The career of trumpeter Miles Davis was one of the
most astonishingly productive that jazz music has ever
seen. Yet his genius has never received its due. The
impatience and artistic restlessness that characterized
(5) his work spawned one stylistic turn after another and
made Davis anathema to many critics, who deplored
his abandonment first of bebop and then of "cool"
acoustic jazz for ever more innovative sounds.
Having begun his career studying bebop, Davis
(10) pulled the first of many stylistic surprises when, in
1948, he became a member of an impromptu musical
think tank that gathered in a New York City apartment.
The work of this group not only slowed down tempos
and featured ensemble playing as much as or even
(15) more than solos-in direct reaction to bebop-it also
became the seedbed for the "West Coast cool" jazz
style.
In what would become a characteristic zigzag,
Davis didn't follow up on these innovations himself.
(20) Instead, in the late 1950s he formed a new band that
broke free from jazz's restrictive pattern of chord
changes. Soloists could determine the shapes of their
melodies without referring back to the same unvarying
repetition of chords. In this period, Davis attempted to
(25) join jazz phrasings, harmonies, and tonal qualities with
a unified and integrated sound similar to that of a
classical orchestral piece: in his recordings the
rhythms, no matter how jazzlike, are always
understated, and the instrumental voicings seem muted.
(30) Davis's recordings from the late 1960s signal that,
once again, his direction was changing. On Filles de
Kilimanjaro, Davis's request that keyboardist Herbie
Hancock play electric rather than acoustic piano caused
consternation among jazz purists of the time. Other
(35) albums featured rock-style beats, heavily electronic
instrumentation, a loose improvisational attack and a
growing use of studio editing to create jagged
soundscapes. By 1969 Davis's typical studio procedure
was to have musicians improvise from a base script of
(40) material and then to build finished pieces out of tape,
like a movie director. Rock groups had pioneered the
process; to jazz lovers, raised on the ideal of live
improvisation, that approach was a violation of the
premise that recordings should simply document the
(45) musicians' thought processes in real time. Davis again
became the target of fierce polemics by purist jazz
critics, who have continued to belittle his contributions
to jazz.
What probably underlies the intensity of the
(50) reactions against Davis is fear of the broadening of
possibilities that he exemplified. Ironically, he was
simply doing what jazz explorers have always done:
reaching for something new that was his own. But
because his career endured, because he didn't die
(55) young or record only sporadically, and because he
refused to dwell in whatever niche he had previously
carved out, critics find it difficult to definitively rank
Davis in the aesthetic hierarchy to which they cling.
Miles Davies
This topic has expert replies
This is a LSAT Q. Most answers in other forum seem to be
1 . B 2. C or E 3. A or C 4. E 5. A or B 6. B
1. Which one of the following best states the main point
of the passage?
(A) Because the career of Miles Davis was
characterized by frequent shifts in styles, he
never fulfilled his musical potential.
(B) Because the career of Miles Davis does not fit
neatly into their preconceptions about the life
and music of jazz musicians, jazz critics have
not accorded him the appreciation he deserves.
(C) Because the career of Miles Davis was unusually
long and productive, he never received the
popular acclaim generally reserved for artists
with more tragic life histories.
(D) The long and productive career of Miles Davis
spawned most of the major stylistic changes
affecting twentieth-century jazz.
(E) Miles Davis's versatility and openness have
inspired the admiration of most jazz critics.
2. According to the passage, which one of the following
is true of the "West Coast cool" jazz style?
(A) It was popularized by Miles Davis.
(B) It was characterized by a unified and integrated
sound.
(C) It was played primarily by large ensembles.
(D) It introduced a wide variety of chord change
patterns.
(E) It grew out of innovations developed in New
York City.
3. The passage suggests which one of the following about
the kind of jazz played by Miles Davis prior to 1948?
(A) It was characterized by rapid tempos and an
emphasis on solo playing.
(B) It equally balanced ensemble and solo playing.
(C) It was a reaction against more restrictive jazz
styles.
(D) It is regarded by purist jazz critics as the only
authentic jazz style.
(E) It was played primarily in New York City jazz
clubs.
4. Which one of the following best describes the author's
attitude toward Miles Davis's music?
(A) uneasy ambivalence
(B) cautious neutrality
(C) grudging respect
(D) moderate commendation
(E) appreciative advocacy
5. Which one of the following creative processes is most
similar to Miles Davis's typical studio procedure of the
late 1960s, as described in the fourth paragraph of the
passage?
(A) The producer of a television comedy show
suggests a setting and general topic for a comedy
sketch and then lets the comedians write their
own script.
(B) An actor digresses from the written script and
improvises during a monologue in order to
introduce a feeling of spontaneity to the
performance.
(C) A conductor rehearses each section of the
orchestra separately before assembling them to
rehearse the entire piece together.
(D) An artist has several photographers take pictures
pertaining to a certain assigned theme and then
assembles them into a pictorial collage.
(E) A teacher has each student in a writing class
write an essay on an assigned topic and then
submits the best essays to be considered for
publication in a journal.
6. Which one of the following, if true, would
most undermine the author's explanation for
the way Miles Davis is regarded by jazz critics?
(A) Many jazz musicians who specialize in
improvisational playing are greatly admired
by jazz critics.
(B) Many jazz musicians whose careers have been
characterized by several radical changes in style
are greatly admired by jazz critics.
(C) Several jazz musicians who perform exclusively
on electronic instruments are very highly
regarded by jazz critics.
(D) The jazz innovators who are held in the highest
regard by jazz critics had brief yet brilliant
careers.
(E) Jazz critics are known to have a higher regard for
musicality than for mere technical virtuosity.
1 . B 2. C or E 3. A or C 4. E 5. A or B 6. B
1. Which one of the following best states the main point
of the passage?
(A) Because the career of Miles Davis was
characterized by frequent shifts in styles, he
never fulfilled his musical potential.
(B) Because the career of Miles Davis does not fit
neatly into their preconceptions about the life
and music of jazz musicians, jazz critics have
not accorded him the appreciation he deserves.
(C) Because the career of Miles Davis was unusually
long and productive, he never received the
popular acclaim generally reserved for artists
with more tragic life histories.
(D) The long and productive career of Miles Davis
spawned most of the major stylistic changes
affecting twentieth-century jazz.
(E) Miles Davis's versatility and openness have
inspired the admiration of most jazz critics.
2. According to the passage, which one of the following
is true of the "West Coast cool" jazz style?
(A) It was popularized by Miles Davis.
(B) It was characterized by a unified and integrated
sound.
(C) It was played primarily by large ensembles.
(D) It introduced a wide variety of chord change
patterns.
(E) It grew out of innovations developed in New
York City.
3. The passage suggests which one of the following about
the kind of jazz played by Miles Davis prior to 1948?
(A) It was characterized by rapid tempos and an
emphasis on solo playing.
(B) It equally balanced ensemble and solo playing.
(C) It was a reaction against more restrictive jazz
styles.
(D) It is regarded by purist jazz critics as the only
authentic jazz style.
(E) It was played primarily in New York City jazz
clubs.
4. Which one of the following best describes the author's
attitude toward Miles Davis's music?
(A) uneasy ambivalence
(B) cautious neutrality
(C) grudging respect
(D) moderate commendation
(E) appreciative advocacy
5. Which one of the following creative processes is most
similar to Miles Davis's typical studio procedure of the
late 1960s, as described in the fourth paragraph of the
passage?
(A) The producer of a television comedy show
suggests a setting and general topic for a comedy
sketch and then lets the comedians write their
own script.
(B) An actor digresses from the written script and
improvises during a monologue in order to
introduce a feeling of spontaneity to the
performance.
(C) A conductor rehearses each section of the
orchestra separately before assembling them to
rehearse the entire piece together.
(D) An artist has several photographers take pictures
pertaining to a certain assigned theme and then
assembles them into a pictorial collage.
(E) A teacher has each student in a writing class
write an essay on an assigned topic and then
submits the best essays to be considered for
publication in a journal.
6. Which one of the following, if true, would
most undermine the author's explanation for
the way Miles Davis is regarded by jazz critics?
(A) Many jazz musicians who specialize in
improvisational playing are greatly admired
by jazz critics.
(B) Many jazz musicians whose careers have been
characterized by several radical changes in style
are greatly admired by jazz critics.
(C) Several jazz musicians who perform exclusively
on electronic instruments are very highly
regarded by jazz critics.
(D) The jazz innovators who are held in the highest
regard by jazz critics had brief yet brilliant
careers.
(E) Jazz critics are known to have a higher regard for
musicality than for mere technical virtuosity.
-
- Senior | Next Rank: 100 Posts
- Posts: 32
- Joined: Sun Aug 10, 2008 5:36 am
- Thanked: 1 times
-
- Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
- Posts: 126
- Joined: Wed Jun 24, 2009 1:12 pm
- Location: Montreal
- Thanked: 2 times
- GMAT Score:510
Hi:
1-B
2-E - cant be C because playing ensemble (together) is not the only characteristic: "The work of this group not only slowed down tempos and featured ensemble playing as much as or even (15) more than solos-in direct reaction to bebop-it also became the seedbed for the West Coast cool jazz"
style.
3-A -can't be C because the reactions against more restrictive jazz is mentioned after 1950s (line 20) "Instead, in the late 1950s he formed a new band that broke free from jazz's restrictive pattern of chord changes".
4-E
5-D - we look for a kind of director that let improvise their crew, and then he organizes the results, recorded.
cant be A because the actors write the scripts, the director does nothing of integration
cant be B because the actor improvises without considering the script, te directot, again, does nothing.
cant be c because the conductor rehearses everything, no crew.
Only D has that structure: a leader letting the crew improvise and then the leader organizes the results.
6-B
1-B
2-E - cant be C because playing ensemble (together) is not the only characteristic: "The work of this group not only slowed down tempos and featured ensemble playing as much as or even (15) more than solos-in direct reaction to bebop-it also became the seedbed for the West Coast cool jazz"
style.
3-A -can't be C because the reactions against more restrictive jazz is mentioned after 1950s (line 20) "Instead, in the late 1950s he formed a new band that broke free from jazz's restrictive pattern of chord changes".
4-E
5-D - we look for a kind of director that let improvise their crew, and then he organizes the results, recorded.
cant be A because the actors write the scripts, the director does nothing of integration
cant be B because the actor improvises without considering the script, te directot, again, does nothing.
cant be c because the conductor rehearses everything, no crew.
Only D has that structure: a leader letting the crew improvise and then the leader organizes the results.
6-B
- sumanr84
- Legendary Member
- Posts: 758
- Joined: Sat Aug 29, 2009 9:32 pm
- Location: Bangalore,India
- Thanked: 67 times
- Followed by:2 members
Tough RC . It took me 14 mins to answer all the question(im slow in RCs), how about you guys ?
I got answers as follows,
1. B
2. E
3. B
4. E
5. A
6. C
I got answers as follows,
1. B
2. E
3. B
4. E
5. A
6. C
I am on a break !!
- Mayur Sand
- Master | Next Rank: 500 Posts
- Posts: 166
- Joined: Fri Apr 03, 2009 11:16 pm
- Location: India