[Dixielandjazz] Musical ability, a Sign of Intelligence?

[Steve barbone]

Charlie Suhor wrote: (polite snip)

> We've all known 
> musicians who were gifted in other areas, and musicians who were not
> very bright in school and other areas. Charlie Parker was an addict,
> and he once said that he spent four years in high school and ended up a
> sophomore. But nothing will convince me that he wasn't very broadly
> intelligent, his academic failure rooted in other causes. The
> abstraction of Bird's groundbreakingly complex rhythmic lines and his
> innovative improvisation on the higher intervals of chords demonstrate
> a creative genius, not a musical savant or an example of roped-off
> emotional intelligence.

Yes indeedy. Bird was one of the most intelligent men I have ever met. He
could converse meaningfully on just about any subject you can name from
Einstein's Theory of Relativity, to the meaning of life. And he was an
intensely curious person, seeking the reasons. He always asked "Why".

And he was at the same time, an emotional cripple with his addictions.
Perhaps "intelligence" has nothing to do with scholastic achievement? Didn't
Einstein himself have a relatively hard time in some classroom studies?

And he sure warn't no dummy. ;-) VBG.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone