Dave O Higgins, Eric Alexander and the Kristian Leth trio
Dave O Higgins tenor sax, Eric Alexander tenor sax, Andrew McCormack (piano), Arnie Somogyi (bass) Kristian Leth (drums)
Video clip of music from the lovely Eric Alexander, Dave O Higgins and the Kristian Leth trio gig at Seven Arts 08/03/2012 here "Twisted" and here "Ain't necessarily so"
Battle of the Saxes! A two tenor special featuring two of the very best, UK's Dave O Higgins and from the US Eric Alexander
American tenor sax star Eric Alexander has been exploring new musical worlds from the outset. Boasting a warm, finely burnished tone and a robust melodic and harmonic imagination, he started out on piano as a six-year-old, took up clarinet at nine, switched to alto sax when he was 12, and converted to tenor when jazz became his obsession during his one year at the University of Indiana, Bloomington (1986-87). At William Paterson College in New Jersey he advanced his studies under the tutelage of Harold Mabern, Joe Lovano, Rufus Reid, and others.
"The people I listened to in college are still the cats that are influencing me today," says Alexander. "Monk, Dizzy, Sonny Stitt, Clifford Brown, Sonny Rollins, Jackie McLean, Joe Henderson--the legacy left by Bird and all the bebop pioneers, that language and that feel, that's the bread and butter of everything I do. George Coleman remains a big influence because of his very hip harmonic approach, and I'm still listening all the time to Coltrane because I feel that even in the wildest moments of his mid- to late-Sixties solos I can find these little kernels of melodic information and find ways to employ them in my own playing."
During the 1990s Alexander threw himself into the whirlwind life of a professional jazz musician. He played with organ trios on the South Side of Chicago, made his recording debut in 1991 with Charles Earland on Muse Records, and cut his first album as leader in 1992 (Straight Up for Delmark). More recordings followed for numerous labels, including Milestone and others, leading to 1997's Man with a Horn; the 1998 collaborative quartet session with George Mraz, John Hicks, and Idris Muhammad, Solid!; and, that same year, the first recording by One For All, Alexander's ongoing band with Jim Rotondi, Steve Davis, Joe Farnsworth, Peter Washington, and Dave Hazeltine.
Eric has appeared in many capacities on record, including leader, sideman, producer as well as composing a number of the tunes he records. By now, Alexander has lost count of how many albums feature his playing; he guesses 60 or 70. While he has garnered critical acclaim from every corner, what has mattered most has been to establish his own voice within the illustrious bop-based jazz tradition. http://www.ericalexanderjazz.com
UK saxman Dave O Higgins has played over the years with everyone from Martin Taylor to Ray Charles, Matthew Herbert to Salif Keita. He also teaches saxophone & harmony at the London Centre for Contemporary Music and Goldsmiths College. http://www.daveohiggins.com
Dave O Higgins, Eric Alexander and the Kristian Leth trio are at Seven Arts on Thursday 8 March
£15/12 concessions, reservations 0113 26 26 777, full time students standby tickets £5 on the door only. Doors open 8pm music 8.30-11pm.