"BILL
EVANS PLAYS STANDARDS"
A
music book review by Win Hinkle
This is the first Hal Leonard
issue of Bill Evans transcriptions and it is a great beginning.
Hal Leonard purchased the Bill Evans catalog from The Richmond Organization
(formerly The Acorn Group) and the Bill Evans catalogs from Teneten
Music, the company owned by Nenette Evans.
Hal Leonard controls all
the Bill Evans songbooks except for the two Warner Brother's releases,
"The Artistry of …" volumes one and two. The readability
of the notation as well as the accuracy of Richard Tutubene's transcription
is excellent. There are two errors that become immediately apparent
when trying to match the recordings to the written notes. The version
of "My Romance" is from the Keystone Korner recordings
in August/September, 1980, just a few days before Bill's death on
September 15, 1980, rather than the Warner Brothers recording in
June 1980. This is Bill's last known recording of this tune. Also
the version of "My Foolish Heart" is from February 22,
1968, a Verve Release, not Warner Brothers.
I highly recommend that the listener assemble his own CD of the
original recordings, in the order presented in the transcription
book. Listening to the recordings while watching the transcription
go by can provide real insight to the way Bill approached the music.
The introduction to the aforementioned "My Romance," aside
from being very difficult to play with two hands is a beautiful
composition in it's own right. Bill played "My Romance"
seven times at the Keystone Korner gig and the last one is the one
transcribed here. It is fun to compare this transcribed final version
to the previous six recorded earlier on the same gig. You can follow
the development of ideas from the first to the last. Bill was quite
ill on this gig and sometimes there is a noticeable anxiousness
to get to the end. But musically, it stands as a fantastic example
of his artistry.
Another highlight is the version of "On a Clear Day" from
the 1968 Verve release, "Alone." This is the only time
Bill recorded the tune and he takes his time to create a logical,
but beautiful arrangement. I used this transcription in a lecture
I gave recently at the fourth annual Bill Evans Festival held at
Southeastern Louisiana University in Hammond, LA. I slowed down
the recording (keeping the same pitch) and pointed out several important
points in the recording. You can see
and hear the results at:
http://www.selu.edu/34skid/BEJF4/Clear_Day/
http://www.selu.edu/34skid/BEJF4/Clear_Day/excerpt/
http://www.selu.edu/34skid/BEJF4/Clear_Day/Search
To summarize, this
songbook is an absolute "must have" for the serious Bill
Evans musician.
Win Hinkle
bighinx@gmail.com
Win Hinkle is a professional
bassist, a noted Bill Evans scholar, (see Pettinhger's book) and
was the editor of the now defucnt hard-copy LETTER FROM EVANS subscription
newsletter. This webmaster was proud to have the opportunity back
thern to have written several pieces for that amazing publication.
We thank Mr. Hinkle for his contribution here, and his continuing
efforts on behalf of Bill's musical legacy.
BACK
TO MAIN PAGE