Description

A figure of the American counterculture, composer and guitarist Frank Zappa (1940–1993) believed that “Anything, Any Time, Anywhere for No Reason at All”—music, texts, interviews, films, statements, etc.––should be considered part of his aesthetic. This maximalist credo revealed as much about the eclectic sources that nourished his compositions as about his prolific and varied output. Born in Maryland and raised partly in California, Zappa became interested during his teenage years in the avant-garde classical music of Edgard Varèse, as well as in doo-wop, blues, and R&B. After graduating from high school he formed the band that would become the Mothers of Invention. In 1966 they released the seminal Freak Out! in which Zappa’s acerbic humor, socially critical lyrics, and complex orchestral arrangements were already evident. The band performed together with different lineups until 1975. With them and on his own, Zappa recorded close to eighty albums of compositions ranging from jazz and electronica to concrete music and rock and roll.Conocida figura de la contracultura estadounidense, el compositor y guitarrista Frank Zappa (1940–1993) creía que “cualquier cosa, en cualquier momento, en cualquier lugar, sin razón particular”, ya fuera música, textos, entrevistas, películas, declaraciones, etc., debía considerarse parte de su estética. Este credo maximalista refleja no solo las fuentes eclécticas que nutrieron sus composiciones sino también su prolífica y variada producción. Zappa nació en Maryland y en su adolescencia se mudó con su familia a California, donde se interesó en la música clásica vanguardista de Edgard Varèse y también en el doo-wop,...

Record Contributed By

National Portrait Gallery

Record Harvested From

Smithsonian Institution