1. Home
  2. misc-audio
  3. 169601-165740

Is improvisational jazz to impressionism art as smooth jazz is to realism art?

So, I’ll acknowledge up front, I’m an engineer. Civilian and Warfighter lives can be in the balance depending on whether our company products perform as required or not. As a result, I try very hard to drive the entropic world we live in towards black and white as much as possible. I need to put order to chaos. When i look at art, impressionistic art requires a lot of mental work to make sense of. I just don't see it or get it, appreciate it or like it. I also find, as hard as i may try to enjoy improvisational jazz, that i don't get it, appreciate it, or like it. Instead, I love Realism art and instrumental smooth jazz!!
Reading from Audiogon forum pages for a couple of years now, i feel like i should feel inferior because 1. I don’t appreciate the free flow of expression that is improvisational jazz and 2. I love that there is a tune and thread in smooth jazz. I love the guitar artistry of Chuck Loeb, Chris Standring, and Acoustic Alchemy; the trumpet expressions of Rick Braun, Cindy Bradley, and Chris Botti; and the bass works of Brian Bromberg. 
I’m curious if there are many others out there that equate order (or lack there-of) in their music tastes to that of their taste in the visual arts?
Also, are there many other music lovers who would rather enjoy a good smooth jazz listening session than improvisational jazz?  If so, who do you listen to?
estreams
facten
3,124 posts
 
@stuartK

" As it happens, I’m very familiar with John McLaughlin-- I’ve been listening to him since 1972.

However, I have never heard anything by him that resembles Smooth Jazz in any way or anything midway between Smooth Jazz and Fusion.

In fact, I was hoping you would provide the titles of some of his records that would provide examples of such playing. I hope I have made things clearer! "

Guess I continued to not make it clear or you continue to simply misread my posts - I did not state that JM plays smoothjazz, nor did I say that he plays anything in between smoothjazz and jazz fusion. In my 1st post I mentioned him as an artist I listed that falls, at least in my opinion, between smooth and classic jazz. In my 2nd post I stated the "in between smoothjazz and classic " was jazz fusion and that he plays jazz fusion . So I can’t provide you with some examples of JM playing a hybrid smooth/fusion
stuartk
4,024 posts
 
@facten:

"Classic Jazz" is a term most often used to describe Dixieland, so now I'm really confused.

I'll just say that I've never heard anything by J. M. that has any elements that remotely approach Smooth Jazz. His music is far too harmonically and rhythmically complex for that.  

Let's just lay this one to rest. 
facten
3,124 posts
 
Like I said now for the 4th time I never said that JM plays smoothjazz but you keep insisting that I have. As far as my using the term classic I was thinking of Miles, Charlie Parker  and the like. If  you google classic jazz those and other artists come up . End of story, done with you
stuartk
4,024 posts
 
@yuviarora:

There is no way for me to verify whether what you assert is true or not.
It could be labelled a conspiracy theory but again, I have no way to authoritatively disprove it.

I find there are plenty of challenges in life that are undeniably real -- I don't have any desire to add to my stress by dwelling upon things that might or might not be true and over which I have no control. But that's my choice-- I'm not in any way suggesting I know what's best for anyone else. 


Post removed 
More to discover