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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (April 1, 2015)
April 1, 2015 Page 9 9DQFRXYHU (DVW&RXQW\ %HDYHUWRQ 0LVVLVVLSSL $OEHUWD 1RUWK3RUWODQG PHOTO COURTESY OF R ADIUS -TWC $VSLULQJMD]]SLDQLVW-XVWLQ.DXÁLQOHIWDQG&ODUN7HUU\WKHOHJHQGDU\MD]]WUXPSHWHUDUHSURÀOHGLQ¶.HHSRQ.HHSLQ·2Q·DGRFXPHQWDU\WKDWEHDXWLIXOO\SRUWUD\VD IULHQGVKLSEHWZHHQWKHPHQDQGWKHJUHDWQHVVRIWHDFKHUVOLNH7HUU\ZKRVKDUHWKHLUNQRZOHGJH Living a Life 7KDW0DWWHUV Legendary trumpeter shows the way in ‘Keep on Keepin’ On’ WKHZRUOGVRIPXVLFRUWKHDUWV%XWWKHUHLV no better rejoinder than the beautiful docu- PHQWDU\³.HHS2Q.HHSLQ¶2Q´3ULPDULO\ an exploration of the friendship between OHJHQGDU\MD]]WUXPSHWHU&ODUN7HUU\ZKR recently died at the age of 94, and aspiring MD]]SLDQLVW-XVWLQ.DXÀLQWKH¿OPLVDOVR about greatness that teachers like the one 7KH KHUDOGHG ¿OP ³:KLSODVK´ GH- LQ³:KLSODVK´FDQQHYHUKRSHWRHYRNHRU picts—realistically, I expect—a world of DFKLHYH%HFDXVHDV7HUU\¶VH[DPSOHLOOXV- hungry aspiring jazz musicians who are trates, how you live your life matters. And easy prey for a brutal, sadistic conductor LWZRXOGEHKDUGWR¿QGEHWWHULQVWUXFWLRQ who deliberately pits them against each for how to live your life well than can be other, feeds and then assaults their fragile IRXQGLQWKLV¿OP egos, and continually moves success just 7HUU\ RQH RI WKH PRVW UHFRUGHG PXVL- EH\RQGWKHLUUHDFK7KHFRQGXFWRUMXVWL¿HV cians in the history of jazz, played with his abusive methods as being necessary to 'L]]\ *LOOHVSLH &RXQW %DVLH DQG 'XNH WKHFXOWLYDWLRQRIWUXHJUHDWQHVV³7KHUHDUH Ellington early in his career. He grew up no two words in the English language more ³GHDG SRRU´ LQ D IDPLO\ RI FKLOGUHQ LQ KDUPIXO´KHRSLQHVWKDQ³JRRGMRE´ St. Louis, and so longed to play the trum- Such thinking is certainly not limited to SHW DV D FKLOG WKDW KH DVVHPEOHG KLV ¿UVW O PINIONATED J UDGE horn using scrap metal from a junkyard (a process beautifully rendered in an animat- ed sequence). He recalls how hard it was to ¿QGDQ\RQHWRWHDFKKLPDQGKHOSKLP¿QG his voice as a musician, and says he de- termined as a young person that if he ever learned to play, he would not be stingy in teaching others what he learned. 7HUU\¶V SDVVLRQ IRU FDUU\LQJ RXW WKDW intention was apparently unlimited. As a young man, he took a boy named Quincy Jones under his wing, and the love be- WZHHQ KLP DQG -RQHV KLV ¿UVW SXSLO \HDUV ODWHU LV SDOSDEOH 2YHU WLPH 7HUU\ mentored literally thousands more young musicians, including everyone from Miles Davis to Wynton Marsalis, and several of them speak affectionately on camera of his life-changing effect on their lives. Herbie Hancock emphasizes the impossibility of FDOFXODWLQJWKHLQÀXHQFHWKDW7HUU\KDVKDG RQ VHYHUDO JHQHUDWLRQV RI PXVLFLDQV ³LW¶V almost like being pulled by a magnet,” BY J UDGE D ARLEEN O RTEGA KHVD\VDQGWKH¿OPFRQWDLQVDZHDOWKRI IRRWDJHGHPRQVWUDWLQJ7HUU\¶VXQUHOHQWLQJ energy for investing in people and his un- failing good humor. 7KH ¿OP¶V ¿UVWWLPH GLUHFWRU $ODQ Hicks, is himself a jazz drummer who SOD\HG ZLWK 7HUU\ DQG EHQH¿WHG IURP KLV WXWHODJH 7KRXJK KH GRHVQ¶W IHDWXUH KLP- VHOILQWKH¿OPWKH¿OPUHÀHFWVKLVOLYHGLQ VHQVHRI7HUU\¶VLQÀXHQFH+HZLVHO\¿QGV LQ.DXÀLQ¶VUHODWLRQVKLSZLWK7HUU\DZRU- WK\IRFXVIRUWKH¿OPDVLWLVVXFKDJRRG LOOXVWUDWLRQRI7HUU\¶VDSSURDFKWROLIH .DXÀLQZKRORVWKLVVLJKWDWDJHPHW 7HUU\ ZKLOH D VWXGHQW DW :LOOLDP 3DWHUVRQ University, and was among scores of stu- GHQWVZKRZRUNHGZLWKKLPWKHUH7KHUH- lationship between the two deepened over DSHULRGZKHQ.DXÀLQVWUXJJOHGWRPDNHLW DV D PXVLFLDQ DQG 7HUU\ ZDV GHDOLQJ ZLWK VLJQL¿FDQW FRPSOLFDWLRQV IURP GLDEHWHV C ONTINUED ON P AGE 14
