John Bayless

Improvisation has been key, the main driving force,
the main way I’ve made music all my life.

In the recording of Bach Meets the Beatles,
they really were improvs.

I knew what songs I was going to do
and I knew the mood I was going to create with them.

It’s like Papa Bach handed that to me. 
Make Penny Lane a gigue.

In Bach’s time, and probably before, and certainly thereafter,
but not now, improvisation was a huge part of a musical life,
a huge part of a musical education.

In Bach’s period and Mozart, the cadenzas in concertos,
they didn’t write those out, they did them differently every night.

And that was, if you will, the American Idol moment. 
That’s when the stars were born, when they would show off.

They would show their command of the keyboard
and be able to smoke, if you will. 
Amazing stuff coming out.

John Bayless, website