
Gordon’s sound was commonly characterized as being “large” and spacious and he had a tendency to play behind the beat. He was known for humorously inserting musical quotes into his solos, with sources as diverse as popular tunes like “Happy Birthday” to the operas of Wagner. This is not unusual in common-practice jazz improvisation, but Gordon did it frequently enough to make it a hallmark of his style.
One of his major influences was Lester Young. Gordon, in turn, was an early influence on John Coltrane and Sonny Rollins. Rollins and Coltrane then influenced Gordon’s playing as he explored hard bop and modal playing during the 1960s.
