Occam's razor is a principle of logic that is attributed to a Medieval English monk. Basically, it says that if there are (two or more) solutions to a problem, the simplest one is the best.
Occam's Razor applies to music just as well as it does to philosophy and the sciences. I find that after my 40 years of listening extensively to all kinds of music, my ear keeps returning to melodies and structures that are relatively simple. We've been listening to some 60's New Orleans tunes in the car lately and Allen Toussaint's version of Tequila keeps getting requested, as well as some Eddie Bo that is no more than a 2-note vamp with a ferocious beat.
Complicating things doesn't usually help in life and music is no different. I find that adding complexity to music impresses other musicians (and the maestro) but seldom the audience, and I personally tend to favor simple approaches. I never get tired of the blues. I find nothing better than a quartet or quintet on a night when everyone is on (saxophone mandatory). I like head arrangements and unison lines. "Plain Vanilla" comping often sounds better behind a soloist than complex chord substitutions.
Seems like loads of great saxophone players reach a point in their playing career when feel they must have a string orchestra behind them. Charlie Parker with Strings is, in my opinion, his weakest work and can be passed up without missing anything. What got into great players like Johnny Griffin, and more recently James Carter and even David Murray? Come on, guys. The saxophone-with-strings shtick reminds me of Squidward on Sponge Bob and his hopeless quest for high culture. The music is almost always better left alone in its raw form. I can do without the strings.
As the incomparable Charles Mingus said, “Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that’s creativity.”
Occam's Razor applies to music just as well as it does to philosophy and the sciences. I find that after my 40 years of listening extensively to all kinds of music, my ear keeps returning to melodies and structures that are relatively simple. We've been listening to some 60's New Orleans tunes in the car lately and Allen Toussaint's version of Tequila keeps getting requested, as well as some Eddie Bo that is no more than a 2-note vamp with a ferocious beat.
Complicating things doesn't usually help in life and music is no different. I find that adding complexity to music impresses other musicians (and the maestro) but seldom the audience, and I personally tend to favor simple approaches. I never get tired of the blues. I find nothing better than a quartet or quintet on a night when everyone is on (saxophone mandatory). I like head arrangements and unison lines. "Plain Vanilla" comping often sounds better behind a soloist than complex chord substitutions.
Seems like loads of great saxophone players reach a point in their playing career when feel they must have a string orchestra behind them. Charlie Parker with Strings is, in my opinion, his weakest work and can be passed up without missing anything. What got into great players like Johnny Griffin, and more recently James Carter and even David Murray? Come on, guys. The saxophone-with-strings shtick reminds me of Squidward on Sponge Bob and his hopeless quest for high culture. The music is almost always better left alone in its raw form. I can do without the strings.
As the incomparable Charles Mingus said, “Making the simple complicated is commonplace; making the complicated simple, awesomely simple, that’s creativity.”
