Jazz is not the only art form to contain improvisation—far from it. But in jazz the discipline of improvisation is developed to a very high level. Not just a casual, occasional exercise, improvisation in jazz is something that beginning players struggle to master, and that professionals spend their lives honing, refining, and changing. To this day, musicians study the recorded improvisations of such masters as Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, and Herbie Hancock in order to gain insights and inspiration.
Dr. Lewis Porter will explore jazz improvisation with award-winning clarinetist/saxophonist/ composer Don Byron. The presentation will consist of performances of short improvised pieces, followed by a discussion. For each piece, Porter and Byron will first explain the basis of the improvisation—there is always some starting point, often written out on music paper or memorized. After performing the piece and discussing how it went, Porter and Byron will take questions from the audience. They will then perform the piece a second time, and again discuss it and take questions. Four or five pieces will be performed in this unique 90 minute presentation.
Don Byron is a clarinetist, saxophonist, composer, arranger, and social critic. He seeks to redefine every genre of music he plays, be it classical, salsa, hip-hop, funk, rhythm & blues, klezmer, or any jazz style from swing and bop to cutting-edge downtown improvisation. He has been consistently voted best clarinetist by critics and readers alike in leading international music journals since being named "Jazz Artist of the Year" by Down Beat in 1992. Acclaimed as much for his restless creativity as for his virtuosity as a player, Byron has presented a multitude of projects at major music festivals around the world, including recent performances in Vienna, San Francisco, Hong Kong, London, Monterey, New Zealand, and on Broadway. His artistic collaborations include performances and recordings with the Duke Ellington Orchestra, John Hicks, Tom Cora, Bill Frisell, Vernon Reid, Cassandra Wilson, Anthony Braxton, Living Colour, Mandy Patinkin, the Kansas City All-Stars, Angelique Kidjo, Salif Keita, the Atlanta Symphony, Klangforum Wien, and Paul Auster, among many, many others.
Dr. Lewis Porter is a jazz pianist, author, and educator. He is Professor of Music at Rutgers University in Newark, where he is the founding Director of the Master's Program in Jazz History and Research. He is the author or coauthor of six books, including the acclaimed study John Coltrane: His Life and Music. He has written numerous articles and liner notes, and edits a book series and a scholarly journal. He has performed recently with such artists as Wycliffe Gordon, Ravi Coltrane, Dave Liebman, and Jeff Coffin. His latest CD, recorded live at Siena Jazz, is Italian Encounter. Jazz Times recently described Porter as "a helluva pianist."