Carla Bley (b 1936)
Donald Macleod and guest, Kevin Le Gendre follow the jazz adventures of Carla Bley
Donald Macleod and guest, Kevin Le Gendre follow the jazz adventures of Carla Bley
One of the most original voices in jazz, composer, arranger, performer and band-leader Carla Bley has been determinedly pursuing her own musical path for more than sixty years. Her back catalogue of some fifty plus recordings tell the story of a musician who's responded in her own unique style to all the current trends, from free and experimental jazz in the 60s and 70s to 80s soul, blues and R&B. In later decades, she's written for and created big bands recalling the musical landscapes of Count Basie and the Duke and in the last 20 years, she's refined a distilled, intimate style for smaller chamber ensembles, in particular performing in a Trio with her life partner, bassist Steve Swallow and the British saxophonist Andy Sheppard. Little wonder then, her fellow musicians affectionately call Bley 'Countess Bleysie' and 'Bleythoven'. Featuring a selection of recordings suggested by Carla Bley, Donald Macleod and Kevin Le Gendre follow Bley's musical adventuring from her early days writing for Paul Bley and Gary Burton, to her latest album for the Carla Bley Trio, released in 2020.
Music Featured:
King Korn
Carla Bley/Paul Bley: Ictus
Donkey
Ida Lupino
Escalator Over the Hill (Hotel Overture; Why; Little pony soldier)
Walking Batterie Woman
Dreams so Real
Blunt Object
Silent Spring
Reactionary Tango in 3 parts
Song sung Long
Γ³Ω±ΉΎ±°μ±τΎ±²Τ²΅²υ²υ²Ή²Τ²΅
Walking Batteriewoman (vers. for piano and bass)
Wildlife (Horns; Paws without Claws; Sex with Birds)
The Girl Who Cried Champagne
Lawns
The Girl Who Cried Champagne ( Part 1)
Fleur Carnivore
Strange Arrangement
Who Will Rescue You?
On The Stage In Cages
Doctor
Wrong Key Donkey
And then one Day
Vashkar
Wildlife
Presented by Donald Macleod
Produced by Johannah Smith for ΒιΆΉΤΌΕΔ Cymru Wales
For full track listings, including artist and recording details, and to listen to the pieces featured in full (for 30 days after broadcast) head to the series page for Carla Bley (b 1936) /programmes/m0011lmc
And you can delve into the A-Z of all the composers weβve featured on Composer of the Week here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3cjHdZlXwL7W41XGB77X3S0/composers-a-to-z
Podcast
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Composer of the Week
Donald Macleod explores the life and work of composers.