maxmatzen

Hi Ed!

It's been a long time sine we have last spoken, I hope you are doing well.

I wanted to get your opinion about Smartmusic, or playing/rehearsing with pre-recorded accompaniment. SM, Aebersolds, anything like this.

Thanks in advance!

Max

ecarroll

Max,

Nice to see you.

I have a rather extreme view about SmartMusic, believing it to be symptomatic of the death of music. I appreciate the value of harmonizing a Bordogni vocalise (um chuck chuck um um chuck chuck); a series of 8 bar phrases, but SmartMusic teaches you to listen only to yourself since the "accompaniment" (a word that I loathe) is static.

For me the joy of music is found in deep communication between collaborators. If the drummer gives a little shot here or there it creeps into what you are playing. . .the pianist exaggerates an inner line one time and the base line the next effecting the color and phrasing of your own line. Great musicians are extreme multi-taskers, splitting their concentration in a way that allows them to listen more to the surrounding information then to themselves.

Supporters will say that they live on a desert island with nobody but the software to collaborate with. Fair enough, but one has to have the discipline to understand when this has lost its usefulness and chuck it in the river (making it twice as bad -- now it's spoiled the environment as well).

Kenny Werner, Joe Lovano and I had this discussion at my house in Lake Placid one time. We were in perfect agreement about play-alongs (including Aebersold).

. . . since you asked.

Please say hi to Jim for me?

Best,
EC