Soprano saxophone in jazz

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The soprano saxophone in jazz initially a few exceptions only had a minor role as an instrument in the brass section and only became late for a solo instrument.

Development of the instrument

The soprano saxophone is more difficult to intonate and has less power in the lower register. Therefore it was initially less popular than the other saxophones. In 1953, the music critic Joachim-Ernst Berendt stated in the first edition of his jazz book that the soprano saxophone had "not broken free of the clarinet tradition " in jazz up to this point .

Traditional jazz and swing

When Berendt wrote this (1953) it was primarily Sidney Bechet (1897-1959) who stood for the use of the instrument and in 1918 switched from the clarinet to this saxophone. He had a great influence on Johnny Hodges (1907-1970), who occasionally worked as soprano saxophonist in the Duke Ellington Orchestra , but later gave up because he was not satisfied with the tone achieved on the instrument. Charlie Barnet (1913–1991) continued the Hodges tradition on the soprano saxophone. Bob Wilber (* 1938) continued the Bechet tradition in the swing revival. Under the influence of Bechet, musicians such as Claude Aubert , Marc Laferrière and Eggy Ley also switched to the instrument in Europe .

Modern jazz

The soprano saxophone was hardly used in modern jazz either: Jerome Richardson , as a member of the Thad Jones / Mel Lewis Orchestra, played a key role in shaping the band's sound with his soprano saxophone. Even Lucky Thompson (1924-2005), the soprano used only as a secondary instrument and had little influence on subsequent generations of musicians.

Steve Lacy (1934-2004) had made his first attempts on the until then unusual instrument with his album Soprano Sax and in 1958 with Reflections on the small New Jazz label, on which he dealt with Monk's compositions, but was hardly noticed at the time . In later years saxophonists such as Lol Coxhill , Roberto Ottaviano or Jane Bunnett referred explicitly to Lacy. His influence on the younger players today is greater than that of Coltrane for the Modern Creative . A contemporary of Lacy, Paul Winter played the soprano saxophone as early as 1961 on the album "The Paul Winter Sextet".

With his solo on My Favorite Things , recorded in October 1960, the tenor saxophonist John Coltrane established the soprano saxophone for the first time in one fell swoop. He used it in a hitherto completely unknown sound quality and brought out almost oboe-like effects from this instrument. My Favorite Things received an oriental touch through the hypnotic lecture and the haunting repetition, which is further enhanced by the pulsating use of drums by Elvin Jones . With the three days later recorded Blues to Bechet (appeared on Coltrane Plays the Blues ) Coltrane confessed to the influence that Sidney Bechet had on his playing style; he preserved the expressiveness and dirtiness of Bechets. With his modal playing style , he also reminds Berendt of the cone oboes Shehnai of the North Indian, Nagaswaram of the South Indian and the various seasons of Arabic music .

Coltrane's influence

The sound of the soprano saxophone, popularized by Coltrane's album My Favorite Things (1960), subsequently appeared as an interesting timbre in numerous big bands and studio orchestras. “The range of the saxophone section expanded. Some arrangers became specialists in adding the new soprano sound to this palette: “Berendt mentions Oliver Nelson , Quincy Jones , Gil Evans , Gary McFarland or Thad Jones here . Coltrane's soprano saxophone playing was an enormous role model for musicians who followed immediately, such as the Dane Max Brüel , but above all for the tenor saxophonist Wayne Shorter (* 1933). Since so many tenorists in free jazz appreciated the ability to 'overblow' their instruments, they now often took the soprano saxophone, as it made the possibilities of the 'falsetto' tenor easier and, on top of that, more musically coherent. Besides Shorter, it was Anthony Braxton , Pharoah Sanders , Archie Shepp , Roscoe Mitchell , Joseph Jarman , Sam Rivers , Oliver Lake , Julius Hemphill , Zoot Sims and John Surman who used the soprano saxophone (often only as a secondary instrument).

John Surman already played the soprano on Pete Lemer's ESP record Local Colors in 1966 , also on Mike Westbrook's album Celebration in 1967 and initially used the Berendt soprano instrument to play an "overblown baritone". In 1969 he then used the soprano on one of the classic albums of the era, Extrapolation by John McLaughlin , from the following year in the pioneering formation The Trio with Barre Phillips and Stu Martin . From the mid-1970s he also combined the soprano with electronic sounds.

Other important soprano saxophonists who Berendt succeeded in in 1973 were Gary Bartz , Cannonball Adderley (first on Accent on Africa , 1968), Dave Liebman , Steve Grossman , Budd Johnson , Joe Farrell and Evan Parker .

Rahsaan Roland Kirk developed his own style , who also played the soprano-like Manzello and - like Coltrane - referred to his Bechet tradition, as in "From Bechet, Byas and Fats" on the 1965 album Rip, Rig and Panic .

Wayne Shorter and His Influence

Wayne Shorter was ultimately most influential for rock jazz when he first used the instrument on the Miles Davis album In a Silent Way in 1968 , creating a mood that was far removed from the previous bop concept. The subsequent Davis album Bitches Brew from 1969 is hardly conceivable without Shorter's soprano saxophone. Shorter combined Coltrane's meditative attitude with the poetry of Miles Davis. Shorter's signature sound also dominated the electronic sound of Weather Report , heard impressively in titles such as Teen Town , Harlequin and The Juggler on the 1976 album Heavy Weather . He influenced countless sopranos on the jazz rock and fusion scene, such as Tom Scott , Ronnie Laws , Grover Washington Jr. , Kenny G , Bill Evans and, in Europe, Barbara Thompson . In the rock jazz era, pianist Keith Jarrett also played the instrument, first heard on the Charles Lloyd Quartet's 1967 Fillmore album and later on The Survivors' Suite from 1976.

Among the soprano saxophonists who continued the Shorter line, Berendt counts three saxophonists in particular: Branford Marsalis (* 1960), who brought the soprano saxophone into pop productions with the singer Sting ( Bring on the Night ), Greg Osby (* 1960) in his cooperation with the pianist Michele Rosewoman in the mid-1980s and especially Jane Ira Bloom (* 1954), who like Steve Lacy only plays soprano, but occasionally colors the sound of the instrument using electronic means such as vocoder .

Among the younger saxophonists who play in the European tradition and who integrate American influences, starting with Sidney Bechet, into their personal style include the Englishman Iain Ballamy (* 1964), who - with his airy phrasing and melodic playing ( Ian Carr ) - Roland Kirk, Coltrane and John Surman are among his role models or Meike Goosmann (* 1966) and the Norwegian Frøy Aagre (* 1977).

literature

  • Andre Asriel : Jazz. Aspects and Analyzes Berlin (GDR), Lied der Zeit 1985.
  • Joachim-Ernst Berendt : The Jazz Book . Frankfurt / M., Fischer Bücherei, 1953 and Frankfurt / M., Fischer Taschenbuch Verlag 1973.
  • Joachim-Ernst Berendt, Günther Huesmann: The jazz book . Frankfurt / M., Fischer TB, 1994.
  • Ian Carr , Digby Fairweather , Brian Priestley : Rough Guide Jazz. The ultimate guide to jazz. 1800 bands and artists from the beginning until today. 2nd, expanded and updated edition. Metzler, Stuttgart / Weimar 2004, ISBN 3-476-01892-X .
  • Richard Cook , Brian Morton : The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD . 6th edition. Penguin, London 2002, ISBN 0-14-051521-6 .
  • Martin Kunzler : Jazz Lexicon . Reinbek, Rowohlt, 1988.
  • Gerd Filtgen, Michael Auserbauer: John Coltrane . Oreos, Schaftlach, 1989.
  • Teddy Doering: Coleman Hawkins . Oreos, Waakirchen, 2001.
  • Peter Wießmüller: Miles Davis . Oreos, Schaftlach no year.

Notes and individual references

  1. ↑ Berendt, 1953, p. 18.
  2. ^ Asriel, p. 384
  3. ↑ John Coltrane recorded the first tracks on the soprano saxophone in June / July 1960, namely the Ornette Coleman compositions "The Blessing" on June 28, 1960 and "The Invisible". However, they did not appear until 1966 on the Atlantic album The Avant-Garde .
  4. ↑ cf. Filten / Auserbauer, p. 151.
  5. ↑ cf. Berendt 1973, p. 204.
  6. ↑ Filtgen and Auserbauer mention in their Coltrane biography that the tenor saxophonist resorted to the soprano instrument when he had serious mouthpiece problems; During his performance at the Village Vanguard in early November 1961 ( Coltrane "Live" at the Village Vanguard , on Impulse! Records ), he played half of the program with the soprano, which suggested to the authors that the problems with the The unsatisfactory tenor sound had prompted him to resort to the soprano saxophone more often in order to get closer to his sonic ideals. As he regained his hard and sharp tenor sound, i.e. since 1963/64, playing the soprano became a marginal phenomenon, apart from the 1966 concert at Village Vanguard , when he played My Favorite Things again . See Filtgen / Auserbauer, p. 64 f.
  7. ↑ a b c Berendt 1973, p. 205
  8. ↑ cf. Ian Carr, p. 621.
  9. ↑ The influence can no longer be heard today if one disregards the tone repetitions. Parker has expanded the possibilities of the instrument, also through research into split sounds and the use of circular breathing.
  10. ↑ cf. P.Wießmüller, p. 154.
  11. ↑ cf. Berendt, 1976, p. 208.
  12. ↑ cf. Ian Carr, p. 30.