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Bluiett
Bluiett: Blueblack
by AAJ Staff
Sometimes schooling is overrated. Sure, one has to be familiar with the jazz tradition in order to play the music, it's true. But formal education is a poor way to learn how to exploit imperfections and empower playing with raw energy. Those are things you have to learn from experience. Bluiett, who's been busy with his horn for decades now, is an expert on those subjects. As a member of the St.Louis Black Artists Group and the World Saxophone Quartet, ...
read moreBluiett : The Calling
by Jim Santella
Bluiett, Jackson and El'Zabar pour a little of everything into their collaboration. Wordless scat vocals, lyrical ballads, soulful blues, leading-edge exploring, modern jazz, and exotic vocal incantations make for an eclectic session. Kahil El'Zabar sets a fascinating scene with his spiritual singing and natural drum accompaniment. D.D. Jackson applies his adventurous keyboard technique to each of the widely different scenarios. Bluiett takes over, asserting his gospel-tinged baritone saxophone all over the place with a veteran's sense of swing. It's the ...
read moreBluiett/Jackson/El'Zabar: The Calling
by AAJ Staff
The BJE trio lies comfortably at the intersection between jazz, tribal music, blues, and gospel. In its original form as BJT (with Senegalese percussionist Mor Thiam), this trio defined and occupied a niche. The new reincarnation continues to expand that sound. By distilling modern jazz and consciously returning to the roots of the tradition, these players sidestep the pedantic intellectualism that unfortunately dominates much of today's improvised music.
That's not to say that The Calling is not a serious endeavor. ...
read moreBluiett: With Eyes Wide Open
by AAJ Staff
A veteran of over three decades of jazz history, Bluiett has long been jazz's leading proponent of the baritone saxophone. His well-documented experience in the World Saxophone Quartet, as well as the baritone quartet Baritone Saxophone Nation, long ago established him as a superlative composer, arranger, and improviser. Two recent trio records with BJT (Bluiett/Jackson/Thiam) presented Bluiett in a more playful context, tending toward a lighter, riffy, contrapunctal sound.
With Eyes Wide Open establishes a new nom de plume for ...
read moreBluiett: With Eyes Wide Open
by Jim Santella
The baritone saxophone has sure made a significant impact on jazz through the years. The instrument’s voice resonates on such an open wavelength that we consider it friendly in any situation. And Hamiet Bluiett has experience with just about every jazz situation imaginable. From college to the Navy and beyond, Bluiett has encountered swing, bebop, free jazz and the avant-garde. This latest album represents happy music - creative, sentimental and highly melodic – that any audience would find enjoyable.
Jumping ...
read moreBluiett/Jackson/Thiam: Join Us
by AAJ Staff
The intersection of the musical worlds of Hamiet Bluiett, D.D. Jackson, and Mor Thiam spans decades of musical tradition and continents of cultural history. The second recording by this group on Justin Time was recorded in late '98 in New York City, live in the studio. Bluiett, a founding member of the World Saxophone quartet, articulates the most “forward" voice on the record. Bluiett's maturity is demonstrated through relatively sparse playing and extensive use of groovy riffs to accompany the ...
read moreHamiet Bluiett 1940 - 2018
Source:
St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman
Hamiet Bluiett, a native of Brooklyn, IL who co-founded the World Saxophone Quartet and redefined the capabilities of the baritone sax in improvised music, died the morning of Thursday, October 4 at St. Louis University Hospital. He was 78 years old. Bluiett, whose birthday was September 16, had been gravely ill for some time, and according to a Facebook post from his daughter Anaya, was taken off respiratory support last week. As a child, Bluiett (pictured) studied piano, trumpet, and ...
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Jazz This Week: Marissa Mulder, Jazz St. Louis Benefit Gala, Hamiet Bluiett and George Sams, Roger Ingram, and More
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St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman
It's Mardi Gras weekend in St. Louis, and though the “official" Mardi Gras events in recent years have tended to feature rock cover bands and DJs rather than jazz and blues, there will be plenty of jazz and creative music around town this week, if you know where to look. For the Funky Butt Brass Band, St. Louis' best known exponents of the New Orleans brass band sound, the next few days are the equivalent of the week before Christmas ...
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Jazz Musician of the Day: Hamiet Bluiett
Source:
Michael Ricci
All About Jazz is celebrating Hamiet Bluiett's birthday today!
The finest baritone saxophonist of the 1970s and beyond, Hamiet Bluiett has demonstrated a huge, impressive sound, superb technique, and a mastery of his horn in every register. In his solos, he can provide an array of tonal colors and harmonic options. A first-rate free player who\'s as proficient on standards as in blues, Bluiett has played in many excellent groups, has led his own bands... Read more.
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Jazz Musician of the Day: Hamiet Bluiett
Source:
Michael Ricci
All About Jazz is celebrating Hamiet Bluiett's birthday today!
The finest baritone saxophonist of the 1970s and beyond, Hamiet Bluiett has demonstrated a huge, impressive sound, superb technique, and a mastery of his horn in every register. In his solos, he can provide an array of tonal colors and harmonic options. A first-rate free player who\'s as proficient on standards as in blues, Bluiett has played in many excellent groups, has led his own bands... Read more.
Place our Musician ...
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STLJN Audio Archive: Hamiet Bluiett - Endangered Species
Source:
St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman
For this edition of the Audio Archive, we continue this weekend's focus on the great baritone saxophonist Hamiet Bluiett by spotlighting Endangered Species, his recording debut as a leader. Originally issued in 1976 by the now-defunct India Navigation label and out of print for many years, Endangered Species has been preserved online thanks to the efforts of music sharing blogs including Free The Music, where yr. humble StLJN editor found the file. In addition to Bluiett on baritone sax and ...
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STLJN Saturday Video Showcase: A Hamiet Bluiett Sampler
Source:
St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman
This week, we focus our video spotlight on baritone saxophonist Hamiet Bluiett, who will be performing a rare local date next Wednesday June 27 at the Missouri Botanical Garden. The free outdoor concert, part of the Garden's Whitaker Music Festival, will feature Bluiett fronting an all-star band including pianist D.D. Jackson, bassist William Parker and drummer Hamid Drake. Considered the preeminent baritone saxophonist of his generation, and one of the best in the ...
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Jazz This Week: Charlie Hunter, Hamiet Bluiett, "Cool Like That: A Tribute to Miles Davis," and More
Source:
St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman
It's the first official week of summer, and there are plenty of jazz-related events coming up in and around St. Louis over the next seven days. Let's go to the highlights... Tonight, the inaugural St Lou Fringe Festival opens with an evening of performances that will include the first of four stagings of Cool Like That: A Tribute to Miles Davis, an event that incorporates spoken word, music, and dance to pay tribute to the legendary trumpeter. Also tonight, there's ...
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Jazz This Week: Ramsey Lewis, Jane Monheit, Tony Conrad, "The Music of Bluiett," Bonerama, Cornet Chop Suey, and More
Source:
St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman
From traditional jazz to contemporary grooves to experimental minimalism, this week's menu of jazz and creative music in St. Louis has offerings for a wide variety of tastes. Let's go to the highlights: Tonight, pianist Ramsey Lewis (pictured) brings his Electric Band for the first time to Jazz at the Bistro, where he'll be performing through Saturday. As chronicled in this video retrospective from a couple of weeks ago, Lewis has been a significant figure on the international jazz scene ...
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Nu-Art Series Announces Concerts Featuring "The Music of Bluiett," Freddie Washington
Source:
St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman
The Nu-Art Series has announced two concerts in December: Saxophonist and composer Hamiet Bluiett (pictured) will direct a performance of his music by the East St. Louis Senior High School music department, including the woodwind ensemble, percussion ensemble, jazz orchestra and combo, at 3:00 p.m. this Saturday, December 3. Saxophonist Freddie Washington will perform with his band at 3:00 p.m. Saturday, December 10. Washington, a mainstay on the local club scene from the 1960s through the 1980s, recently moved back ...
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Bluiett, Bistro Among Riverfront Times "Best of St Louis" Winners for 2011
Source:
St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman
The Riverfront Times' 2011 “Best of St. Louis" issue is out, and this year's winner for “Best Jazz Artist" is baritone saxophonist Hamiet Bluiett. (Bluiett also won the BOSTL award two years ago, with pianist Peter Martin getting the trophy in 2010. ) Jazz at the Bistro once again is the winner in 2011 for “Best Jazz Club," and KWMU's Sunday night broadcast “Jazz Unlimited," hosted by Dennis Owsley, got the nod for “Best Jazz Radio Program." You can see ...
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Bluiett
