Pharoah Sanders playing inspiringly at the Catalina Bar and Grill last night, here in LA. (Click for larger view.)
How does he work those overtones so well?! Masters like Saunders can play entire beautiful chords played effortlessly on what is -for most people- a monophonic instrument. He seems to be able to do it particularly well… a pleasure to listen to – especially since for most of his choices of pieces to play he chose to work his way through the Coltrane songbook.
Just what I needed to end the week. An excellent evening indeed…
-cvj
Difficult to say… It might well be just that he does a few double notes so well and with such a tone that others spark to life in the listener’s mine in sympathy…
-cvj
I’m intrigued by the overtones. What sorts of chords can be played in this way? Are they simple ‘old school’ power chords (root + fifth) or escapees from the Joe Pass trick bag? Harmonics do extend an instrument amazingly – in terms of both ‘special effects’ and access to a normally unattainable upper register. Roland Kirk rendered the saxophone polyphonic in a different way – he was cool too.