Sketches of Spain

Sketches of Spain
Studio album by Miles Davis
Publication (s)	July 18, 1960
admission	November 15, 1959 - March 10, 1960
Label (s)	Columbia Records
Format (s)	LP , CD , MC , SACD , DVD-A
Genre (s)	Modal Jazz , Third Stream
Title (number)	5 (LP) / 8 (CD)
running time	41:19 / 61:06 (CD)
occupation	Miles Davis - Trumpet Johnny Coles - Trumpet Bernie Glow - Trumpet Louis Mucci - trumpet Ernie Royal - trumpet Taft Jordan - Trumpet Albert Block - flute Harold Feldmann - clarinet Romeo Penque - oboe Danny Bank - bass clarinet Jack Knitzer - bassoon Eddie Caine - flute Earl Chapin - French Horn James Buffington - French Horn Joe Singer - French Horn John Barrows - French Horn Tony Miranda - French Horn Dick Hixon - trombone Frank Rehak - trombone John William Barber - tuba Jimmie McAllister - tuba Paul Chambers - double bass Elvin Jones - percussion Jose Mangual - percussion Jimmy Cobb - drums Janet Putnam - harp
production	Teo Macero , Irving Townsend & Fred Plaut ( sound engineer )
Studio (s)	CBS 30th Street Studio , New York City
chronology Kind of Blue (1959) Sketches of Spain Someday My Prince Will Come (album) (1961)

Sketches of Spain is a jazz - album by Miles Davis , recorded between November 1959 and March 1960th It was released through Columbia Records in July 1960.

background

The album is the third of four albums ( Miles Ahead , Porgy and Bess , Sketches of Spain and Quiet Nights ), on which Miles Davis worked with composer and arranger Gil Evans and an orchestra; programmatically, the album is based on Spanish folk music, a development that began with flamenco sketches on Kind of Blue . The album includes a long version of the 2nd movement from the Concierto de Aranjuez by Joaquín Rodrigo and Will o 'the Wisp (will-o'- the-wisp ) from a ballet by Manuel de Falla ( El amor brujo ).

Sketches of Spain is considered one of Miles Davis' most accessible albums. In the Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD it is described as “ elevated light music ”. Since there was less improvisation on the album than on other albums, some of Miles' contemporaries did not assign it to the jazz genre. Davis replied (according to Rolling Stone magazine): It's music, and I like it .

reception

In 1961 the album was awarded a Grammy for the best jazz composition . In 2003 the album was ranked 356th in Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 best albums of all time . Jazzwise magazine added the album to The 100 Jazz Albums That Shook the World list . Keith Shadwick wrote in his statement:

“Miles already had two bona-fide large-group masterpieces for Columbia down in the plus column with Miles Ahead and Porgy & Bess by the time he and Gil Evans assembled this finely-drawn re-workings of classical pieces of music generally associated with Spain . At its core is the brooding central movement from Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez, but the poignant lyricism and incandescent colors Miles and Gil invest the other pieces, including a rare Evans original, with a singularity of vision and intent that makes this a burningly bright and unified achievement. Once more they'd broken the mold, for themselves and everyone else. "

Miles had already delivered two solid masterpieces, Miles Ahead and Porgy & Bess, with large groups as pluses for Columbia by the time he and Gil Evans were putting together these finely drawn reworks of classical music that are generally associated with Spain. At its core is the brooding middle movement of Rodrigo's Concierto de Aranjuez , but the poignant lyricism and bright colors that Miles and Gil invest in the other pieces, including a rare Evans original, with a uniqueness of vision and purpose, make this one brightly glowing and uniform performance. Once again they broke the mold for themselves and everyone else. "

The Rolling Stone voted the album in 2013 in its list The 100 Best Jazz Albums at number 20.

Album title

Page 1:

1. Concierto de Aranjuez (Adagio) ( Joaquín Rodrigo ) - 16:19
2. Will o 'the Wisp ( Manuel de Falla ) - 03:47

Page 2:

1. The Pan Piper ( Traditional ; based on Alborada de Vigo ) - 03:52
2. Saeta ( Gil Evans ) - 05:06
3. Solea ( Gil Evans ) - 12:15

CD bonus tracks:

1. Song of Our Country - 03:23
2. Concierto de Aranjuez (Alternative Take; Part 1) (Rodrigo) - 12:04
3. Concierto de Aranjuez (Alternative Take; Part 2 & End) (Rodrigo) - 03:33

Others

• Experimental guitarist Buckethead's Sketches Of Spain from Electric Tears (2002) is dedicated to both Miles Davis and Joaquín Rodrigo. It is an interpretation of the Adagio from the Concierto de Aranjuez .
• Columbia first released the album on CD in 1983 and on SACD in 1997 .
• In 2001 a remixed 5.1 surround version of Sketches of Spain was released on DVD on the Monster Music label .

Web links

Commons : Miles Davis  - Collection of Pictures, Videos and Audio Files

• Sketches of Spain at Allmusic (English)

References and comments

1. ^ The 100 Jazz Albums That Shook The World
2. ↑ The 100 best jazz albums . Rolling stone; accessed on November 16, 2016.