Tuesday, January 12, 2016
Sam Newsome
Photo: The NY Times
Saxophonist Sam Newsome first came into prominence on the New York jazz scene as a member of the Terence Blanchard Quintet in the early 1990s, whose core members consisted of Blanchard on trumpet, Bruce Barth on piano, Tarus Mateen on bass, Troy Davis on drums, and Newsome on the tenor saxophone. The group toured all over the world as well as recorded several CDs for the Columbia/Sony label, including the critically-acclaimed “Malcolm X Jazz Suite.”Newsome, who was feeling uninspired by his sound on the tenor, along with his inability to shake his early influences, seemed to find hope and inspiration in the sound of the soprano saxophone, which, consequently, lead to his radical change in 1996 that resulted in him trading in the larger tenor saxophone, for the smaller, more difficult soprano saxophone. When asked why he made the switch, Newsome said, “The sound of the soprano allowed me to play with the freedom of not having to carry on my shoulders, decades of the great tenor saxophone legacy. I felt that the sound that I was producing was my own. That was very liberating.”
Consequently, this lead to Newsome to broaden his musical and sonic palette as he began studying music from North Africa, Japan, and the Middle East--incorporating non-Western scales into his musical vocabulary. He soon formed Global Unity, which was to become his working band for the next seven years. Global Unity consisted of a wide range of musicians from all over the world: vocalist Elisabeth Kontomanou, oud player Amos Hoffman, guitarist Marvin Sewell, pianist Jean-Michel Pilc, bassist Ugonna Okegwo, and percussionists Gilad and Satoshi Takeishi. They released two CDs: Sam Newsome & Global Unity (Columbia/Sony) in 1999, and Global Unity (Palmetto) in 2001.
After a seven-year commitment to honing his band sound with Global Unity, Newsome decided to take a hiatus from performing as a leader to develop a musical concept that was more specific to the soprano saxophone. Moreover, being frustrated with trying to keep a working band together, and realizing that the essence of his musical concept with Global Unity was about sound and texture, made exploring the solo saxophone format even more attractive. This lead to years of Newsome diligently studying the solo works of Steve Lacy, Evan Parker, Sonny Rollins, and Anthony Braxton, where he learned how to approach solo saxophone as a concept, and not just sound like one person minus a band.
Photo: www.apple.ee
The fruits of his labor culminated with the 2007 release of his critically acclaimed solo saxophone CD, Monk Abstractions (Some New Music) on which he recorded ten (10) compositions of Thelonious Monk’s. Mark Corroto from All About Jazz wrote: “Newsome expands the sound of a single soprano saxophone into a one man band.”In 2010, Newsome released his second solo saxophone effort, Blue Soliloquy (Some New Music) this time with the blues being at the music's core. Jazz critic Howard Mandel wrote, "Sam Newsome's Blue Soliloquy is music of significant yet subtle accomplishment." This CD was also given the distinguished five star ★★★★★ (masterpiece) rating by DownBeat Magazine.
In 2014, in addition to being associate professor of jazz studies at Long Island University’s Brooklyn Campus, Newsome continues to tour, record and develop new ways to explore the soprano saxophone's sonic terrain. His latest as well as his fifth solo saxophone outing is titled The Straight Horn of Africa: A Path to Liberation – The Art of the Soprano, Vol. 2 (Some New Music) has been described by Ed Enright, DownBeat Magazine has described as “a modern masterpiece.”
Newsome is also a frequent collaborator with many creative musicians on the New York jazz scene: pianist Ethan Iverson, drummer Francisco Mora Catlett and AfroHORN, The Collective Identity Saxophone Quartet, violinist Meg Okura and her Pan Asian Chamber Jazz Ensemble, and is a member of the new project by The Bad Plus: Science Fiction: The Music of Ornette Coleman—other members include alto saxophonist Tim Berne and trumpeter Ron Miles.
Thursday, October 1, 2015
Sam Newsome
The Sam Newsome Quintet Live @ Smalls Jazz Club
Friday, October 9 and
Saturday, October 10, 2015
Featuring:
Sam Newsome, soprano sax
Josh Evans, trumpet
Luis Perdomo, piano
Brad Jones, bass
Gerald Cleaver, drums
For more information, please visit:
www.smallsjazzclub.com or www.samnewsome.come
*Smalls Jazz Club is located @ 183 West 10th Street, Greenwich Village, NYC
Thursday, July 9, 2015
Sam Newsome & Henry Grimes
Sam Newsome & Henry Grimes
Appearing Sunday, July 12th 8:00pm
@ ABC No Rio COMA
On Sunday, July 12, 2015 at 8:00 PM, soprano saxophonist Sam Newsome and legendary bassist Henry Grimes will perform together as a part of the weekly-improvised music series presented by ABC No Rio COMA, located at 156 Rivington Street (between Suffolk & Clinton Streets), two blocks below Houston St., Manhattan (NYC).
Newsome, who has made the solo saxophone format a defining component of his musical identity in most recent years will share the bandstand with bassist and multi-instrumentalist Henry Grimes, who has played with such notables as Sonny Rollins, Cecil Taylor, and Albert Iyler, and has proven to be an important bandleader in his own right. This evening of adventurous improvised music will be a rare musical gathering that’s not to be missed.
If you plan to attend, please go to their Facebook event page and hit WILL ATTEND: https://www.facebook.com/events/511813055642595/
Sam Newsome
Newsome first came into prominence on the New York jazz scene as a member of the Terence Blanchard Quintet in the early 1990s. Feeling uninspired by his sound on the tenor, along with his inability to shake his early influences, Newsome traded in the larger tenor saxophone for the smaller more difficult soprano saxophone. This led to him broadening his musical palette with atypical jazz influences through whicht he honed with his band of seven years, Global Unity.
Frustrated with trying to keep a working band together, Newsome became attracted to the format of solo saxophone, and began diligently studying the solo works of Steve Lacy, Evan Parker, Sonny Rollins, and Anthony Braxton. He hit his artistic stride when he began releasing a series of solo saxophone recordings, including Blue Soliloquy (2010), which was given the distinguished five star ★★★★★ (masterpiece) rating by DownBeat Magazine, and his latest solo saxophone outing, The Straight Horn of Africa: A Path to Liberation – The Art of the Soprano, Vol. 2 (2014), which received ★★★★ 1/2 stars in DownBeat and was described by DownBeat writer Ed Enright as “a modern masterpiece.”
Henry Grimes
Now in his 80th year, Henry Grimes (double bass, violin, poetry) is a progenitor and architect of the "avant-jazz" or "free jazz" movement of the 1950s and '60s, having created new music alongside Albert Ayler, Amiri Baraka, Coleman Hawkins, Charles Mingus, Sonny Rollins, Pharoah Sanders, Cecil Taylor, and more. But a trip to the West Coast went awry, leaving Henry in downtown L.A. at the end of the '60s with a broken bass he couldn't pay to repair, so he faded away from the music world.
Discovered there in 2002, Grimes was given a bass by William Parker and very soon was back in full force. Since then, Henry has played / toured / recorded with Rashied Ali, Marshall Allen, Marilyn Crispell, Bobby Few, Edward "Kidd" Jordan, Roscoe Mitchell, Marc Ribot, Wadada Leo Smith, and more.
Since 2003, Grimes has played nearly 600 concerts in 30 countries, made his professional debut on violin at age 70 with Cecil Taylor at Lincoln Center, published the first volume of his poetry, and illustrates his new recordings and publications.
Newsome, who has made the solo saxophone format a defining component of his musical identity in most recent years will share the bandstand with bassist and multi-instrumentalist Henry Grimes, who has played with such notables as Sonny Rollins, Cecil Taylor, and Albert Iyler, and has proven to be an important bandleader in his own right. This evening of adventurous improvised music will be a rare musical gathering that’s not to be missed.
If you plan to attend, please go to their Facebook event page and hit WILL ATTEND: https://www.facebook.com/events/511813055642595/
Sam Newsome
Newsome first came into prominence on the New York jazz scene as a member of the Terence Blanchard Quintet in the early 1990s. Feeling uninspired by his sound on the tenor, along with his inability to shake his early influences, Newsome traded in the larger tenor saxophone for the smaller more difficult soprano saxophone. This led to him broadening his musical palette with atypical jazz influences through whicht he honed with his band of seven years, Global Unity.
Frustrated with trying to keep a working band together, Newsome became attracted to the format of solo saxophone, and began diligently studying the solo works of Steve Lacy, Evan Parker, Sonny Rollins, and Anthony Braxton. He hit his artistic stride when he began releasing a series of solo saxophone recordings, including Blue Soliloquy (2010), which was given the distinguished five star ★★★★★ (masterpiece) rating by DownBeat Magazine, and his latest solo saxophone outing, The Straight Horn of Africa: A Path to Liberation – The Art of the Soprano, Vol. 2 (2014), which received ★★★★ 1/2 stars in DownBeat and was described by DownBeat writer Ed Enright as “a modern masterpiece.”
http://samnewsome.com
https://www.facebook.com/samnewsome
samnewsome@aol.com
https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/sam-newsome/id6466755
https://www.facebook.com/samnewsome
samnewsome@aol.com
https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/sam-newsome/id6466755
Henry Grimes
Now in his 80th year, Henry Grimes (double bass, violin, poetry) is a progenitor and architect of the "avant-jazz" or "free jazz" movement of the 1950s and '60s, having created new music alongside Albert Ayler, Amiri Baraka, Coleman Hawkins, Charles Mingus, Sonny Rollins, Pharoah Sanders, Cecil Taylor, and more. But a trip to the West Coast went awry, leaving Henry in downtown L.A. at the end of the '60s with a broken bass he couldn't pay to repair, so he faded away from the music world.
Discovered there in 2002, Grimes was given a bass by William Parker and very soon was back in full force. Since then, Henry has played / toured / recorded with Rashied Ali, Marshall Allen, Marilyn Crispell, Bobby Few, Edward "Kidd" Jordan, Roscoe Mitchell, Marc Ribot, Wadada Leo Smith, and more.
Since 2003, Grimes has played nearly 600 concerts in 30 countries, made his professional debut on violin at age 70 with Cecil Taylor at Lincoln Center, published the first volume of his poetry, and illustrates his new recordings and publications.
From: Jim Eigo Jazz Promo Services
272 Ste Route 94 S #1 Warwick, NY 10990
E-Mail: jim@jazzpromoservices.com
Web Site: www.jazzpromoservices.com/
272 Ste Route 94 S #1 Warwick, NY 10990
E-Mail: jim@jazzpromoservices.com
Web Site: www.jazzpromoservices.com/
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