Rodrigo and Steely Dan 'Aja'

We listen to a lot of music here at Hillhouse.
Currently we are alternating between two very different styles.
As I have mentioned, Robin is performing the 'Concierto de Aranjuez' next year.
Part of the preparation involves listening to many different interpretations.
So when I can't hear Robin playing through the piece himself, or working on parts of it, then I frequently hear recordings by various artists.
Robin does, of course, have his own interpretation, but it's always good to hear others performances.

But it's not all work.
We are also revisiting one of the best albums ever made, 'Aja' by Steely Dan.
We have listened to this album for many years, but on one of Robin's recent trips abroad, he happened to come across a documentary about the making of Aja, which offered a wonderful insight into this remarkable recording.

Although released in 1977, Donald Fagen and Walter Becker created a classic album which sounds as fresh today as it did 31 years ago.

This is due not only to the incredible quality of composition and intelligent lyrics, but also to featuring some of the greatest session players around.
Joe Sample, Wayne Shorter , Steve Gadd and Tom Scott, to name but a few.

If you are unfamiliar with the 'Aja' album, then I strongly recommend that you get yourself a copy immediately.
Meanwhile, we shall continue to alternate between Rodrigo and Steely Dan. Not a bad backdrop to my work.

Joe Zawinul 1932 - 2007

Joe Zawinul, the keyboard player and composer has died today in Austria.
Zawinul was born in Vienna in 1932 where he later went on to study music at the Vienna Conservatory.
In 1959 he emigrated to the USA where he toured with Maynard Ferguson, accompanied Dinah Washington, and in 1961 joined Cannonball Adderley with whom he performed and recorded until 1970.
It was in 1970 that Zawinul and Wayne Shorter formed 'Weather Report'.
Zawinul was one of the most original and prolific composers to emerge in the 1970's, and it was Zawinul's experimentation with the Wurlitzer and electric pianos, that influenced other jazz musicians to adopt these instruments, which drastically altered the tone and colour of an entire branch of jazz music.

Weather Report have been hugely influential on Robin's life, in particular the album 'Heavy Weather' which had the perfect chemistry of musicians and the time was right for their musical statement to be made.
The fact that we still listen to their music on a regular basis shows how important it has been.

Due to a technical hitch, the video I've posted can be found below, under it's own title.
It is Weather Report, (with Jaco), performing 'Black Market' in 1978.