MAO Legendary Albums - Joni Mitchell: Mingus

The musicians of the MAO study and embellish all of the current recordings, leaving the musical structures and instrumentation intact during the performances. As improvisation and soloistic expression are essential components of the jazz language, the musicians naturally perform improvised solos at the concerts. Thanks to the respect for original compositions and orchestrations and the improvisations of musicians of the quality that the Modern Art Orchestra is known for, the Legendary Albums bring listeners into contact with the tradition of jazz masterpieces and guarantee a fresh musical experience.

Joni Mitchell: Mingus

The album Mingus doesn't start off as if it's going to deal with the big, final questions, we're first dropped into a birthday party. But then Joni Mitchell is singing about a man (who is three people): God must be a Boogie man! Some of Mitchell's thought-provoking lyrics are set to the tunes of Charles Mingus, a legendary jazz bassist and composer 21 years her senior. They began working together with the then terminally ill (ALS) Mingus, but it wasn't until the summer of '71, after Mingus' death, that the album was released and became one of the most uplifting tributes in jazz history, with instant classics like Dry Cleaner from Des Moines. Mitchell experimented with the band members in the studio for a long time, only to find the ideal solution was provided by Jaco Pastorius, with brilliant bass playing worthy of Mingus, alongside Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock and Peter Erskine, among others.