Jul 22, 2026 12:37 PM
In Memoriam: Rodney Holmes, 1966–2026
Drummer Rodney Holmes, a powerful presence behind the kit who emerged as an in-demand player on the New York scene…
Saxophonist Dewey Redman died on Sept. 2 of liver failure in Brooklyn. He was 75.
Redman developed a musical career around the tenor saxophone and musette. En route to these instruments, Redman, born in Fort Worth, Texas, on May 17, 1931, began as a clarinetist at the age of 13, soon followed by alto saxophone. It was as a student at Prairie View Agricultural and Mechanical University, where he received his bachelor’s degree in 1953, that he changed to tenor. Following college, from 1956-‘60, Redman worked as a high school teacher and started working as a professional musician while attending North Texas State University, where he received a Masters degree in 1959. A move to San Francisco was a musical choice, resulting in an early collaboration with Donald Garrett.
Perhaps Redman’s most significant collaborations occurred during the years 1967-‘74, when he was a member of Ornette Coleman’s New York group. During this time he also played with Charlie Haden’s Liberation Music Orchestra (1969) as well as with Keith Jarrett’s band (1971-‘76). Redman also led his own bands in this period, with drummer Eddie Moore being one of his most used sidemen.
Redman’s signature style emerged as a result of these collaborative efforts, a style characterized by vocalizing through his horn. At this time, he also picked up the musette. Another major development came with he helped form Old and New Dreams, a band comprised of former Coleman bandmates. Don Cherry, Haden and Ed Blackwell worked together with Redman in this band. This group toured extensively and recorded together into the 1980s.
Redman’s own recordings included a collaboration with Cecil Taylor and Elvin Jones (Momentum Space, Verve, 1999) and a program of blues, free-jazz and bop, titled The Struggle Continues (ECM, 1982). His other albums included Redman And Blackwell In Willisau (duos with Blackwell, Black Saint, 1980), Ear Of The Behearer (Impulse!, 1973), Old And New Dreams (Black Saint, 1976), New York Is Now! (As a sideman with Coleman, Blue Note, 1968), Liberation Music Orchestra (as a sideman with Haden, Impulse!, 1969), El Juicio (as a sideman with Jarrett, Atlantic, 1971) and 80/81 (as a sideman with Pat Metheny, ECM, 1980).
Along with leading his own bands, Redman also performed alongside his son, tenor saxophonist Joshua Redman, and was a mentor to drummer Matt Wilson. Dewey Redman’s last concert was on Aug. 27 at the Charlie Parker Jazz Festival in New York.
A drummer’s drummer, Rodney Holmes gigged with everyone from Joe Zawinul and Carlos Santana to Steve Kimock and the Brecker Brothers.
Jul 22, 2026 12:37 PM
Drummer Rodney Holmes, a powerful presence behind the kit who emerged as an in-demand player on the New York scene…
Clockwise from top left, Mary Halvorson, Patricia Brennan, Adam O’Farrill, Keith Jarrett’s At the Deer Head Inn: The Complete Recordings, Sheila Jordan and Jaki Byard.
Jul 16, 2026 1:34 PM
The DownBeat Critics Poll never ceases to amaze! And the 74th Edition offered plenty of accolades for poll veterans and…
Ibrahim was an early jazz acolyte, studying the music via 78s he would buy from soldiers stationed in South Africa — who also gave him the nickname “Dollar.”
Jun 30, 2026 3:19 PM
Pianist Abdullah Ibrahim, the NEA Jazz Master from South Africa who helped fuse the folk music of his home country with…
Joe Lovano’s Paramount Quartet will record live at New York’s Village Vanguard for ECM records on Aug. 26–27.
Jul 22, 2026 12:46 PM
One of Joe Lovano’s buzz terms is “the moment of now” and with seemingly infinite patience — despite a schedule…
“There was something about her tone and sound and phrasing — an intimacy, a vulnerability, an honesty,” says Joshua Redman, who produced Cavassa’s record after she toured with his band.
Jun 16, 2026 1:27 AM
Gabrielle Cavassa is an avowed perfectionist. So when she failed to place despite becoming a finalist in the 2018 Sarah…
