davidbixler

Bassist Christian Dillingham’s debut release as a leader, Cascades on Greenleaf Music features ten original compositions written for his Chicago based quartet. In this episode of LINER NOTES he speaks of his desire to capture the moment with this recording both in the recording process and in music that pushes the boundaries of the tradition that he is obviously rooted in. 

Bassist Linda May Han Oh’s recording the The Glass Hours features the front line of vocalist Sara Serpa and tenor saxophonist Mark Turner, while pianist Fabian Almazan and drummer Obed Calvaire join her in the rhythm section. Being a new parent has caused her to reflect on what she does as a musician and in this episode of LINER NOTES she talks about how a new awareness of the fragility of life in a world that can be an unsafe place has repurposed her music. 

Bassist and composer Bob Hurst made an early mark on the jazz community as a member of Wynton Marsalis’ band and later gained notoriety as a member of the Tonight Show band led by Branford Marsalis. In addition to his performance career the Detroit native has been on the faculty at the University of Michigan for a number of years. In this episode of LINER NOTES Bob talks about many things including the state of jazz education as it related to the current culture in America.

Guitarist and educator Sheryl Bailey recently moved from New York to Boston to become the assistant chair of the guitar department at The Berklee College of Music. In this episode of LINER NOTES Sheryl talks about the challenges of moving to a new city while overseeing the education of nine hundred guitarists in the time of the Corona virus. We spoke over zoom-heads up that the interview is replete with the street sounds of Washington Heights.

Composer and percussionist Dafnis Prieto’s new recording Transparency features the front line of saxophonists Román Filiú and Peter Apfelbaum, along with Alex Norris on trumpet. In this episode of LINER NOTES Dafnis speaks about his intentions behind this recording as well the fortunate timing that allowed him to capture the project immediately before the shutdown.

Baritone saxophonist Gary Smulyan, known for his tenure with the Vangaurd Jazz Orchestra, has released a new Steeple Chase recording entitled Our Contrafacts with bassist David Wong and percussionist Rodney Green. In this episode of LINER NOTES Gary talks about his bout with the corona virus and his thoughts about the pandemic that is re-shaping the world we know (or knew) as musicians.

Alto saxophonist Rudresh Mahanthappa’s latest recording Hero Trio pays tribute to his musical heroes. Bird, Trane, Ornette Coleman, Stevie Wonder, and yes even Johnny Cash are represented on this exciting trio recording featuring Francois Moutin on bass and Rudy Royston on drums and cymbals. 

Saxophonist Donny McCaslin’s career dramatically changed after being an integral part of David Bowie’s last recording Black Star. In this episode of Liner Notes Donny reflects on how the association with Bowie has shaped his creative process. In this time of quarantine Donny and I spoke remotely. A shout to out engineer Marco Mendoza for putting together my clumsy recording efforts.

Guitarist Dave Stryker has reimagined the soundtrack of his youth with his hugely successful Eight-Track series. Eight-Track III features his working trio of Jared Gold on organ and Mcclenty Hunter on drums along with special guest, vibraphonist Stefon Harris. In this episode of LINER NOTES, Dave reflects on his experiences with organist Jack McDuff and tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine and how their example laid the ground work for his current project.

Alto saxophonist and composer Remy Le Boeuf recently released his first large ensemble recording, Assembly of Shadows. Although he is known primarily for his small group work in the band that he co-leads with his brother Pascal, in this episode of LINER NOTES with David Bixler, Pascal reflects on the circumstances that organically enabled him to step up and out and make this record.

Chaos Theory is the latest recording from soprano saxophonist Sam Newsome. In the first episode of 2020 Sam talks about his exploratory journey that has taken him from bebop to the music that he is creating today.

This episode of LINER NOTES is centered around two new recordings by pianist David Berkman; a recent sextet offering entitled Six of One, and a new solo project featuring the music of John Coltrane and folk icon Pete Seeger.

This episode of LINER NOTES features tenor saxophonist JD Allen and his new recording Barracoon, which is inspired by the powerful book of the same name by Zora Neale Hurston. 

Myron Walden is perhaps best known for his association with Brian Blade, but in this episode of LINER NOTES we talk about his new project with Jon Cowherd and strings that showcases his woodwind arsenal.

Known for his musical diversity, multi-instrumentalist Scott Robinson joins me on LINER NOTES for a discussion centered around his new release TENORMORE, which exclusively features his first passion, the tenor saxophone.