Vibraphone and or xylophone fans?

[lovinthehd]

Still doesn't make those methods of percussion more popular than drums I barely knew xylophone was actually used in music other than music class for many many years....why Cal Tjader was somewhat a revelation for me

 

[Irvrobinson]

Except that a drum cannot produce a real melody that a piano or a xylophone can do.

Weak. ;-)

 

[slipperybidness]

@lovinthehd
Check out the J Davis Trio!!! The front man Julio Davis plays what I think is the vibraphone, and he also flows (raps) over the beats. They are out of Chicago.

They are one of my absolute favorite acts. They are the absolute best fusion of Jazz/Hip-Hop out there. Others have done it (thinking of The Roots and Guru's Jazzmatazz), but nobody else that I have heard yet is really true jazz and true hip-hop like these guys! Very "in the groove" jazz, combined with a really nice flow and some of the wittiest lyrics you will come across.

The J. Davis Trio

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=j+davis+trio

 

[ryanosaur]

I do enjoy some good vibraphone from time to time. In can get a little tiresome after being a whole album in, though. But just up to that point, we’ll played vibes are pretty flipping cool.

I’ve always found marimbas more to my liking in general. Too be fair, I can’t say I’ve ever sat down for a marimba recital but the tone and timbre is more pleasing to me than the vibe’s.
That said, a big component to that is the more rapid decay time of the marimba compared to how a vibraphone can sustain for much longer.

Now don’t even get me started on the glockenspiel or harpsichord!

 

[highfigh]

I shouldn't forget Ruth Underwood....

Nobody should forget her- I watched a documentary about Zappa and she was describing the music, then she played some of her parts. After so much time has passed, that alone is amazing.

 

[highfigh]

Ruth Underwood explaining that Zappa thing she did so well....

That's the video I was referring to- that's hard music to know so well that they could play it on demand during a show when he would decide that he wanted them to play a variation.

 

[highfigh]

Except that a drum cannot produce a real melody that a piano or a xylophone can do.

You're right in that a membrane doesn't produce pitch in the way a string or piece of metal can, but if they're tuned and the whole scale is present, there's no reason they can't pay a melody. It's partly a matter of the material used for the heads- some provide more pitch than percussion and vise-versa. OTOH, a badly-tuned drum set can sound like several pieces of cardboard and I have heard that too many times.

 

[lovinthehd]

That's the video I was referring to- that's hard music to know so well that they could play it on demand during a show when he would decide that he wanted them to play a variation.

Frank was very exacting. While they weren't always recording when I visited Intercontinental Absurdities for business (or just to chat with their road manager if I was in the 'hood, we got along well), I did get to see Frank stop the music and tell Jean Luc Ponty exactly how he wanted it.....was something I'd heard about but not witnessed up til then.

 

[highfigh]

Frank was very exacting. While they weren't always recording when I visited Intercontinental Absurdities for business (or just to chat with their road manager if I was in the 'hood, we got along well), I did get to see Frank stop the music and tell Jean Luc Ponty exactly how he wanted it.....was something I'd heard about but not witnessed up til then.

He definitely knew how he wanted it to be played. If you can, find an interview with Ike Willis, where he talks about being noticed by Frank, getting the gig and Frank telling him to keep the music going after he was gone as he was dying.

A local Fusion band played at a club 5 nights a week during '73-late '74 and it was a frequent stop for touring musicians, including Zappa and some of the band. When JLP left and needed a guitarist, George Duke recommended Daryl Stuermer, who was one of the founders of the local band. The band went to California for a vacation and word got back to Daryl that he could audition for the gig, so he went- JLP on violin, Patrice Rushen on piano and Daryl- I think it would be interesting to hear the audition. Daryl's brother, Duane, played bass in the band and at one point, he was called to fill in for Tom Fowler after he broke his wrist during a break. He said playing that music was a bitch and he's a really good musician, too- the kind who can play something and sing different melody and rhythms. I saw a band with him play Spain (Chick Corea), but singing the lyrics from the Al Jarreau version, complete with the vocal synchopations.

I read an interview with Frank where he was talking about the recording of his first symphonic album and the use of his Synclavier synth- he said it gave him the freedom to create any note duration he wanted, like 71/100 of a second.

A local college radio station has an annual day of Zappa music, interviews and tribute on his birthday and in one interview, he talked about a gig at a MKE club that was owned by a son of the local Mafia that was said to not exist, by the Mayor at that time. As they sat at the bar during a break, and think about this in Frank's voice- "A rather large, swarthy man came over and said "Frankie would like to buy youse a drink".