Intimating? Boo, I didn't find Sonny intimidating at all. On the contrary. Although Sonny is certainly an accomplished pro pianist, he seems easy going, friendly, and a 'lot of fun' to play with. I enjoyed watching/hearing the chord voicings and substitutions (including many rootless) he played. It's great to admire accomplished musicians like Sonny, but it's also important not to become intimidated by them either. I always look forward to the opportunity to performing with good pro musicians as a way to learn and grow by sharing musical ideas and bouncing off each other. What a HIGH !

Frankly, I'd rather hear a guy improvise playing a few notes 'played well' (saying something) rather than a guy playing 'lots of frivilous notes' just to show off his chops. One of my wise teachers once told me that: "it's the space 'between the notes' which count just as much as the notes themselves". I've noticed that younger musicians tend to play 'lots of notes' to impress, but that as we mature, we realize that it's not the 'quantity', but the 'quality' of the notes played. Maybe there's a similarity (to sex) here. OK, enough philosophy for today.