America: John Wick 1924

Chapter 77 showcases his piano skills, astonishing everyone present!
After entering the dance hall smoothly, Li Yu walked through a straight corridor and then pushed open the heavy wooden door at the end of the corridor—

In an instant, the stench of sweat, shouts of joy, and the vibrant jazz music all mingled together and rushed towards Li Yu.

Above the orchestra pit, several musicians were playing music with great effort.

On the dance floor, countless men and women thronged shoulder to shoulder, swaying their limbs and waists to the music, beads of sweat glistening on their foreheads, and dust gleaming from their heels.

In the 1920s, jazz swept across the United States with tremendous force, becoming wildly popular among young people.

Dancing to jazz music in nightclubs has become one of the fashionable activities for young Americans in this era.

Under normal circumstances, Li Yu might have listened to music with great interest—he hadn't listened to jazz in a long time and was itching to listen.

What a pity, he didn't come here tonight to seek pleasure.

He pretended to be looking for a dance partner as he walked around the dance floor, his gaze sweeping over the faces of everyone present.

He quickly and discreetly circled the dance floor—to no avail. He couldn't find Martin anywhere.

This was exactly what Li Yu had expected.

Martin is the highest-ranking manager of this dance hall, so he wouldn't show up casually. He's most likely in an office upstairs right now.

How do we find Martin...?

Just then, Li Yu belatedly recalled the information that Chang Lu Ningning had just provided:

(Like Matteo, Martin loves music, especially jazz.)
(He often invited highly skilled jazz musicians to perform in his dance hall.)
(If one can play a beautiful piece of music that perfectly suits Martin's tastes, one will receive a large reward and may even be summoned by Martin to discuss jazz together.)
"..."

After a moment's thought, Li Yu took out a Marlboro cigarette case with four cigarettes left in his pocket and strode towards the orchestra pit.

Coincidentally, when Li Yu jumped into the orchestra pit, the musicians had just finished playing a piece and were taking a break.

Seeing Li Yu suddenly approach, the pianist raised an eyebrow and shouted:

"Hey buddy, nobody is allowed near the orchestra pit!"

"Take this and smoke it, it's on me."

Without a word, Li Yu shoved the cigarette case in his hand into the other man's hand, then plopped down next to him and used sheer brute force to push him aside.

The next moment, urgent piano music rang out.

He first slid from the leftmost key to the rightmost key, and then from the rightmost key to the leftmost key.

After quickly checking the tone and drawing everyone's attention with a series of rapid notes, his ten fingers danced rapidly across the eighty-eight keys.

Jazz music, unlike anything the audience had ever heard before, filled the entire venue.

Li Yu has a wide range of musical tastes, including classical, jazz, rock, and modern pop music.

Therefore, although he was trained in classical piano and grew up playing Beethoven and Mozart, he also studied jazz piano extensively due to his personal preferences.

Jazz music today is still in its infancy, unlike later generations which have developed numerous schools and sophisticated playing techniques.

Most people who come to dance halls can't distinguish between good and bad music, nor do they want to listen to classic or sophisticated music—they just want to listen to upbeat music and then dance to their heart's content!
Therefore, it becomes clear what kind of music should be played to get the whole dance hall hyped up.

The piece Li Yu was engraving and playing was "So Good," composed by Brian Culbertson.

Li Yu really liked this piece of music. It was like a grand carnival, with a strong rhythm that could make listeners feel happy and excited without even realizing it.

Using this piece to heat up the atmosphere is absolutely perfect! In this era when jazz is just starting out, the mature playing techniques of modern jazz are nothing short of a game-changer!
As expected, after Li Yu played this piece, the men and women on the dance floor were first startled, then cheered, and involuntarily swayed their bodies.

In a corner of the dance floor, a burly man who looked like a security guard stared in astonishment at Li Yu, who had become the center of attention on the orchestra floor.

Immediately, he turned his head and said to his companion beside him:

"Go find the boss and tell him, 'A jazz virtuoso has arrived!'"

……

……

The musicians in the orchestra pit were all dumbfounded.

Every single one of them stared blankly at Li Yu as he began his piano solo.

As the saying goes, "The layman sees the spectacle, the expert sees the details." As professional jazz musicians, they understand the extraordinary aspects of Li Yu's performance better than the average person.

The young man who suddenly appeared was playing a very novel type of jazz that they had never heard of before!

A moment later, in order to make it easier to exert force and to create a lively atmosphere, Li Yu suddenly stood up, pounding the piano keys while turning his head to look at the musician responsible for playing the double bass.

The other person swallowed hard and quickly steadied the double bass in their arms.

Although they didn't exchange a single word, they had already communicated through their eyes and the unspoken understanding between the musicians.

(It's your turn to solo, are you ready?)

As soon as Li Yu's violin playing stopped, his partner immediately took over and began a double bass solo.

"Improvisation" and "solo performances on various instruments" are characteristics of jazz.

In other words, even if you don't understand the music Li Yu is playing, it doesn't matter—just follow the musical framework that Li Yu just left behind and play it to your heart's content based on your intuition!

Music is a language that transcends race and nationality; it allows for communication through notes and melodies alone.

And so, the double bass player plucked the strings with all his might, trying his best to cooperate with Li Yu, further enhancing the atmosphere of the scene.

A moment later, Li Yu turned his head again and looked at the musician in charge of playing the saxophone.

The other person immediately gripped the saxophone in their hand, showing a tense yet impatient expression.

After the double bass player finished playing, he smoothly took over and began his saxophone solo.

Li Yu became the absolute center of the orchestra pit. Although he didn't say a word, he could freely mobilize every musician in the pit just by looking at his expression and eyes!
The musicians present were all highly skilled. Even when playing pieces they had never heard before, they were able to cooperate to the best of their ability and barely keep up with the melody that Li Yu had just played.

After each instrument, including the double bass, saxophone, and drum kit, had completed its solo, Li Yu placed his ten fingers on the keys again and looked around the orchestra pit.

The other musicians understood and picked up their instruments.

The next moment, all the instruments burst forth with joyful melodies, blending together to begin a grand ensemble like a carnival!

The atmosphere at the scene reached its peak at this moment!

The men and women on the dance floor had forgotten about dancing; their gazes were all focused on the orchestra pit, specifically on Li Yu.

(End of this chapter)