Charlie Parker
Alto Sax Solo on
Meandering

About

Charlie Parker's alto saxophone solo is the first of two improvisations on this slow ballad performance, a contrafact based on the chord changes of "Embraceable You." Taking one chorus of the 32-bar ABAC form in E-flat at 60 BPM, Parker unfolds a solo of extraordinary lyricism and harmonic depth. At this ballad tempo, every note choice is exposed and carries maximum weight, and Parker responds with playing of exceptional beauty, his phrases breathing with a patience and emotional directness that complement the more intricate harmonic language he was pioneering.

Charlie Parker was 24 to 25 years old at the time.