After living
and working in Europe for the last decade, innovative saxophonist Chico Freeman
makes his long-awaited return to the United States in May. Marking this
auspicious homecoming, the creative and trailblazing artist will celebrate with
the domestic release of his tour-de-force album Spoken Into Existence (Jive
Music, May 13, 2016). Freeman's stateside return offers more cause for
celebration, as he introduces audiences to his new ensemble: The Chico Freeman
Plus+tet featuring pianist Orrin Evans, bassist Kenny Davis, drummer Nasheet
Waits and percussionist Reto Weber with performances at Dizzy's Club Coca Cola
on May 19.
In the early
2000s, with dozens of recordings as a leader, Freeman moved from New York to
Europe to start a new chapter of exploration by focusing on his own
self-improvement and self-reflection. His thirst to immerse himself in his
music, his curiosity to explore working with different musicians and living in
different cultures while challenging himself to be better than he was, has all
prepared Freeman for this new stateside chapter of his life.
With the
U.S. release of his stunning album Spoken Into Existence, he is joined on the
13-piece program by his international quartet he's worked with regularly since
2013 (Italian pianist Antonio Faraò, Swiss bassist Heiri Känzig, and American
drummer Michael Baker). Freeman serves notice that he is still a force to be
reckoned with by addressing a cohort of rich melodies framed within a diverse
array of styles (hip hop, funk, bebop, post-bop, the blues, melodies conjured
from African and Asian scales) and renders them on tenor and soprano saxophones
with keen intention, authoritative execution, and tonal control that transforms
his metal instruments into analogue for the human voice.
For all of
the technical authority on display throughout this recording, Freeman maintains
that he operates by a deeply held conviction that "to express the truth of
who you are at the moment you're playing" is of paramount value. "I
was in Cuba with Dizzy Gillespie when he answered a journalist's question,
'What is Jazz?' with 'the search for truth.'" Freeman elaborates,
"First comes expression, and when you find yourself in need of being able
to express more, you develop the technique in order to accomplish that
objective." For Freeman, Spoken Into Existence manifests in notes and
tones the meaning of Michael Jordan's dictum, "You have to see it to be
it" (or, as Freeman puts it, that "you can manifest what you want to
achieve or materialize it if you can see it clearly") and the aphorism,
"words are things."
While the
album focuses primarily on Freeman's original works, two other composers' works
receive fascinating treatments. The single standard on Spoken Into Existence is
a rhythmically deconstructed "Seven Steps To Heaven," a line by
pianist-vibraphonist Victor Feldman that Miles Davis immortalized. Freeman also
addresses a less-traveled Stanley Turrentine number, "Soft Pedal
Blues," from the 1962 Blue Note recording, That's Where It's At, which he
heard when preparing for the date. "Although I played lots of slow blues
in Chicago, I'd never recorded one," Freeman says. "Stanley's tone
touched me, so I was inspired to record it."
"I've
played standards, but contrary to my father, that's not the meat on my
improvisational plate," Freeman states. "Standards were my dad's
self-expression; they emerged from his life and environment. The standards I
choose to play are ones that touch me, and they're usually written by jazz
musicians with some exceptions. Most of my work is about presenting original
material."
In addition,
the original works featured show a wide array of Freeman's talents and amply
highlight the breadth of his vision. Five of the compositions: "Dance of
Light for Luani," "Nia's Quest," "N'tiana's Dream,"
"Lara's Lullaby," and "Erika's Reverie," are dedicated and
written for each of his daughters; and the different rhythms and colors reflect
their personalities.
Freeman has
always encouraged the members of his various ensembles to compose with the
continuum of creating new standards.
With that in mind, two of the compositions on Spoken Into Existence are
written by pianist Antonio Faraò - the songs "Free Man," which he
wrote for Freeman and "Black Inside." One of the standouts of the
album is the beautiful "Niskayuna" penned by bassist Heiri Känzig,
named for a little town in upstate New York. Freeman comments: "Wherever I
go, people start dancing to this song, and that makes me very happy. As history
shows, I can certainly play open and in the avant-garde tradition, but it is
also very gratifying when people leave my shows humming and even dancing to my
music."
The last
composition of the recording, "Ballad for Hakima," is written for
Freddie Waits' wife. It's a lovely last statement and dedication to this
wonderful woman and her husband and his children Nasheet and his brother. When
Nasheet started working with Freeman he had no idea that this was for his mom.
The
penultimate piece, the anthemic, affirmative "The Crossing,"
signifies Freeman's impending return to New York, Freeman adds that the
listener may wish to absorb the message of "The Crossing"--and perhaps
the totality of Spoken Into Existence--in a broader sense. "It came to me
as a feeling of crossing a body of water, crossing into other parts of your
life, changing concepts," he says. "The bridge you cross to get from
one place to another. The journey is a crossing, that is Spoken Into
Existence."
Freeman has
a history of collaborating with such diverse talents as--to name a short
list--Wynton Marsalis, Bobby Hutcherson, John Hicks, Muhal Richard Abrams,
Arthur Blythe, Kenny Barron, George Cables, Cecil McBee, Branford Marsalis,
Billy Hart and Hilton Ruiz. Freeman's discography of more than 30 albums as a
leader, also includes seven sessions with the Freeman-organized all-star
collectives the Leaders and Roots, six co-led dates with his father Von Freeman
and featured sideman appearances in bands led by iconic figures like McCoy
Tyner, Jack DeJohnette, Sam Rivers, Don Pullen, and Elvin Jones.
Freeman
internalized the ethos of presenting original materials as an active member of
Chicago's Association For The Advancement of Creative Musicians, which he
joined soon after deciding to switch his major at Northwestern University from
mathematics to music. Between 1969 and 1975, he played frequently with AACM
members Muhal Richard Abrams, Henry Threadgill, Steve McCall, Fred Anderson and
Phil Cohran, and in various local blues, funk, fusion and R&B bands,
including the horn section of Earth, Wind and Fire. While he was dubbed a
"young lion" three decades ago for his participation on the 1982
recording with other stars-to-be Wynton Marsalis, Kevin Eubanks, Paquito
D'Rivera, Bobby McFerrin and Anthony Davis, Freeman now merits being called a
"master on his instrument."
Upcoming
Chico Freeman Performances:
May 14 /
South Jersey Jazz Festival / Sandi Point, NJ
May 19 /
Dizzy's Club Coca Cola / New York, NY
May 20 - 21
/ Green Mill / Chicago, IL
August 12 /
Jimmy Mak's / Portland, OR
August 13 /
San Jose Jazz Festival / San Jose, CA
