70 years after Charlie Parker’s death: addictions and genius of the jazz icon

70 years after Charlie Parker’s death: addictions and genius of the jazz icon

One of the most important saxophonists of all time maintained such a vertiginous rhythm that could not endure it.

Born in 1920, Charlie Parker It is considered The best saxophonist in history. The musician created a new style within the jazzthe genre revolutionized and was always remembered for its frantic way of living.

Many claim that he had a natural ability to extract perfectly refined and melodic sounds to your instrumentwhich is why he nicknamed him Bird. Others also suggest that the nickname is due to their love for fried chicken.

Charlie Parker 2.WEBP

A bird that flew at full speed

Parker was always a bird that flew at full speed. From a young age he already demonstrated, arrogant, all his talent, while consumed all kinds of alcohol and drugs. The funny thing is that, although their excesses led to an early death, their technique to play was never harmed.

There are and many anecdotes; Miles Davis He remembered an occasion when Parker did not appear at any trial for a show, but appeared for the day of the presentation, in which He played perfect and even marked mistakes to his bandmates. There are also his stories of his committing your saxo to buy drugsan addiction that reached the point where a nightclub hired a person in charge of recovering the Bird instrument.

Despite its devotion to substances, Parker was a high -flying musician. In fact, together with the historic Dizzie Gillespie created the bebopa genre that displaced the Swing Already the Big Bands forever, and what demanded a more attentive listening. While his style was not fashionable, he ended up marking a trend in the following years, since Improvisation with unlimited possibilities caught the attention of gender fans.

Bird’s death

Despite his inexhaustible genius, Parker had a life crossed by erratic behaviors, given its serious drug addiction. Also, a fatal episode ended up destroying his mental health; The death of his daughter for a bad pneumonia attended by lack of money.

And so he remained, among his born talent to play and his tragic way of living, Until 34 years. A March 12, 1955he died of a heart attack in New York City while watching the orchestra of Tommy Dorsy On television. His condition was so deplorable that the coroner who performed the autopsy erroneously estimated that the body of Parker He was between 50 and 60 years after years of consumption.

Source: Ambito

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