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Anthony Amodeo
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He may have been the greatest but he was definitely an asshole.
Or maybe something was lost in translation?
http://ericbarnhill.wordpress.com/facts-about-improvisation/
Buddy's wasn't very adept at seeing things from someone else's point of view.
It's a pretty pig headed statement, no matter what era he lived in.
Symphonic musicians creativity is strictly limited to interpretations of the score that the conductor agrees with.
In a very real sense the symphony orchestra is the "instrument" through which the artist (composer and to a lesser degree the conductor) expresses himself.
It may seem arrogant at first but Buddy's statement is true. He didn't say "only truly creative artist is the jazz musician". He said "The only truly creative musician is the jazz musician".
Classical instrumentalists are not there to be creative as a primary responsibility.
I was lost in translation, once. Almost never found my way home.
In fairness to Buddy, I think he would have considered improvisational music from pretty much anywhere to be "jazz."