George Duke
// pianist & synthesizer pioneerGEORGE DUKE is a Christian composer, musician, music producer, pianist, singer, and synthesizer pioneer from Los Angeles, California. George Duke Trio’s “The Jean-Luc Ponty Experience” (1969) was available from Pacific Jazz Records, George Duke’s “Brazilian Love Affair” (1979) was available from Epic Records, “Snapshot” (1992), “Muir Woods Suite” (1993), “Illusions” (1995), “Is Love Enough” (1997), “After Hours” (1998), and “Cool” (2000) were all available from Warner Bros. Records, “Face The Music” (2002), “Duke” (2005), and “In A Mellow Tone” (2006) are all available from Big Piano Music, and “Dukey Treats” (2008) is available from Big Piano Music and Heads Up Records. George Duke has also collaborated and performed with many diverse musicians including Cannonball Adderley, Stanley Clarke, Billy Cobham, Dizzy Gillespie, Jean Luc-Ponty, Nancy Wilson, and Frank Zappa.
Photo: George Duke
Interview:
At its best, music is spiritually conceived, derived, and performed. Spirit is the intangible stuff that makes music work and become more than just a collection of notes, phrases, and rhythmic syncopations. Music should touch people where words cannot – in fact music is a language and the spirit of music is the truth. When you think about it, music was born of spirit. Our creator gave the initial gift to someone a long time ago and that gift has manifested itself into a global commodity and necessity. I truly believe God’s intent for music was to heal, console, teach, preach, entertain, and educate. Further, music is the first wireless medium. It was designed to reach people deeply in their souls almost by osmosis if you will. However, somewhere along the way many musicians, seeing the affect music has on people, began to distort the original intent and create music for reasons other than those mentioned above. This created a huge catalog of music that doesn’t reach or touch people where it counts. In many ways music without spirit is a waste of time and energy. Now that’s not to say that an artist cannot have commercial success without spirit, but the music that lasts generally has that something 59 extra, that intangible thing and that thing is the spirit of music which in essence is the spirit of God. I truly believe it is close to the Holy Spirit or derived from that mother of spirits in some way. I have a name for this spirit – The Ancient Source, and this source is available to every musician, all they need do is make use of it. So in essence, Spirit is the essential ingredient without which music becomes simply a collection of notes and rhythms without a true purpose. Spirit is truth and music at its best is and must remain the Truth.
“Music should touch people where words cannot – in fact music is a language and the spirit of music is the truth. When you think about it, music was born of spirit.”
– George Duke, pianist and synthesizer pioneer
