(short version)
Three For One
David Liebman explains the birth and DNA of the Saxophone Summit
Musical situations like this are a rarity. Speaking for myself, to be part of such a group is something very special. The Summit grew out of a concert in Japan called “Live By The Sea” in 1997, which was a commemoration of a concert done ten years earlier that I had participated in with Wayne Shorter celebrating the twentieth anniversary of John Coltrane’s passing. For the ’97 concert, I was joined by Joshua Redman, Mike Brecker and George Garzone (substituting for Joe Lovano who couldn’t make it in the last moment). Word of the concert’s great success reached the promoters of the yearly Red Sea Festival in Israel who requested something similar for their program the following year. That concert in August, 1998 with Joe, Mike and myself was followed a few months later by several nights at Birdland in New York City, (an engagement repeated yearly since then), a concert of Coltrane’s music at Symphony Space in New York and a performance at the Montreal Festival during a four day program featuring Joe’s music. Alas, a band was born.
The jazz tradition is replete with bands featuring all-star lineups and highlighting one instrument. It is always a crowd pleaser to listen to different musicians playing the same ax. Sometimes these events are publicized as “The Battle of the….” in which the artists are supposedly squaring off at each other. The Saxophone Summit is a modern version of this classic format but with an emphasis on group interaction and ensemble improvising. Like the older musicians who played standards, blues and songs with rhythm changes reflecting their roots, we too have a common repertoire. The Saxophone Summit is both in the tradition and an extension of it.
The past several decades has seen an unprecedented wave of young players entering the fray as compared to previously. This is a natural result of the formalization of jazz education, which has grown phenomenally worldwide. However, for the members of the Saxophone Summit, our formative years revert back to the ‘50s and ‘60s when a jazz education was acquired by “on the job” training. Many of our musical connections and common experiences originated over thirty years ago. We developed in the same era, a period rich in innovation and change both culturally as well as musically. Shared memories are a strong force, even more so as the years pass.
Joe Lovano has the deepest jazz lineage through his father who played saxophone in Cleveland, Ohio, therefore immersing Joe in the music from a young age. A true jazzman, Joe evokes the atmosphere, ethic and ambiance of the culture. His playing reflects the entire history of jazz saxophone with one of the loosest rhythmic and melodic concepts heard in jazz. With his vast experience in several styles of jazz, Joe always plays with great passion and an uplifting sense of swing. To top it off, he is a warm individual with a great sense of humanity, a sly sense of humor and keen perceptive abilities, making him one of the easiest people to work and travel with.
One of my longest musical and personal associations is with Michael Brecker going back to the late ‘60s. We first hung out in my loft on West 19th Street in Manhattan during a several year period when endless “free jazz” jam sessions took place. Eventually Mike took over that loft after I moved to another. Studious and serious with enormous discipline, Mike’s playing is certainly very familiar to jazz listeners of the past several decades. He has pushed the envelope of modern technique on the saxophone while at the same time is responsible for at least several of the most popularized approaches to playing the horn. Mike hits the stage running, playing with a rhythmic momentum and energy that are relentless. As a person he is warm and gentle displaying an inquisitive bent and subtle sense of humor that at times borders on hilarity, belying his serious demeanor.
I am playing the customary role of de facto leader and organizer. My job is to get the music on the stage, intact and ready to go in order to utilize the strengths of these great artists. In the case of this dream band, the abundance of talent, creativity and energy is a gift. We lead each other.
The success of the Saxophone Summit would not be possible without the stellar contributions of an equally all-star rhythm section, each musician in his own right being representative of so much history. With Billy Hart (drums), Cecil McBee (bass) and Phil Markowitz (piano), there is no doubt that this band comes to the stage, shall we say “ready to play”. Sometimes I have to pinch myself when I am listening to the others play, realizing that I am in such great company representing this deep musical tradition to the public.
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