Soprano Saxophonist Gianni Mimmo

Not long ago, I received an email from Italian soprano saxophonist Gianni Mimmo--just one fellow soprano saxophonist reaching out to another. He included a couple of links where I could check out some of his music. Being that I had not heard of him before (which actually doesn't mean a thing) I really wasn't sure what to expect.

As you can hear in this clip with guitarist John Russell, Gianni has a very unique approach, sonically and musically. There are times he plays certain notes that are very Steve Lacy (esque), but he's far from a Lacy clone. He plays like he really enjoys his sound. Which is very important, not just on the soprano, but on any instrument. Improvising that's more sound-oriented tends to sound more inspired.

And I really like the way he's able to play multi-phonics with such a full sound. He makes them sound like big, dissonant chords.

I'll definitely be posting more of his work in the future.

Ciao!

Practicing Wide Intervals on the Soprano

Lately, I've been practicing intervals in minor 9ths. It keeps the embouchure corners tight, helping to control the pitch as well as giving me a lot of flexibility.

An example of this is quarter notes played as Bb1,B2,B1,C2,C1,C#2....The slower this exercise is practiced the better.

In order to tame this "cylindrical shrewd," it's necessary to take a calisthenic approach to practicing.

Practicing wide intervals like this does a few different things:
First, it trains your ears. The fact that they are non-diatonic and wide, makes them especially difficult to hear.

Secondly, it increases your dexterity. Now that you're getting out of the range of the eight-note scale, playing with speed and accuracy requires much more finger control.

Lastly, it strengthens the corners of your mouth. Practicing wide intervals is the equivalent of a weight lifter training with weights. The wider the interval, the more you need to support it with good breath and embouchure control.

The minor 9th exercise is just one example. Also helpful are diatonic scales in 10ths and 13ths. These should be practiced at extremely slow tempos.

Just remember: Going slow will get you there faster.

Subway Soprano: Leviticus Gorey

Here's a clip of my favorite subway musician, saxophonist Leviticus Gorey.

I've had the pleasure of briefly hearing him on several occasions when I was, unfortunately, hurrying to catch a train. Each time I remember thinking to myself, "Man, this cat is killing. I really wish I had more time to sit down and really check him out." It would have been ideal if he was actually performing on the subway car, giving me and all the other passengers a private concert from 14th Street to Jay Street-Borough Hall.

Leviticus has a wonderful sound and a great time feel. He even has a cool jazz-name! It makes me wonder why you don't hear more about him performing above ground. I guess everyone has their own path they're traveling.

I must say, I really respect when someone does choose to perform for therapeutic and artistic purposes rather than to make money and to further their career.

In any case, the next time I come across him playing on the subway platform, even if I'm running late, I'm going sit down and check him out, even if it's just for one tune.

Joe Giadullo (Solo Soprano)

Here's a cool clip of soprano man Joe Giadullo.

Joe is another straighthornist who primarily works in the medium of noise and microtonal based improvisations. I first discovered Joe a few years back after reading a review of his CD, No Work Today: Nine for Steve Lacy on which he credits Steve Lacy for the inspiration for the music. I might also add that it features some very inventive solo soprano work, too.

A little side note: Joe generously sent me a CD of his called Weather, recorded live in Poland (I think, but don't quote me on that), on which he performed a solo saxophone rendition of John Coltrane's "A Love Supreme." It's very creative. It gave me a lot of cool ideas.


This clip shows the Evan Parker influence in Joe's playing: circular breathing, while creating a ping pong effect with the various multiphonics. It's an excerpt from a piece called "Dragon Land Bakery," by Sax, Soup, Poetry and Voice, The group also features Nicole Peyrafitte on vocals and Pierre Joris on poetry. It was recorded live on November 10, 2007 at The Sanctuary for Independent Media in Troy, NY.

I'm looking forward to posting more of Joe's solo work in the future!

The Evan Parker Quartet

Here's a cool clip of Evan Parker in a quartet setting at the 2009 Freedom of the City Festival of new and improvised music at Conway Hall in London, England. Here, Evan is in the company of Peter Evans on trumpet, John Russell on guitar, and John Edwards on bass.

Besides from the interesting sounds and textures that the band is playing, I like most that I can see Evan's fingers, which gives me a better understanding of how he's able to do what he does.

To play the sounds that he gets in an intricate combination of simple- and cross-fingerings along with oral cavity manipulation (speeding up and slowing down the air flow as it enters the mouth through the mouthpiece by changing the position of the tongue).

Much of Evan's sonic vocabulary seems to be oral cavity oriented. Here's is where the book Top-Tones for the Saxophone: Four-Octave Range by
Sigurd M. Rascher comes in handy--especially when you want to get beyond the original scope of the instrument.

Well, that's my spiel for the day. Enjoy!

Lol Coxhill (solo soprano)

Here's one of my favorite solo soprano performances--Lol Coxhill performing at the Battersea Arts Centre in London. Even though they primarily program cutting-edge theater, occasionally they throw in some cutting-edge music, too.

I've always liked Lol's patience when playing solo. Saxophonists tend to go down the "bizerk" and "noisy" routes too quickly when performing in this format. When used too often, even things that are typically viewed as cutting-edge can sound like cliches.

Whenever I play a solo concert, leaving space is probably the most challenging thing for me to do. And it's usually the most effective, too.

In this clip, Lol reminds me of a long distance runner. Running, not to win the race, but just to run. Totally in the moment.

John Butcher (solo soprano)

Here's something from John Butcher at the 2009 Bohman Brothers Festival in London.

The Bohman Brothers festival is six consecutive nights of improvised music curated by music experimentalist Adam Bohman, and features prominent musicians from the UK improvised music scene such as Evan Parker and Lol Coxhill.

John has really great control of multiphonics, as you can hear in this clip. He integrates them well which his monophonic language--if you will.

I like the fact that when he circular breathes he doesn’t fall into an Evan Parker thing—which is not a easy thing to do. He really pulls out all of the sonic stops on this one--multiphonics, circular breathing, bird sounds, flutter tonguing, the whole nine yards. Sometimes I guess you have to get beyond conventionality to discover yourself.

I’ve always envied guys who can just go for it. I don’t always have the courage. One day I hope to develop enough trust in myself to get from underneath the skirt of Mother Structure.

I’m looking forward to hearing more of his solo stuff.