With
Flash Mob, his first new recording in seven years, the expressive and swinging
tenor saxophonist/composer Anton Schwartz delivers a disc notable for its
well-crafted tunes, riveting ensemble work, and abundance of attitude.
Schwartz's Antonjazz label will release the CD, his fifth since his 1998 debut
When Music Calls and first since 2006's Top 5 radio staple Radiant Blue, on
January 28. An audiophile recording, Flash Mob is available as a standard CD
and also from HDtracks in high-resolution 96kHz 24-bit digital.
Presenting
a diverse program of original tunes, plus one each by Kenny Dorham and
Thelonious Monk, Schwartz is joined by a superlative cast including Grammy
Award-nominated pianist Taylor Eigsti, rising Bay Area drum star Lorca Hart,
big-toned New York trumpeter Dominick Farinacci, and the imperturbably grooving
South Bay bassist John Shifflett (who has anchored just about all of Schwartz's
recordings). As usual, the saxophonist creates unabashedly appealing music that
bristles with intriguing ideas, unbridled energy, and unexpected rhythmic
juxtapositions.
"I
always aim to write the music I'd like to hear," says Schwartz, who for
the last three years has divided his time between Seattle and Oakland. "A
lot of great music out there doesn't hold my attention the way Stevie Wonder
does. I like music that goes someplace. I write for my own impoverished
attention span, and it seems to serve me well."
The
drummer and longtime jazz radio personality Bud Spangler, who's co-produced all
of Schwartz's albums, including Flash Mob, is not surprised that Schwartz's music
has found a national audience, noting his gift for crafting "catchy
compositions. They grab you and stay with you. He works really hard, and he's
swinging his butt off."
One
reason that Schwartz sounds more lyrical than ever is that he's keeping company
with some of jazz's most accomplished vocalists. He plays a key role on Ed
Reed's 2011 album Born to Be Blue and his well-received new release I'm A Shy
Guy, serving as a thoughtful foil to the late-blooming octogenarian balladeer.
He's worked extensively with the crystalline improviser Inga Swearingen,
collaborated with many others such as Judy Wexler and young phenom Laila Smith,
and, since moving to Seattle, has forged potent ties with the supremely soulful
vocalist Gail Pettis and the highly versatile Greta Matassa.
The
native Manhattanite (b. 1967) caught the jazz bug early and as a teenager
studied with the brilliant but oft-overlooked tenor saxophonist Warne Marsh and
the renowned clarinetist Eddie Daniels. Schwartz went on to study math and
philosophy at Harvard University, though he found time to play in the school's
jazz band, holding down the first tenor saxophone chair after tenorman Don
Braden, in a section that included future jazz star Joshua Redman. Schwartz
moved to the Bay Area in 1989 and had nearly completed a Ph.D. in Artificial
Intelligence at Stanford when he decided to forgo the degree and devote himself
to music full time.
An
active teacher, Schwartz maintains a strong presence in both Seattle and the
Bay Area, mentoring jazz ensembles and private students in both regions. He has
been Artist in Residence at Harvard University and the Brubeck Institute Summer
Jazz Colony and is a dedicated clinician, giving frequent master classes and
workshops on an impressive range of subjects, from advanced music theory to the
physics of woodwind instruments, to the fine details of swing and phrasing, to
the business of music.
"It's
such a fun challenge to get inside another musician's head, figure out how they
understand things, and help build them a ladder that will take them to where
they want to go," says Schwartz. "Each time I make an album, the
writing and the execution get more and more fun for me, as the process of
creating and realizing a vision becomes more and more fluid. It's been a heck
of a journey, refining my musical craft over the years -- and amazingly
rewarding. To be able to help others along their journey too is doubly
gratifying."
Schwartz
will be working the following dates with his quintet in support of Flash Mob
(East Coast dates are being planned for the spring):
3/1 San
Jose Jazz Winterfest
3/1
Pacifica Performances
3/2
Sonoma Jazz Society
3/4
Yoshi's, Oakland
3/6
Kuumbwa, Santa Cruz
3/7
Vitello's, Los Angeles
3/9
JB's, Sacramento
3/11
KPLU in-studio performance, Seattle
3/11-3/12
Jazz Alley, Seattle
3/13 The
Cellar, Vancouver BC
3/14
Ivories, Portland
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