We Six bops it Monk-style

 

“You know, anybody can play a composition and use far-out chords and make it sound wrong. It’s making it sound right that’s not easy.” Thelonious Monk, 1961

 

Thelonious Monk culled stride-style piano, swing and big band, discovered a way to “bend” the piano and created a new sound – bebop.

Monk’s bebop sound will be featured Thursday evening by We Six, a jazz ensemble comprising expert player/teachers at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music. The program begins at 7:30 p.m. and will explore Monk’s compositions, especially those from his time recording for the Blue Note label.

Monk, a native of North Carolina, grew up in New York during the era of hot jazz and swing. His performances were influenced by James P. Johnson, the father of the “stride” or Harlem-style of piano playing, characterized by a heavy left-hand alternating between broken tenths and four-note chords. His love of composition came from Mary Lou Williams, a trailblazing black woman, who wrote for Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman at a time when women were typically assigned to vocal roles.

He began performing in his mother’s Baptist church, the Apollo Theater and Harlem dance halls. By the 1940’s he was the house pianist at Harlem’s Minton’s Playhouse, which was frequented by Ellington, Williams, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie and Max Roach. The after-hours jam sessions exposed Monk to various styles, allowed him to hone his craft and discover his sound.

But as Monk said in a 1947  interview with Downbeat, “Bebop wasn’t developed in any deliberate way.”

Mark Davis, We Six pianist, said the group chose Monk as an important jazz composer and we will focus on his compositions (such as “Round Midnight” and “Straight No Chaser”) where his bebop sound is most evident.

“He was a creative jazz pianist,” Davis said. “We will do some of his familiar pieces, along with the obscure.”

We Six’s mission over the last eight years has been to educate students and the community about jazz. The sextet focuses on themes or eras, to help audiences understand the context of the music as they are entertained. In addition to performances, We Six goes into schools for music residencies and works with students on improvisation, jazz theory, and music history.

The majority of Monk’s 70 compositions were written during the late ‘40s and early 50’s. He production increased production after the state of New York pulled his cabaret license in 1951 for a drug conviction, with gave him a reprieve from performing. Subsequent generations of jazz men and women have kept most of Monk’s creations alive.

Active performers who regard Monk as an influence include Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, McCoy Tyner and Bobbie McFerrin.

For ticket information about We Six’s salute to Thelonious Monk, click here.