Apr 2, 2024 12:59 PM
Saxophonist, Sonic Explorer Casey Benjamin Dies at 45
Casey Benjamin, the alto saxophonist, vocalist, keyboardist and producer who stamped his distinctive sounds on the…
Pianist Joey Calderazzo, who has a new leader album, frequently has collaborated with saxophonist Branford Marsalis.
(Photo: Chris Charles)For his new album, Joey Calderazzo aimed to capture the spontaneity of a concert in a renowned club. “I love studio trio records, the ones I grew up listening to, but I’d rather do it live,” the pianist said, referring to Live From The Cotton Club, Tokyo, Volume I (Dot Time). “I wanted to put out a project that documents where I’m at as a player today. It was my idea to call it Volume I, because I plan on doing it again.”
The program contains six tracks culled from four nights of performances with bassist Orlando Le Fleming and drummer Donald Edwards in February 2017.
“I just called the tunes and whatever happened, happened,” Calderazzo explained by phone from his home in North Carolina, where he was taking time off before returning to the road with the Branford Marsalis Quartet. Two of the compositions from the Tokyo set—“Cianna” and the ballad “Free”—are slated to be included on a forthcoming album by Marsalis’ group, although the latter will be given a different title.
“Both [arrangements] are much different with the quartet,” Calderazzo said. “The ballad is looser and freer in the trio, but the song is better in the quartet setting. Branford played great on it.”
Calderazzo’s leader debut, 1991’s In The Door (Blue Note), counts contributions from Michael Brecker (1949–2007), Marsalis and saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi. And in 1998, following the passing of pianist Kenny Kirkland, Calderazzo became a member of Marsalis’ quartet.
“I still feel a lot like a student,” Calderazzo said. “I still want to grow. That’s why I play standards on some of my gigs, because I think playing the standard repertoire is a pretty good barometer of where [one is] as a jazz musician.”
Yet, after a recent bout with cubital tunnel syndrome, Calderazzo is lucky to be playing. It was during a 2017 tour in South Africa with Marsalis that he noticed something was wrong.
“It felt like I slept on my arm funny,” he said. “My pinky and ring finger on my right hand were numb, and I thought, ‘That’s so weird.’ We tried recording Branford’s record and it was even worse. I played a whole record basically with three fingers.” Hand surgery and rest were the suggested treatments.
“They cut my elbow, they cut my nerve, they had to rebuild the tunnel to the nerves,” he said. “It was scary. I was out for a while. ... The good news is, I have no nerve damage and I’m playing.”
In between working on Marsalis’ album in June and hitting the road with the saxophonist in the fall, Calderazzo did something he hadn’t done in years: He took some time off. “I had my son 75 out of 90 days this summer and had one of the best summers I’ve ever had,” he said about his 5-year-old. “He learned how to swim, we went to the beach and I took him on a helicopter ride.”
Now fully healed, Calderazzo is back at the piano, sketching plans for future recordings.
“I sit at the piano and I want to write,” he said. “My life is interesting. I’m not 30 years old living in New York City, running around playing in the clubs. I have another story to tell.” DB
Benjamin possessed a fluid, round sound on the alto saxophone, and he was often most recognizable by the layers of electronic effects that he put onto the instrument.
Apr 2, 2024 12:59 PM
Casey Benjamin, the alto saxophonist, vocalist, keyboardist and producer who stamped his distinctive sounds on the…
“He’s constructing intelligent musical sentences that connect seamlessly, which is the most important part of linear playing,” Charles McPherson said of alto saxophonist Sonny Red.
Feb 27, 2024 1:40 PM
“I might not have felt this way 30 to 40 years ago, but I’ve reached a point where I can hear value in what people…
Albert “Tootie” Heath (1935–2024) followed in the tradition of drummer Kenny Clarke, his idol.
Apr 5, 2024 10:28 AM
Albert “Tootie” Heath, a drummer of impeccable taste and time who was the youngest of three jazz-legend brothers…
“Both of us are quite grounded in the craft, the tradition and the harmonic sense,” Rosenwinkel said of his experience playing with Allen. “Yet I felt we shared something mystical as well.”
Mar 12, 2024 11:42 AM
“There are a few musicians you hear where, as somebody once said, the molecules in the room change. Geri was one of…
Larry Goldings’ versatility keeps him in high demand as a leader, collaborator and sideman.
Feb 21, 2024 10:45 AM
Are you having any fun? Larry Goldings certainly is. Consider just two recent examples:
Scene 1: “If anyone had…
