Ран Блейк: Жаздың инновациялық шебері

American pianist, composer, and educator

Ran Blake (born April 20, 1935) is an American pianist, composer, and educator. He is known for his unique style that combines blues, gospel, classical, and film noir influences into an innovative and dark jazz sound. His career spans over 40 recording credits on jazz albums along with more than 40 years of teaching jazz at the New England Conservatory of Music, where he started the Department of Third Stream (now called the Department of Contemporary Improvisation) with Gunther Schuller.

Blake was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, on April 20, 1935. After high school, he attended Bard College in New York, graduating in 1960 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Jazz, a major that had not previously existed at the school. At Bard he met Jeanne Lee, with whom he performed for many years. He also studied with John Lewis, Oscar Peterson, and Gunther Schuller The album shows Blake's signature style beginning to develop, as they paid homage to Blake's early influences with a tribute to David Raksin's "Laura" and a reworking of the gospel standard, "The Church on Russell Street". Lee and Blake continued to play together throughout their careers and released another album in 1989 entitled You Stepped out of a Cloud. Blake met Gunther Schuller in a chance encounter at Atlantic Records in 1959. Blake attended the School in 1959 and 1960. During his summers in Lenox, Blake began to develop his signature style. Schuller became a great friend and mentor to Blake throughout his career. Schuller organized the recording of The Newest Sound Around for Blake and Lee, and it was he who brought Blake to Atlantic Records, and later to the New England Conservatory. Blake met jazz pianist, composer, and arranger Mary Lou Williams during a performance at The Composer, a New York nightclub. She later became a mentor and a significant influence on his work. During his time as a student at Bard, Blake often travelled to see Williams perform and to take lessons from her. Later, Williams and Blake worked together while she was a visiting faculty member at the School of Jazz. In 1966, Blake released his first record as a soloist, Ran Blake Plays Solo Piano, on New York based label ESP Disk.

Blake's philosophy in teaching differs from that of many music educators, even in the jazz world. He calls his approach "the primacy of the ear". In 1977, he wrote an article for the Music Educator's Journal on having a career as a "Pop/Rock/Jazz instrumentalist". Blake also wrote Third Stream and the Importance of the Ear (1981), which served as a guide to his educational style, as well as an explanation and expansion upon the concept of Third Stream. In the article, he stressed that "the ear is and should be of primary importance." He discussed the more practical aspects of a career in music and stressed the importance of luck and showmanship over education and background. Blake's focus on improvisation and ear training, coupled with his diverse influences, have made him one of the more innovative music educators of the jazz world. He invites the reader to view Third Stream composition as any composition that bridges two distinct musical cultures, not just classical jazz fusion. He also stresses the importance of improvisation, and cites the need for improvisational education as one of the reasons he and Schuller started the Third Stream Department at the NEC. Blake argues that music is an aural art, and it must therefore be taught not by being "preoccupied with playing Chopin preludes on the piano or the latest copy of The Real Book (a popular jazz fake book) on the horn or guitar," but by dedicated listening, imitating, and improvising. He calls for students to listen and sing along to melodies on tape until they can reproduce the melody without the tape. It is essential, according to Blake, that a student do this before touching an instrument, as imitating the mechanics of a performance alone does not develop one's ear. In 2010, Ran Blake published a book with Jason Rogers entitled The Primacy of the Ear. In the 144 page work, Blake details his thinking about the artistic process and distills his approach both to teaching and playing. It explores the relationship between the ear and the mind, musical memory, ear training exercises, and an approach to developing one's personal style.

An asterisk (*) after the year indicates that it is the year of release.

Year recordedTitleLabelNotes1961The Newest Sound AroundRCA VictorDuo, with Jeanne Lee (vocals); some tracks with George Duvivier (bass)1965Ran Blake Plays Solo PianoESP DiskSolo piano1966/1967The Newest Sound You Never HeardA side RecordsDuo, with Jeanne Lee (vocals). Released in 2019.1969The Blue Potato and Other Outrages MilestoneSolo piano1975BreakthruImprovising ArtistsSolo piano1976WendeOwlSolo piano1977*Open CityHoroSolo piano1977Crystal TripHoroSolo piano1977Third Stream RecompositionsOwlSolo piano1978RapportNovusSome tracks solo piano; some tracks duo, with Ricky Ford (tenor sax); one track trio, with Rufus Reid (bass) added; one track duo with Anthony Braxton (alto sax); one track duo with Eleni Odoni (vocals); one track quartet, with Jerome Thomas (guitar), Reid (bass), Chris Connor (vocals)1978*Realization of a DreamOwlSolo piano1978*Take 1Golden CrestSolo piano1978*Take 2Golden CrestSolo piano1979*Third Stream TodayGolden CrestWith various, including Ricky Ford (tenor sax), Marty Erlich (alto sax), Hubert Powell (organ), Cleve Pozar (timbales)1980*Film NoirNovusWith various, including Ted Curson, Spenser MacLeish, Frank London, Chris Pasin, Ingrid Monson (trumpet)1981ImprovisationsSoul NoteDuo, with Jaki Byard (piano)1981Duke DreamsSoul NoteSolo piano1982*Portfolio of Dr. MabuseOwlWith NEC Orchestra1983Suffield GothicSoul NoteMost tracks solo piano; some tracks duo, with Houston Person (tenor sax)1985*VertigoOwlSolo piano1985Painted Rhythms: The Compleat Ran Blake, Volume 1GMSolo piano1985Painted Rhythms: The Compleat Ran Blake, Volume 2GMSolo piano1986Short Life of Barbara MonkSoul NoteQuartet, with Ricky Ford (tenor sax), Ed Felson (bass), Jon Hazilla (drums)1988A Memory of ViennahatOLOGYWith Anthony Braxton (alto sax); released 19971989You Stepped Out of a CloudOwlMost tracks duo, with Jeanne Lee (vocals); some tracks trio, with George Duvivier (bass) added1989Masters from Different WorldsMapleshadeOne track solo piano; two tracks duo, with Clifford Jordan (tenor sax, soprano sax); most other tracks with Jordan and some of Julian Priester (trombone), Windmill Saxophone Quartet, Steve Williams (drums), Alfredo Mojica (congas), Claudia Polley (vocals)1990That Certain FeelinghatARTWith Steve Lacy (soprano sax), Ricky Ford (tenor sax)1991EpistrophySoul NoteSolo piano1994*Round AboutWith Christine Correa (vocals)1994Unmarked Van: A Tribute to Sarah VaughanSoul NoteMost tracks solo piano; some tracks duo, with Tiziano Tononi (drums)1998Something to Live ForhatOLOGYMost tracks duo, with Guillermo Gregorio (clarinet) or David Fabris (guitar)1999*Duo En NoirBetween the LinesWith Enrico Rava2000Horace Is BluehatOLOGYWith David Fabris, James Merenda2001Sonic TemplesGMWith Nicole Kampgen Schuller (alto sax), Ed Schuller (bass), George Schuller (drums, percussion)2005*Indian WinterSoul NoteWith David "Knife" Fabris (guitar)2005All That Is TiedTompkins SquareSolo piano2006Cinema ChateletSans BruitSolo piano; promotional album2008DriftwoodsTompkins SquareSolo piano2009KaleidoscopeCIMPWith Jon Hazilla (percussion), Kara D. Rusch (keyboards, cymbals)2010*Out of the ShadowsRed PianoDuo, with Christine Correa (vocals)2010*Camera ObscuraInner Circle MusicWith Sara Serpa (vocals)2010Ghost TonesA SideSome tracks solo piano; some tracks ensemble; in concert; released 20152011*Grey December: Live in RomeTompkins SquareSolo piano; in concert2011*WhirlpoolJazz ProjectWith Dominique Eade (vocals)2011*Vilnius NoirNoBusinessSome tracks solo piano; some tracks duo, with David "Knife" Fabris (guitar); one track Fabris (guitar) solo2012*AuroraClean FeedWith Sara Serpa (vocals)2012*Tribute to Abbey Lincoln, Volume OneRed PianoDuo, with Christine Correa (vocals)2013*Down Here BelowRed pianoWith Christine Correa (vocals)2014*Cocktails at Dusk – A Noir Tribute to Chris ConnorImpulse!Most tracks solo piano; some tracks duo with Laïka Fatien (vocals); some tracks duo with Ricky Ford (tenor sax)2013–14Kitano NoirSunnysideWith Sara Serpa (vocals); in concert2015*Chabrol NoirImpulse!Most tracks solo piano; some tracks duo with Ricky Ford (tenor sax); one track duo with Dominique Eade (vocals)2015*The Road Keeps Winding: Tribute to Abbey Lincoln, Volume TwoRed pianoWith Christine Correa (vocals)2017*Town and CountrySunnysideDuo, with Dominique Eade (vocals)2017*The Dorothy Wallace SuiteILK Music RecordsDuo, with Kresten Osgood (drums)2020*Northern NoirSteepleChase RecordsDuo, with Andrew Rathbun (tenor saxophone)