Monk plays Chopin?
Yeah, or so the Monk estate claims. They have posted on their website a homemade recording of a piano player, playing a piece by Chopin. Quite well in fact. Some people claim that it's not Monk. I suppose we'll never know. It's quite interesting though if it is Monk. Some people claim he didn't have much technique. I've heard stories of people who "accidently" walked by Monk's apartment and heard someone playing brilliant Bud Powell-esque bebop lines, only to have Monk make them promise not to tell anyone it was him, so perhaps this is in fact Monk. Thanks to Terry Teachout for the heads up.
http://www.monkzone.com/silent/WEBCASTHTML.htm
scroll down and click clip #5
posted by Joe M at 7:16 PM
2 Comments:
Monks technique was all style - he wanted sharp sounds and used his fingers in the way he did to create percussive harsh tones.
I hold Monk up there at top of my lists - he was an amazing player.
The piece in question, the so-called Military Polonaise, Op 40 number 1, is actually not very difficult. It would be well within the range of Monk's technique as evidenced by his jazz recordings.
While Monk may not have had a comprehensive piano technique, much of what he did was definitely not easy.
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