The Duke and the Monk Part 1

I'm always amazed when I talk to other free jazz instrumentalists at how tied into the lineage of their instrument they are. The sax lineage is understandable as not only is it revered by sax players but has been so influential on all musicians. But trumpet players in particular impress me the the breath and depth of their understanding of the history of the instrument. Roy Campbell will go on about Clifford Brown and I've had some great talks about Booker Little with Flip Barnes. I have rarely heard similar thoughts from pianists, perhaps because so many of us secretly suspect we are peripheral to the development of free jazz. There's Cecil yes....but I'm not always sure how many people comment on his place in the lineage. After reading some very thought provoking posts at Brilliant Corners about McCoy Tuner and the role of the piano in free jazz its made we want to examine the lineage of my instrum/ent...and to me the foundational stones of free.jazz piano come down to Duke and Monk.

Duke is rarely given his due as a pianist outside of the piano community. This is unfair I think. He had amazing chops even though he rarely put them on display. His unique approach to chord voicing with his band has roots in his advanced harmonic style in his own instrument. Often Duke is looked on as a serviceable stride piano.ist yet one listen to the album Piano Reflections put ls that to shame. Duke's approach to strides is rarely the "dazzle you with speed" style of Hines or Fats. Even when he does take a tune fast there is a sense of ease and effortlessness in his stride playing. But it is in his intros and codas that Duke shines. In these moments of rubato Duke voices chords and runs with advanced harmonies and runs. Often the harmonic palette has as much to do with Debussy or Scsriabin as it does anything else.

Perhaps the most obvious example of this is Dukes well known composition The Clothed Woman. The piece is actually a rather straightforward bluesy stride surrounded by an extensive introduction and coda that features secundal harmony and some very striking dissonances. Many commentators have suggested that the work is atonal, but I think that is untrue of this piece (and untrue of free jazz as a whole but more on that in a later post). Duke uses sophisticated harmonic devices