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Steve Coleman and the Council of Balance: Synovial Joints
by Karl Ackermann
Composer and saxophonist Steve Coleman grew up in Chicago's AACM neighborhood before moving on to New York's big band scene in the 1970s. Diverse influences combined with his assorted academic interests in philosophy, world religion and nature, have made him a source for some of the most unique music of the past twenty years. While not immune from critical misunderstanding, the recent winner of MacArthur and Guggenheim Fellowships and the Doris Duke Performing Artist Award has proven himself an enduring ...
Continue ReadingSteve Coleman and Five Elements at SFJAZZ
by Harry S. Pariser
Steve Coleman and Five Elements SFJAZZ San Francisco, CA December 14, 2014 “The main thing that I consciously try to follow is things I find in nature, in universe. Basically I see the universe as sort of giant palette of forms within forms."--Steve Coleman He is a 2014 MacArthur Fellow. An alto saxophonist and bandleader who has taught at UC Berkeley. A disciple of Chicago saxophonists Von Freeman, Sonny Stitt and Bunky Green. ...
Continue ReadingSteve Coleman and Five Elements: Functional Arrhythmias
by AAJ Italy Staff
Nella sua ultima fatica discografica Steve Coleman si presenta con una versione aggiornata degli storici Five Elements (prima apparizione nel lontano 1981) recuperando due veterani come il bassista elettrico Anthony Todd ed il batterista Sean Rickman e completando la formazione con due musicisti giovani ma già ampiamente apprezzati come il trombettista Jonathan Finlayson e il chitarrista Miles Okazaki. Una miscela azzeccata di memoria storica e di visione prospettica che incendia come poche un progetto al solito ambizioso. Functional Arrhythmias è ...
Continue ReadingSteve Coleman and Five Elements: Functional Arrhythmias
by Mark F. Turner
Ever the thinker, saxophonist Steve Coleman now delves into the connection between human biology and music with Functional Arrhythmias, perhaps his most accessible release in recent memory. With a vast discography that has covered everything from unadulterated funk in 1988's Sine Die (Pegasus) to advanced concepts in 2011's The Mancy of Sound (Pi), his curiosity and influence continue to expand.Coleman reenlists the kinetic rhythm-section of Anthony Tidd (electric bass) and Sean Rickman (drums) who appeared on The Sonic ...
Continue ReadingSteve Coleman: Symbols and Language
by Ian Patterson
Saxophonist Steve Coleman's The Mancy of Sound (Pi Recordings, 2011) was one of the records of 2011. Thematically and structurally challenging on the one hand, dynamic and funky on the other, the music's contrasts reflect Coleman's view of the world, in all its complexity and simplicity. Coleman's fierce intellect carries simple logic, wrapped in many-layered waves of knowledge; so, too, the music on this recording may seem overwhelming at first, until repeated listening gradually unveils the simple truths within. For ...
Continue ReadingSteve Coleman and Five Elements: The Mancy of Sound
by Ian Patterson
Although alto saxophonist Steve Coleman's conceptual approach to composition has grown increasingly adventurous, high-brow or esoteric, depending on your viewpoint--with lunar phases and the Yoruba of West Africa's philosophical system providing inspiration here--The Mancy of Sound merely represents Coleman's relationship to the world, which is the font of most music of worth. Retaining the same musicians from Harvesting Semblances and Affinities (Pi Recordings, 2010), Coleman's Five Elements follow-up shares its broad stylistic features, including non-western rhythms and multiple, interweaving voices, ...
Continue ReadingSteve Coleman and Five Elements: The Mancy of Sound
by Mark F. Turner
A saxophonist of a different order--part griot, theorist, numerologist, and incessant seeker of knowledge-- Steve Coleman continues to forge new paths in creative music. He's influenced more of today's forward thinking artists than almost anyone in recent memory with his proven M-Base concepts. His critically acclaimed 2010 recording, Harvesting Semblances and Affinities (Pi Recordings), was a welcome return to the spotlight, and the follow-up, The Mancy of Sound , is even more rewarding. To explain Coleman's music ...
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