jazz
9:30 - midnight
$15 or b/o
rob chalfen &
subconsciouscafe new chamber music
presents
BURTON GREENE part 2:
Free jazz pioneer BURTON GREENE extends his visit to the ZEITGEIST GALLERY, with this all-star trio
BURTON GREENE/PERRY ROBINSON/JAY ROZEN
BURTON GREENE – piano (Ayler, Rivers, Tchicai, Breuker, Rudd, Silva, Dresser)
PERRY ROBINSON – clarinet (Shepp, Dixon, Izenson, Bley)
JAY ROZEN – tuba (Braxton, Persip, Butch Morris, Leo Smith)
PERRY ROBINSON, BURTON GREENE, JAY ROZEN TRIO
Perry and Burton go “bay-wack” together (way back) as original members of the Downtown sound, the NYC free jazz scene since the early 60’s. Burton was a founding member of the FFIE (Free Form Improvisation Ensemble) and the Jazz Composers Guild. Burton and Perry had a trio briefly back in ’65 with Joel Friedman on cello. This was an early example of free chamber music. Some years back they renewed the chamber trio idea for some concerts with trombonist Roswell Rudd. I guess it’s been in our craw all along so when the opportunity presented itself in this time to renew the chamber music idea with the talented Jay Rozen on tuba, we heartily jumped into it. For awhile we (the trio) had experience playing together in a quartet with drummer Kevin Norton in a group called Klez-Jazz which focused on semitic folk music music themes fused with jazz swing. The trio expands on all these past formats and ideas into a no “ism” format where we go in and out of time and (pre-set) structural themes. NOW and SPONTANEITY rules the day with the trio. Together we have more than 100 years of varied music performance experience under our belts which can be called up at any moment, and usually IS.. Come and dig what we’re up to at this Moment! You could say the past is gone, and we take care of the future by just focusing on who and what we are in the Present Moment. This is definitely where the trio is at!
“BURTON GREENE ranks as one of the seasoned survivors in creative improvised music. Like a handful of his ESP (Records) peers he’s still at it after all these years, plugging away at his craft and creating chameleonic music along the way… Greene sounds great as well, foraging over the finely tuned ivories with a self-assurance and acuity ideally suited to the auspicious surroundings.”
-Derek Taylor, All About Jazz.
He arrived in New York in 1962 and formed probably the first spontaneous composition group with bassist Alan Silva in ‘63: The Free Form Improvisation Ensemble. He joined the Jazz Composers Guild in ‘64 (organized by Bill Dixon and Cecil Taylor) and formed his first recorded quartet in ‘65 which included Marion Brown and Henry Grimes. He performed in New York in the 1960’s with such people as Sam Rivers, Rashied Ali, Albert Ayler, Patty Waters, Byard Lancaster, Gato Barbieri, etc. Burton was involved with the New Music Concert Series in Town Hall and YMHA organized by Max Pollikoff which included panel discussions with Morton Feldman and Earl Brown.
Burton has collaborated with many musicians; among them are John Tchicai, Archie Shepp, Anthony Braxton, Willem Breuker, Han Bennink, Keshavan Maslak, Sunny Murray, Frank Wright, Sean Bergin, Paul Stocker, Theo Loevendie, Martin van Duynhoven, Clarence Becton, Perry Robinson, Roswell Rudd, Tjitze Vogel, Raoul van der Weide, Tom Jones, Tobias Delius, Michael Moore, Akki Hak, Lou Grassi, Wilber Morris, Roy Campbell, Mark Dresser, etc., etc.
PERRY ROBINSON is truly a musical icon, with a performing and recording career that is over 40 years old, spanning all manner of genres, styles, and categories. As Burton Greene said of Perry, “boxes, categories, separatism have little meaning for him. And therefore in his music… whatever he plays is always right on. I can’t imagine anyone not liking Perry’s music with its immediate warmth and personal communication and even though some people might term it ‘far out.’ That’s rare — to be able to create new ideas, not what is commonly accepted in the mainstream, and still bring it across immediately to a lot of people.”
Born in 1938 in New York City, he grew up in a musical family, his father Earl being a well-known film-score composer. Since then Perry has traveled far and wide to play with the most importantmusicians of his time, and in the process become a living legend of the jazz clarinet.
The list of artists with whom he has been associated is immense in quantity, quality and stylistic diversity. His discography reveals work with, among others, Henry Grimes, David Izenson, Gunter Hampel, the Brubecks, Tete Montoliu, Charlie Haden, Carla Bley, Archie Shepp, Bill Dixon, Mark Whitecage, John Carter, Lou Grassi, and Burton Greene.
Today Perry’s journeys continue far and wide, staying as active as always, and discovering and rediscovering (like his new trio with the long-lost great bassist Henry Grimes). As Matt Snyder says of Perry, “The best of American melodic streams, both traditional and avant-garde, can be heard simultaneously in this fascinating musician.”
Info on Perry Robinson is at http://users.bestweb.net/~msnyder/clarinet/robinson.htm
JAY ROZEN - TUBIST, COMPOSER, IMPROVISOR
Former principal tubist with the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, Jay Rozen has played with the Creative Opportunity Orchestra (jazz ensemble), the Austin Klezmorim and the European Tuba Quartet. Since moving to the New York area, he has played with the SEM Ensemble, Arthur Kampela’s AVANT SAMBA and the Lennon/Tobacco/Zappa Band, which performed at the Zappanale Festival in Germany in 2002. His group THREE (3 tubas) received rave reviews for their performance at ITEC 2002.
He has also performed with jazz luminaries Anthony Braxton, Wadada Leo Smith, Ray Anderson, Charli Persip, Butch Morris, Burton Greene and Perry Robinson, among others. A long-time champion of new music, Mr. Rozen has had works written for him by many composers including Virgil Thomson and David Lang. Jay Rozen has appeared on over 20 CDs including his own KILLER TUBA SONGS and as soloist on David Lang’s ARE YOU EXPERIENCED, on which he plays the electric-tuba.
Production:Rob Chalfen robchalfen@hotmail.com