Welcome to The Cahokian... A thousand years ago Cahokia — across the Mississippi from what is now St. Louis — was one of the biggest cities in the world. Now it's an empty green spot next to the highway. I'm a middle-aged gay man living in New York City, center of the world, future footnote on somebody's future map. Welcome to the new world.
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Alice Coltrane on harp
Here's a wonderful clip I had not seen before of Alice Coltrane playing a harp solo in concert. I know nothing more about this clip than what you see here. I was lucky enough to see her perform twice, but she stayed with piano and organ. This is a real treat.
If you haven't done so, check out some of the Alice Coltrane rarities reviewed on my music blog Ilé Oxumaré.
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Wow. There is something about seeing her play the harp that really adds so much to the music. Fascinating and beautiful. Thanks for sharing this! It sure would be nice to find a whole concert on video, wouldn't it?!
ReplyDeleteRight? I would love to see the whole thing.
ReplyDeleteThe second time I saw her I was pretty close to the small stage: it was amazing to watch her hands on the piano...which somehow she played as though it was an organ. I'm not musician enough to critique or analyze technique but it was different than how I've seen other musicians approach the keys.
Gotcha. I'm picturing her playing with her hands/fingers flat rather than perched and curled above the keys. I don't play either but it seems like I've noticed organ players having a different hand posture (don't know how else to describe it).
ReplyDeleteYes, that's exactly right!
ReplyDelete