HI
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I hesitate for several reasons to use the title of “Three Tenors” to describe the meeting of Joe Lovano, Mike Brecker and myself which will take place for three nights at New York’s Birdland club in Manhattan from December 16-18 (which by the way is celebrating its 50th anniversary). First of all it is obviously a bit plagiaristic since the term has come to mean the opera greats Domingo, Pavarotti and Carerras. Furthermore with myself on soprano and the chance that either Joe or Michael may bring another horn, it might more accurate to identify the event as “Three Diverse Yet Common Lineage Modern Saxophonists”-but obviously this would be a bit much, so I will remain with the “Three Tenors” for now.
When one considers what makes a meeting of two or three musicians on the same instrument interesting, there are several common factors which can be observed throughout the history of jazz. A partial list of such encounters would include Al Cohn and Zoot Sims, Lockjaw Davis and Johnny Griffin, Eric Dolphy and John Coltrane, J.J.Johnson and Kai Winding, Larry Coryell, John McLaughlin and Al DiMeola, Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea. The interest is found in the contrast between a common vocabulary and lineage but interpreted individually which of course is one of the main facets of jazz. In other words, there is enough similarity for some semblance of a unified approach, but at the same time enough differences to attract interest. With the three tenors both points are clearly demonstrated.
In our past several meetings (Red Sea Festival in 1998, the Montreal Festival in 1999) we have played mostly standards, which gives both the audience and us a framework to observe the common ground referred to. We are all New York based musicians who although a few years separates myself from Joe and Mike, received our training by passing through various aspects of the scene in the Apple with emphasis on different areas. Joe had extensive big band experience with Woody Herman and the Mel Lewis Orchestra; Michael in the studios with everyone from pop to jazz; myself in the early free jazz loft scene, and with Elvin Jones and Miles Davis. Our influences are no secret-from Coltrane to Sonny Rollins and all the other greats of the 60s like Joe Henderson and Wayne Shorter. Yet it is in the influences where the roads part slightly and the basis of stylistic differences can be traced.
Joe, with the strong presence of his saxophone playing father, grew up immersed in the Mid West hard bop scene and is literally a walking encyclopedia of many styles. In his playing you hear the history of jazz saxophone, from pre-bop to free jazz executed with a tone that can be booming or at times breathy in the low register, with a shade of silkiness as he ascends through the horn and even an occasional expressive growl. In addition he has a unique sound in the altissimo (ultra high register of the saxophone) that appears as if he is squeezing the notes out, with a distant but clear sound. In Mike’s case, the r&b influence of Junior Walker and King Curtis among others, combined with Coltrane has created a piercing, hard edged tone with one of the most identifiable altissimo sounds ever heard on jazz saxophone. For myself on tenor, I am a combination of Coltrane’s metallic sound, Rollins’ “wet” approach and even some influence from one of my early mentors, Charles Lloyd especially as I go into the higher register. For me, the altissimo comes straight out of Coltrane, extended vocalizing emanating primarily from the throat.
Stylistically, the three approaches are even more distinct. All of us stretch the rhythm and harmony, but in completely different ways. Joe seems to slip and slide around within the framework of a tune in all directions with a wide range of articulations and intervallic choices. He plays with the beat-around, upside down, in and out creating a kind of spiraling vortex to my ears, whereas Michael dives straight into the center of the harmony and pulse using his incredible technique to create a universe. Speed and dexterity are fundamental to Mike’s style as is his extensive finger memory of pentatonic and diminished patterns. Sometimes when I close my eyes and listen to him, it’s like a fast train coming down the track right at you. In my case, there is a feeling of picture painting; swirls of sounds sometimes quite far from the underlying harmonic and/or rhythmic structure often with an attempt to utilize the rhythm section as an integral part of my solo. Also an extensive use of a “peaks and valleys” type of overall shape and logic.
Finally and more basic than the musical explanations is the sheer joy and camaraderie the three of us have playing and listening to each other. Sometimes when I am standing on the side with either Mike or Joe listening to the other one, we will acknowledge something wonderful just played with the particular glow that only musicians on the same instrument can appreciate-and also just trying to figure out what is left to play after that!!!
The rhythm section for this New York gig is stellar and packed with just the kind of experience needed to support and feed the three of us: Rufus Reid on bass, Billy Hart on drums and Phil Markowitz on piano. All the involved musicians for this gig have performed and recorded together over the years in various combinations which is to the advantage of the listener because it brings a relaxed informality to the bandstand. We have chosen to play the repertoire of great saxophonists like Wayne Shorter, Bird, Coltrane, Rollins, Lester Young, etc. for this engagement.
The December 18th performance (Saturday evening) will be simulcast live on www.gmn.com beginning at 9 P.M. Eastern standard time in the United States and accordingly in other time zones. It will also be re-broadcast several times over the ensuing month.
RECENT EVENTS
INSPIRATION:VILAYET KHAN/ THE MASTER CLASS
In September along with my wife Caris and daughter Lydia we attended a concert at Town Hall in New York featuring Indian master sitarist Vilayet Khan. I was familiar with Khan due to an interesting event that happened while visiting India in 1976. I had played in eight cities in 1975 with my first group, Lookout Farm with Richie Beirach (which coincidentally also included on Badal Roy on tabla). I was overwhelmed by India and I suggested to my mother who was somewhat of a world traveler at the time that we go on a tour. During Christmas week of 1976, we went to India and saw among other things the Veil of Kashmir, Katmandhu and Rajisthan. On New Year’s Eve we were in a hotel in Bombay and somehow the band knew I was there and played a song from one of my recordings (Pablo’s Story) to our great surprise. Subsequently I hung out with some of the musicians that night at one of their homes near the beach not far from Bombay. Of course the conversation was about music and I asked them to play a tape of the heaviest music of India they had-the equivalent of Coltrane live at the Half Note (a famous underground tape that was in the hands of musicians for years). That was when I first heard Vilayet Khan playing at a school auditorium in an Indian village. Up to then it was only Ravi Shankar that I and most Western musicians were familiar with. The Indians noted that Khan was the Miles Davis of sitar, known to be very temperamental-if he felt good and was inspired the concert could last for hours-if not, well…….….
Along with two of his sons and several other accompanists, Vilayet at 70 years old was amazing at Town Hall. His ability to slowly coax a phrase along and let it unfold dramatically did remind me of Miles. There’s something so honest and unpretentious about Indian classical music which remains to me the deepest of all world music. They tune up-play slow, medium and fast tempos-do unisons on cue-evoke incredible images-play some complicated and very lyrical music equally-all done with a demeanor of peace, serenity, intense devotion and great humility. What would have my life had been like to be born into that or any other great musical tradition? A thought for the next millennium!!
Then at East Stroudsburg University in Pennsylvania, we saw a play which won the Pulitzer Prize a few years ago written by Terrence McNally. It is the depiction of the great opera diva Maria Callas giving a master class to several students, which she actually did in the 1960s at Juilliard. Callas, played brilliantly by a famous English actress uses the audience as the class watching her critique actual performances by several singers and a piano accompanist. Besides being autobiographical with flashbacks to events like her opening at the famous La Scala in Milan or her relationship with Aristotle Onassis, the principles she espouses about art and what it takes to be a convincing performer could be applicable for any artist. This was one serious lady!!
This recording released recently on Double Time Jazz features with me, Eddie Gomez and Adam Nussbaum on bass and drums. I always had a desire to do Monk tunes sans piano because they suggest such open playing and the ballads are so gorgeous. I know that now one of my all time favorite ballads is in fact “Pannonica”. I chose some not so common tunes like “Skippy”, “Teo”, Gallop’s Gallop” and others in that vain, with no reharmonization but placing a particular feel on each tune. With a virtuoso like Gomez on bass I was able to give him the exact left hand bass lines and combinations that Monk used as well as some unison melodies to play with me. As is often the case with Gomez, it sounds like his CD because he is so spectacular. Dome is as always swinging hard. I feel this recording is a nice tribute to a singular genius.
The website www.gmn.com is getting bigger and better. If you go to the site and click on jazz you will see a nice interview I did with Bret Primack (who also wrote the liner notes to Monk’s Mood and is the famous Pariah of www.birdlives.com). You will also hear a complete live recording of my group from Birdland we did last year that is very representative of what the quartet with Tony Marino, Jamey Haddad and Vic Juris have accomplished since the piano left in 1997. We are recording again for gmn.com at Birdland in February and that will be available as a CD in the near future, as well as another recording of Jobim tunes which I will describe in a future newsletter.
By the way the group had a great Mid West tour in October with some wonderful clinics and concerts at several large university towns-Ann Arbor, Michigan; Madison,Wisconsin and Bloomington, Indiana where I was happy to see one of the greats in jazz education, David Baker who has been there for years.
I have been asked by Michael Cuscuna and Mosaic Records to write the liner notes for an upcoming 8 CD release of Elvin Jones recordings as a leader on Blue Note, several of which I am on. It has been great to research the notes with several drummers trying to get the scoop in depth on Elvin’s amazing and unique approach as well as recall those incredible years I spent with him in the early 70s.
On a recent European teaching tour I was very gratified to see several of my former students doing so well in their respective countries and becoming leaders of their own generation: Lars Moller in Denmark; Henrik Frisk in Sweden; Jasper Blum in Holland and Daniel Guggenheim in Germany. I must say it makes the teaching all worth it when you see the growth of these guys.
I have received a new tenor from my saxophone company, Keilwirth, which has a silver body and black nickel keys. I played one of these “Celebration” Models, commemorating the 75th anniversary of the company in France last year and really liked it. The great thing is that with Keilwirth you get a choice of necks which include brass, silver, copper, gold and an unusual one they call the “Diamond” series which is made from a sandblasted material. With all these necks to try you can really hone in on the sound you are looking for. Also the company has a video available through stores that sell Keilwirths which shows how a saxophone is made. It is available in both European and United States formats. It is a pleasure to work with such a good company and my appreciation to Andreas Gafke for his cooperation in sponsoring clinics as well as supplying the horn for me.
ALL SAXOPHONISTS INTERESTED IN ATTENDING THE 13TH ANNUAL MASTER CLASS HELD AT EAST STROUDSBURG UNIVERSITY IN PENNSYLVANIA FROM AUGUST 1 THROUGH 6 SHOULD SEND ME A TAPE OF THEIR PLAYING IN JANUARY. More details about the class are on my web site under Saxophone Master Class at www.davidliebman.com/lieb
DECEMBER: 2 and 4-Concerts Stockholm and Gothenburg, Sweden with Far North Quartet(Daniellson, Christenen, Stenson);6-duo concert with drummer Abbey Rader at Timba, Miami, Florida;16-18-with Brecker and Lovano at Birdland, NYC
JANUARY: 6-In store performance with trumpeter Marvin Stamm at the Woodwind and Brass Shop in NYC; appearances at the IAJE Convention in New Orleans with the Keilwirth Sax Section, European Jazz Education panel and with local musicians at the Snug Harbor club(14th) featuring Johnny Vidakovich(drums), Steve Masakowski(guitar), Jim Singleton(bass);20-27th-performances in Milan with orchestra, in several cities around the Bologna area with Marco Visconti group, live recording and performances(26-27)at Big Mama Club in Rome with saxophonist Maurizio Giammarco, Daniel Humair(drums) and Furio DiCastra(bass);29-the Water Wheel in Milford, Pennsylvania with the Dave Liebman Group
FEBRUARY:1-with the DL Group on Home Grown-live radio show for WVIA in Pittston, Pennsylvania;3-5 with DL Group at Birdland, NYC; 15-saxophone workshop at Westchester College, Pennsylvania with Gunnar Mossblad;21and 23 at the Knitting Factory with bassist Matt Garrison and drummer Billy Hart;26-concert with big band at the University of Houston,Texas;March 3-4 with Pete Laroca at Birdland, NYC
From my family and myself, best wishes for a Happy and Healthy 2000 and Millennium. It certainly is a Brave New World out there!!
PEACE
Lieb