A new exhibit at the Montreal Museum of Fine Art celebrates the unconventional life of the world’s greatest trumpeter, the man who personified ‘cool.’
Miles Davis, the late jazz icon who has been the subject of much lore since his rise to prominence in the late 1940’s, is the subject of a multimedia exhibition called “We Want Miles: Miles Davis Vs. Jazz.”
The exhibition offers a new look into the broad spectrum of Davis’s long and varied career. Musical excerpts are featured alongside paintings by Jean-Michel Basquiat and Mati Klarwein and photographs by Annie Leibovitz and Irving Penn.
Divided into eight thematic and chronological periods in the life and work of Davis, the show highlights his strong influence on music as well as on other art forms.
The exhibit also features some of Davis’s own paintings and drawings, an artistic outlet important to him. Some of the paintings are on display for the first time.
Costumes, musical instruments belonging to Miles and his band mates, and scores lent by the Davis family are also on show. A special section is dedicated to his many concerts in Montreal.
The “Jazz Town” of Montreal saw its share of Miles Davis performances over the years. With its prestigious Jazz Fest and a populace who loves the genre, Montreal has long enjoyed a special relationship with Davis.
The audio visual aspect of the exhibit features 38 projectors screening some previously unreleased footage and six listening stations that ensure music remains the central focus of the exhibit.
Davis’s guarded and intense personality added to the mystique that surrounded his playing and his life. A photogenic figure, there is an intensity in Davis’s eyes that both invites and frightens at the same time.
From pioneering and reinventing the course of jazz to delving into the depths of a heroin addiction, Davis remained prolific and pushed the boundaries of the jazz genre, shaping the musical consciousness of the 20th century.
He pioneered cool jazz with “Rebirth of Cool,” invented hard bop and recorded his modal jazz magnum opus with “Kind of Blue,” arguably the greatest jazz album of all time.
Davis continually broke new musical ground and always maintained a staunch position of renewal when it came to creativity , much to the dismay of the many critics who would have preferred him to stay in an easy-to-define jazz box.
The exhibit was designed and organized by the Cité de la Musique, Paris, with the support of Miles Davis Properties, LLC, in collaboration with the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. It will continue until Aug. 29.
Miles Davis, the late jazz icon who has been the subject of much lore since his rise to prominence in the late 1940’s, is the subject of a multimedia exhibition called “We Want Miles: Miles Davis Vs. Jazz.”
The exhibition offers a new look into the broad spectrum of Davis’s long and varied career. Musical excerpts are featured alongside paintings by Jean-Michel Basquiat and Mati Klarwein and photographs by Annie Leibovitz and Irving Penn.
Divided into eight thematic and chronological periods in the life and work of Davis, the show highlights his strong influence on music as well as on other art forms.
The exhibit also features some of Davis’s own paintings and drawings, an artistic outlet important to him. Some of the paintings are on display for the first time.
Costumes, musical instruments belonging to Miles and his band mates, and scores lent by the Davis family are also on show. A special section is dedicated to his many concerts in Montreal.
The “Jazz Town” of Montreal saw its share of Miles Davis performances over the years. With its prestigious Jazz Fest and a populace who loves the genre, Montreal has long enjoyed a special relationship with Davis.
The audio visual aspect of the exhibit features 38 projectors screening some previously unreleased footage and six listening stations that ensure music remains the central focus of the exhibit.
Davis’s guarded and intense personality added to the mystique that surrounded his playing and his life. A photogenic figure, there is an intensity in Davis’s eyes that both invites and frightens at the same time.
From pioneering and reinventing the course of jazz to delving into the depths of a heroin addiction, Davis remained prolific and pushed the boundaries of the jazz genre, shaping the musical consciousness of the 20th century.
He pioneered cool jazz with “Rebirth of Cool,” invented hard bop and recorded his modal jazz magnum opus with “Kind of Blue,” arguably the greatest jazz album of all time.
Davis continually broke new musical ground and always maintained a staunch position of renewal when it came to creativity , much to the dismay of the many critics who would have preferred him to stay in an easy-to-define jazz box.
The exhibit was designed and organized by the Cité de la Musique, Paris, with the support of Miles Davis Properties, LLC, in collaboration with the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. It will continue until Aug. 29.
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