Janie Gust's love for music was planted early. She began more than a decade of classical piano lessons at age four after her parents were unable to pry her away from the family piano at their home outside Chicago, Illinois. As a teenager, she was hired to play for a children's choir at a Baptist church and found the experience jolting. "I had always been told that I was a very good pianist, particularly since I had peaked at such a young age, and had even played a few recitals. Suddenly I was thrust into a situation where being able to sight-read and play fairly complex pieces as written meant absolutely nothing." That early fear and awe of musical improvisation was a factor in moving away from music later in her education.
These days, however, Janie feels she has come full circle. "Although I was exposed to lots of jazz growing up, I had avoided it somewhat over the years. I realized that I was totally in love with jazz when I spent a few months in France during 2001. It took seeing it highly valued in another culture to realize what a priceless gift we gave the world. Jazz is an experience which deserves respect and we must honor that. You don't eat filet mignon the same way you chow down a Big Mac. I believe many people are afraid or intimidated over jazz as I was, and as a result shy away from it. When it is presented in the proper context most people can and will develop an appreciation for jazz--and realize that you don't have to understand or like everything. It is such a diverse and evolving genre that the last thing it could ever be is confining." Janie is an attorney and resides in downtown Los Angeles. She may be contacted at chezjanie@gmail.com.
I would like to tell you about two women with whom you may not be familiar. Each woman, while coming from extremely different worlds, had common elements. Each set her own course in life and defied conventional wisdom. They also shared one common denominator who would define their lives for the ages: Jazz pianist and composer Thelonious Monk.
PART ONE: THE BEBOP BARONESS
The first woman, a product of old world Europe, was nevertheless the definition of an unconventional woman. Her name was Pannonica de Koenigswarter (nee Kathleen Annie Pannonica Rothschild), born in 1913 to Lord Charles Rothschild of the financial and nature conservation English dynasty. Pannonica married a French baron, Jules de Koenigswarter, who notably aided in the French resistance during World War II while Nica went underground. Her full name included the title "Baroness," but her friends in the jazz world simply called her Nica.
Nica was not your typical Baroness. When the family moved to New York in connection with her husband's diplomatic function, Nica rebelled against the typical pomp and circumstance. She smoked joints, shunned diplomatic soirees and appeared a little too comfortable among blacks in a segregated society. When the marriage fell apart, Nica remained in New York and continued to cavort around town with her black male jazz musician friends, hosting jam sessions for them inside her apartment and raising eyebrows. When Charlie Parker died in March 1955 under questionable circumstances at her Manhattan home, Nica was thrown out of her building. She would eventually purchase a large estate in New Jersey filled with over 100 cats and a panoramic view of the Manhattan skyline.
After Parker's death, Nica began to hang out with Thelonious Monk, whom she had met in Paris in June 1954. The two were introduced backstage after one of Monk's performances by the brilliant black bebop pianist and mutual friend Mary Lou Williams. Nica and Monk became close friends. They hung out together at clubs along with other jazz musicians. Once, late one night, their vehicle was stopped by police and Monk was reportedly beaten by police officers. When drugs were found, police tried to bring charges against Monk but Nica insisted that the drugs were hers.
GO TO PART 2: NELLIE SMITH MONK AND CONCLUSION
For photos of Nica, Nellie and Monk you may visit my personal blog at:
www.chez-janie.blogspot.com
You can play jazz easy or you can do it the hard way. It depends whether the band has the swing or not. And it differs from night to night.
– Turk Murphy
Adagio fromaggio: to play in a slow and cheesy manner.
