A Philadelphia native Getz was inspired by Lester Young. His was a cool sensibility, a laid-back nonchalance that belied pristine technical playing. It sounded like he was barely trying and yet ‘the sound’, also his nickname, holds tight to a listener’s ear and never lets go. Interest in the hypnotic rhythm of Bossa Nova saw Getz collaborate with Charlie Byrd and then famously with Joao Gilberto. That connection solidly introduced the Brazilian sound to the world. Sultry with an hedonistic charm, the sweet seduction of Getz’s sound is a defining factor.
Getz was artistically and personally demanding.
These words are his own: “My life is music, and in some vague, mysterious and subconscious way, I have always been driven by a taut inner spring which has propelled me to almost compulsively reach for perfection in music, often – in fact, mostly – at the expense of everything else in my life”. Getz’s artistry was fueled by the energy at the projection end of a taut inner spring.