No, I moved into Kefs for a while, was running a superb pair of 104/2's which are still sitting in a cupboard as I can't bare to part with them even though the 801's are head and shoulders better.
If space is a premium I would keep your eyes open for an older pair of B&W matrix 805's, they go for 500 to 800 depending on finish and the hutzpah of the seller and they sound utterly lovely.
They are a true moniter, you can put them in a bookshelf or right up against a wall. Probably 1.5 ft cubed but sound like they are a full size speaker. Audiogon is a good source for second hand gear frm the US, they changed their website so it is actually harder to get around but I will head down to Seattle to look at stuff at times.
You know a lot more about speaker technology than me. Truth be told I was lucky enough to have a friend simply give the NS-10s to me, saying his Dad hated them, and he hated them, and I liked them from audio school. I think we need to have a beer, and let this thread not turn into the "Gear Thread" because I would nerd-out to epic proportions.
This progression's endurance in popularity is largely due to its extensive use by early bebop musicians. The chord changes began to be used in the 1930s, became extremely common in the '40s and '50s, and are now ubiquitous. First, "I Got Rhythm" was by then already a popular jazz standard, and by listening to the song and writing a new melody over its chord changes (a type of composition known as a contrafact), a jazz musician could claim copyright to the new melody rather than acknowledge Gershwin's inspiration and pay royalties to his estate.
In popular music, "rhythm changes" refers to the first four-chord section of the full progression that the term denotes in the jazz context. This "sub-progression" forms the entire harmonic structure of an enormous number of popular hits released during the 1950s and 1960s (as well as of a significant number since then), in part because Gershwin's song is not the only source of this portion of the progression: Because the chord changes in question form part of a circle progression, they have been readily amenable to independent discovery by other artists both before and after Gershwin, with the effect that less creative musicians have been able to "borrow" the progression from songs other than "I Got Rhythm" whether or not those songs themselves borrowed from Gershwin.
Today, mastery of the blues and rhythm changes are "critical elements for building a jazz repertoire".
__________________
So far, this is the oldest I've been.
Last edited by Traditional_Ale; 03-13-2012 at 08:03 PM.
I'm quite new to jazz, but have come across a lot of artists that I would say are definitely worth checking out. Obviously the well known names (John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Herbie Hancock, etc.) are essential.
One song everybody will likely know by default:
Sim City flash back!
Initial funny/jerk comment aside, great thread pylin and for those contributing.
Also, I'm concerned that we're on page 3 and there hasn't been any mention of Wes Montgomery yet. Or Django, if we want to go way back. Those are the two guys I'm exploring in detail right now.
Also, I'm concerned that we're on page 3 and there hasn't been any mention of Wes Montgomery yet. Or Django, if we want to go way back. Those are the two guys I'm exploring in detail right now.
These guys do a great cover of Django's Belleville (and do lots of other Django stuff, about as well as anyone on the planet). Wish I could play like these guys.
No offense taken if you don't like this tune, this is _really_ old jazz
Lots of great suggestions so far. Looks like I have a lot of learning/listening to do.
Verve Jazz Masters is a 60 CD set that will quickly let you survey a huge swath of the Jazz landscape. That's what I grabbed when I was getting started, before I started purchasing artists I enjoy.
__________________
-Scott
The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to sclitheroe For This Useful Post:
Verve Jazz Masters is a 60 CD set that will quickly let you survey a huge swath of the Jazz landscape. That's what I grabbed when I was getting started, before I started purchasing artists I enjoy.
Time and bandwidth, if you catch my drift... I've since payed into jazzradio.com as well as purchased albums of artists I will listen to again (including albums produced by Verve, so I don't feel shame, really)
There's almost nothing better than listening to live jazz in a smoky club late at night, but I have a peculiar aversion to listening to jazz otherwise. I think it has something to do with the fact that no recorded jazz can measure up to the real deal. I got spoiled a long time ago by just happening to be in Toronto for the jazz festival about 15 years ago and nothing measures up to watching some of the best jazz musicians in the world jam at 4 in the morning while slamming imported beers and smoking good cigars.
__________________
The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to Mightyfire89 For This Useful Post:
You'd be amazed at how cheap jazz compilations are, best of Verve or Blue Note or the like, mosts of it is essentially free to put out, songs are all public domain artists OD'd in the 60's etc.
Verve Jazz Masters is a 60 CD set that will quickly let you survey a huge swath of the Jazz landscape. That's what I grabbed when I was getting started, before I started purchasing artists I enjoy.
Verve has a ton of good compilations. Good way to get a good variety to find out what you like.
The iTunes essentials are a pretty good way to sample music too. I found a lot of music that way. Not saying to jump out and buy one of the essentials playlists (because they're ######edly priced), but you can usually listen to a minute and a half clip of some stuff you wouldn't necessarily be exposed to elsewhere.
Quote:
Originally Posted by afc wimbledon
I will warn you though it will lead to the purchase of ever more expensive stereo as the better the speakers,amps and preamp the more you will be imersed in it, hear people talking in the background, glasses clinking etc. Personally I am up to around 10 grand of hi fi in order to listen to jazz.
So what exactly makes a stereo system better for jazz? I've got a pretty decent audio setup, but always interested in new gear...
