Learning From The Best: Miles Davis, Kind of Blue

This is part of a series of posts aiming to help myself, and other musicians, learn from the best.

My recommendation today: a 55 minute documentary about the making of Miles Davis' most popular album: Kind of Blue.

Kind of Blue, Celebrating a Masterpiece

Updated February 11th, 2019: Unfortunately, the documentary doesn't seem to be available online anymore but I will keep looking for it and update as soon as I find it!

Key Takeaways

While I highly encourage you to watch the whole documentary (if you can find it!) and enjoy the music (see above), here's what I got out of it.

Keep It Spontaneous

Spontaneity is what makes music expressive and full of life.

Kind of blue, first take — "Good enough"

Kind of blue, spirit of discovery — "Good enough"

How can I translate that in my own music making practice?

Whatever you can do in the music studio to keep the music alive and expressive, do it!

Try New Stuff

An empty blank canvas can be scary.

Part of the genius of Miles Davis may have been to create a solid framework in which the "justice league of jazz musicians" felt free to experiment and express themselves.