 Hal Crook | In 1980 when I was 25 I spent some time studying in private lessons with a wonderful Rhode Island-based musician, Hal Crook. Although he was only five years older than I was he was ages ahead of me in his musical understanding and ability. With Hal I focused on jazz arranging & composition as well as jazz improvisation. Lessons with him were always enlightening and I would leave with my head spinning, full of ideas and concepts. I would feel as though I was floating in air. One of his assignments was for me to compose a song that included a type of chord and scale that we were exploring. (For you musicians, it was the min7b5 chord with Locrian natural 9 scale.) The result was Free-Fall, a title that represents that "floating in air" feeling I would have after our lessons. In 1980 I arranged it for rhythm section (piano, bass and drums) with trumpet, tenor sax and trombone. For this 2026 release I rearranged the horns for flute, soprano sax and alto sax which I am playing. I also enlisted the help of my friend and pianist Fabiano de Castro from São Paulo, Brazil who contributes so much to this recording. Hal Crook has retired from performing but is writing novels, short stories and poetry. He recently told me "Bruce, I thought composing with notes was challenging. Words are so much more so!" My thanks to him for providing me with a lifetime of inspiration! Thanks for listening! Bruce Many thanks to pianist Fabiano de Castro for his contribution to this track. His album "Ímpares" was released last September. For more info on Hal Crook visit his website at halcrook.com. |
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From the album Blue Rose. (Sheet music for many of these songs is available on the Original Music page.)
Available on YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Music, Pandora, iHeart Radio and all streaming platforms.
Click the image below to listen to Free-Fall on YouTube.
Click here to listen to the entire album on YouTube.
Free to listen, no account or subscription required.
From the album Blue Rose. (Sheet music for many of these songs is available on the Original Music page.)
Available on YouTube, Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Music, Pandora, iHeart Radio and all streaming platforms.
Click the image below to listen to Free-Fall on YouTube.
Click here to listen to the entire album on YouTube.
Free to listen, no account or subscription required.
