Trumpet player Miles Davis (1926–1991) was a leading personality among the giants of jazz. He was born into a relatively affluent family in Alton, Illinois. In this chapter will introduce you to Miles Davis. | Jazz Tenth Edition Chapter 10 PowerPoint by Sharon Ann Toman, 2004 Miles Davis (1926-1991) Leading personality among the giants of jazz Trumpet player Born into a a relatively affluent family in Alton, Illinois Attended Julliard Conservatory for a short time (1945) Chapter 10- Miles Davis Miles Davis (1926-1991) Played with Earl Hine’s band, Claude Thornhill’s band, and Charlie Parker Its seems that no matter what Davis played on his horn it had a rather sad feeling to it Played more scale-oriented improvisations rather than chord-oriented improvisations Important association with Gil Evans on recordings Chapter 10- Miles Davis Miles Davis/Cool He was not destined to be known only for his contribution to the development of cool jazz But rather he was an innovative force in the evolution of jazz Always searching for new, fresh, exciting ways to play his music Chapter 10- Miles Davis Miles Davis/Cool Used an amplification of his trumpet in “Summertime” from Porgy and Bess Of all the stylistic periods contributed to or initiated by Davis, it was the cool period which he is most connected Chapter 10- Miles Davis Miles Davis/Small Groups Within the small group format his explorations led him to another stylistic breakthrough “fusion” Around the 1950’s, Davis’ music centered around a quintet for about 2 years Then this quintet lead to his sextet Chapter 10- Miles Davis Miles Davis/Small Groups He had started to develop the playing style that characterizes much of his later work during the 1950’s His playing style used a softer tone of the cool era Slowed down melodic activity Phrasing became fragmented which left open spaces for the rhythm section Chapter 10- Miles Davis Miles Davis/Modal By 1958 his playing style used modal scales and slower moving harmonies He suspended his melodies above the harmony the result was the lack of harmonic movement which seemed to disassociate the melody Chapter 10- Miles Davis Miles Davis/Modal Davis successfully carried music through the transition from bop to cool and again on to a modal jazz The next recording would launch players like John Coltrane Chapter 10- Miles Davis Miles Davis/Jazz/Rock Fusion As rock began to dominate the pop music culture Davis faced the dilemma confronted by most leaders in jazz Imported the energy of rock into jazz “In a Silent Way” released in 1969 was the 1st truly addressed the rock issue That is .maintaining leadership as styles changed Chapter 10- Miles Davis Miles Davis/Jazz Pop This musical mix is more commercial and some of the musical material is even drawn from the popular music scene like a song by Cyndi Lauper Despite the new format, Davis’ style is still recognizable through his melodic style (plaintive, fragmented, and somewhat isolated) Chapter 10- Miles Davis Miles Davis/Legacy His ability to sense new directions in music A maverick among jazz musicians Emotional content of his music Chapter 10- Miles Davis Miles Davis/Legacy He entered the jazz world in the bop period as a performer but left it as a leader who found his own signature of jazz His later style imported the energy of rock music into jazz Known as a “stylistic explorer” in the jazz world Chapter 10- Miles Davis
