Touch bar piano applause6/14/2023 ![]() Third chorus, peculiar rhythms and more change of harmonic structure with much elaboration on thematic material, but you can still pick out the melody. Second chorus with a full harmony accompaniment in the left hand and an embellished melody in the right. A beautiful soft legato touch-thrilling pianissimos-first chorus in tempo and melody. The person who doesn’t raise “goose pimples” upon hearing Tatum’s rendition of this favorite simply hasn’t a heart. The applause has hardly died down and Tatum has made another change of pace by softly leading into “Sentimental Over You.” There is no let-up in the one-in-a-bar tempo and swiftly the number comes to a flashy close. The right hand is traveling like greased lightning, now playing measure after measure of scale and arpeggio work through black and white keys alike, then it will suddenly “swing out” into some octave passages of “licks” that bring inarticulate sounds of admiration from the “hot” men gathered around. That rhythmic left hand is “sailing” and has every foot in the place tapping. Even in the fastest scale passages, the fingers of his right hand barely seem to move but rather appear like a breath of wind through a wheat field.įrom “In The Middle Of A Kiss” into a flashy, rhythmic arrangement of “Lulu’s Back In Town,” this Tatum is a showman and seems to know the meaning and value of change of pace. Instead of the customary high wrists and curved fingers of the “legit” pianist, Tatum’s hand is almost perfectly horizontal, and his fingers seem to actuate around a horizontal line drawn from wrist to fingertip. The backs of his hands are fat and pudgy, but the fingers are long and taper to slender tips. One of the first things apparent to the eye is the Tatum flat-finger technique. ![]() “In The Middle Of A Kiss” for an opener-soft and sweet-a pianistic caress and a sigh, then a sudden “swing out!” gate for a few bars, immediately followed by an expressive return to a “sweet and slow” interpretation. Man! What rhythms, what harmonies, what beautiful techniques. ![]() And there’s a reason for all this rapt attention. Sam Beers, genial host of The Three Deuces, hovers in the background, and even Paul and Bill-our pals the waiters-have stopped for a moment to listen to Tatum’s meanderings over the keyboard. There is no introduction, no ballyhoos-he simply starts to play-and the eyes of everyone, musician and layman alike, are trained intently upon this pianistic marvel. A ripple of applause as Art Tatum, pianist extraordinary, calmly seats himself at his piano. A sudden hush gathers over the room as a grand piano is rolled out upon the pocket-size dance floor. The tables are crowded and among the regular customers we see musicians and entertainers from the better-known dance bands and radio studios. The scene is The Three Deuces, a popular gathering place for the Chicago music profession.
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