On Sep 12, 2005, at 7:06 AM, Javier Ruiz wrote:
It had to be fantastic to play with them, Chuck!
It was a wonderful few weeks playing with those singers. Their
French bass player, Guy Pederson, was homesick and simply hated being
on the road. The singers had heard me play with Bill Evans a number
of times (at the Village Vanguard), and I had played with their
drummer, Daniel Humair, many times in Paris in 1959. They had a
three week tour that I agreed to play while Guy went home to France.
One of the particularly good things about it was the balance.
Everything I played - every nuance - had an influence on the sound of
the group, because the voices did not overpower the bass, and Daniel
played the drum parts on nothing but brushes on a High Hat cymbal and
a cardboard box from a 15" reel of recording tape clamped in a snare
drum stand. He made the recordings with them with the same setup.
I think that the Symphony was a bit later though, around 1968 maybe...
I'm sure you are right.
Nice memories.....
Chuck
I worked with Ward, and the original Swingle Singers (including the
remarkable Christiane Legrand, former lead singer of Le Double Six,
and Michel's considerably nicer sister) around the time that they
were first performing this piece w/the NY Philharmonic many years ago
- maybe 40 to 45, if memory serves, and I agree that it is an
astonishing work.
I was not involved in that piece, but I did play with those terrific
singers and remember them well. I have maintained contact with
Christiane and with Ward, though I have not seen either of them for
some time.
Chuck
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Chuck Israels
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