Icons April

De son vrai nom Nathaniel Adams Coles, Nat King Cole est un pianiste déterminant dans l’histoire du jazz avant de devenir un chanteur populaire considéré par tous, comme l’un des plus grands crooners de l’histoire de la musique américaine. Né le 17 mars 1919 à Montgomery (Alabama), Nat King Cole aura une vie personnelle très médiatisée, marquée par sa place d'artiste noir dans une société où la ségrégation raciale est importante. Mort le 15 février 1965 à Santa Monica (Californie), son nom est inscrit au Rock and Roll Hall of Fame en 2000 comme influence du genre rock durant le xxe siècle !

‘Piano Icons For The 21st Century’ is an exceptionally performed collection of contemporary piano works by Pärt, Janáček, Sculthorpe and Mompou, plus the world premiere recording of John Tavener's Ypakoë. Piano Icons For The 21st Century was widely acclaimed upon its release and named a Gramophone ‘Critics' Choice': 'my disc of 2000 is without hesitation Elena Riu's extraordinarily fine CD.' John Tavener was inspired to write his first major solo work for piano in over twenty years after hearing Elena play. She premiered Ypakoë, a series of meditations on the death of Jesus, at the City of London Festival. The programme also includes Janacek's In The Mist, an intensely personal and darkly hued cycle, plus an intriguing collection of miniatures by three composers who, in her view, are on a similar wavelength: Peter Sculthorpe, the late Catalan composer Federico Mompou, and Arvo Pärt.

D'une musique de folklore afro-américaine enracinée dans le gospel et le blues traditionnel, Louis Armstrong a conçu un courant musical national et populaire à vocation internationale voire même universelle ! Son talent de trompettiste, son charisme, ses qualités d’entertainer et sa personnalité généreuse ont forgé sa renommée. Celle d’un géant. D’une légende allant bien au-delà des arts. Enraciné dans la tradition de New Orleans, Armstrong propulsera le soliste sur les sentiers de l’improvisation, épine dorsal du jazz à venir. Avec Charlie Parker et Duke Ellington, il formera la Sainte Trinité du jazz moderne.

Almost every story about minimal or repetitive music starts with the triumvirate Steve Reich, Philip Glass and Terry Riley. Each in their own way, paved the way for one of the most exciting and thriving movements in music of the 20th and 21st centuries. Minimal music has been an inspiration for Eric Sleichim since the 1980s. Today, BL!NDMAN's demarche towards the renewal of early music finds more than ever a connection with Reich, Glass and Riley whose works draw inspiration from the oldest polyphonic techniques.

The American Icons series celebrates the people, places, and objects that have informed American popular culture over the last 75 years. Illustrated throughout and replete with anecdotes, fun facts, and informative sidebars.