Every year, I get asked to play legit, or longhair (funny, since I'm bald) music.

If you look at the careers of many jazzers, they make frequent excursions into the world of legit music. Think The Marcellis (SP?) brothers (and dad, actually),Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea...EVEN Joe Walsh (recently seen on a Paul McCartney special in a tux, no less) and Frank Zappa (neither are/were jazzers, but well versed in structure).

Maybe it's the "inner nerd" in me, but I ENJOY IT.

But, man, to go from shooting straight from the hip; never knowing where you're going...flat-out improvisation vs. playing a fly turd, if it's on the chart, is a MAJOR DIFFERENCE!

What, do you think, is the major attraction? I'll be featured doing a tribute to Wes Montgomery with a regional Philharmonic here, and in Indianapolis with a chamber group doing Legrand tunes, including "How do You Keep The Music Playing?"...hokey but GREAT writing and challenging to play.

WHAT'S UP WIT DAT?........


Russ (the bald long-hair) Lay

Will there be any video of your performance I'd love to see some pieces of it.

I'm not sure how close this is to your topic, but composers, like Beethoven, Bach, Mozart used to do "variations" on a theme written by other composers who were at or around their same technical level.

I enjoy taking (for example)a Country tune by Hank Williams or one of his contemporaries, and doing jazz style chord substitutions, maybe playing the first of the tune "straight" and then "subbing in" the last verse and/or chorus. I used to it quite often when I played in the restaurant venue, and it was nice when someone caught on to my little flights away from the norm.

I had a fairly good grounding in classical piano and could sight-read very well, but I really did not learn how to "play" until I developed a better ear (and therefore, better musical "sense") and could actually improvise on a standard classical piece.

Having this skill, albeit basic at the the time, and then being able to develop it further by playing with musicians far more experienced than I, really opened my ears to the joys of improvisation and re-harmonization in genres of music other than classical.

Another player, although not actually a bona fide "jazzer" who returned to classical form was Billy Joel.

Good luck with your perfornmances, Russ...I'm a Michel Legrand fan from way back...I enjoy playing around with "Windmills of Your Mind" and "What are You Doing the Rest of Your Life?".

I still like to play around with the classics, and have developed several accompaniment styles on my Tyros4 for just those occasions.

Ian

My early musical training was on trumpet. I could play anything that was written and was first chair in the Oklahoma All-State Band as a sophomore in high school. The good news is that the band director had sense enough to encourage me to also play "off the charts" and to experiment with other instruments as well.
By the time I got out of college I could play bass, guitar and drums fairly well, in addition to trumpet.
Band back home needed an organ player so I bought one and literally taught myself on stage. I was able to do that because the band director had instilled such a good background in music theory.
I'll never be anywhere close to a Russ Lay level, but I can appreciate what he is saying about enjoying all types of music.
The reason I do a lot of country and vintage rock and roll these days is that's what they pay me to do!

What was it that Frank Zappa once said about jazz? He said, "Jazz isn't dead, it just smells funny."

Caustic wit, that fella.:)

Donny, they (the director of the orchestra and/or P/R department)usually send any video or P/R stuff to me, and if there is anything, I'll get it to you.

Ian, been plying What Are You Doing Th Rest of Your Life every night for the last 25 years.

GREAT QUOTE from Frank....thanks. Billy Joel really has the chops to play legit, for sure.


R.

Kool ........can't wait for that....enjoy the gig!

You guys are talking over my head. Just tell me what key even if ya don't name the song and holler the chords out to me and let me go and I can cut it.

You can hear classical training in much of Bill's work ...

I remember him saying that It was on the album "At The Roxy And Elsewhere" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roxy_%26_Elsewhere

Frank would be so proud of his son Dweezil keeping his music alive. Zappa Plays Zappa are truely awesome to see live

Just my view but I don't think Classical Training is the way to Jazz or Pop music in most cases. Jimmy Smith, Erroll Garner couldn't read a note. Back in the Stone Age when I took lessons it was all Classically based. Went to College and thats all they would teach, Classics. Then again thats all they knew becuse thats how they were taught. After a while I started asking why can't we learn some things that will make me some money? One of the girls in my Music Dept. was making a $100 ( a BIG paycheck at the time ) a night playing a Fender Rhodes and singing at a restaurant across from the College. We were all jealous, even the teachers LOL! Unless you were exceptional you weren't going to make a dime with what they taught. My private teacher before college was a great Jazz and Pop player but knowing I wanted to get a Degree, and at that time, thats all Colleges taught, he kept me on the traditional path. Beerklee just started but who could afford to go there and not come out with a solid job. Support yourself as a Jazz musician ?, I don't think so, even back then.
Besides reading ability and keyboard technique of my training I think I learned to play popular music on my own. I really feel I wasted a ton of time with my formal training. Wish I had those years back with my private teacher.