Nessa 7
The student body of the original Tristano school always carried a cliquish mien. Guys like Ted Brown, Warne Marsh and Ronnie Ball stayed close to campus, while mavericks like Lee Konitz hung out regularly with the townies and colleagues from other ‘colleges’. Consequently, the appelations of Cool, intellectual and ascetic, each sometimes meant in the pejorative, were in part a product of listener and peer awe and intimidation at the chops these men commanded. The fallacy of superior technique arriving at the expense of emotional content somehow stuck.
By my estimation, Marsh was arguably the most formidable of the matriculants. Of all the Tristano alum he seems to shoulder the stereotyped attributes described above to the greatest degree. Marsh's discography reflects a resultant skew with only a handful of records cut during the 50s through the late 60s and the bulk of his work arriving in the 70s and 80s for mostly European labels. His higher profile position in the popular repertory collective Super Sax may have had something to do with the late boon, but I can't help thinking it was also partially a case of people finally catching up.
When I was first familiarizing myself with Marsh’s music these assumptive traits certainly worried me. The amount of prowess and complexity that supposedly imbued in his every solo, made me question whether I could even grasp what was going on? Let alone the prospect of writing about it or describing it accurately to someone else. Fortunately, the actual music absolves those apprehensions. Embossed with an astute title, the recently reissued All Music offers a prime case in point. Marsh's music isn't some lofty abstraction or arrogant conceit. It can be and often is as viscerally pleasing as anything committed to tape by his bop and 'free jazz' cousins.
For the fall 1976 session Marsh fronts what was then the regular rhythm section for Super Sax- pianist Lou Levy, bassist Fred Atwood and drummer Jake Hanna. The quartet tackles eight tunes, and take numbers are listed next to each track title. Marsh's Tristano-borrowed tactic of lopping off themes to standards and improvising on the remaining chord changes finds an early target. The opener, "I Have a Good One for You," is actually built on the chassis of "It's You or Know One."
Marsh's "Background Music" sounds almost as if it's joining the band in progress, so volacious is the leader's opening. Levy's "On Purpose" acheieves resolution with a gracefully articulated solo from Atwood that wears its light amplification proudly and without excess. As if impressed by the bassist's skill, Levy and Hanna lay out, leaving Marsh to sign the piece off with a gossamer curlicue autograph. Tristano's "317 3. 32nd" accentuates the quartet's simpatico once again. Marsh's plush succession of inaugural phrases suggests a complete familiarity with the tune's harmonic content. The sense of supreme composure feeds into a sparkling solo by Levy and another punchy workout from Atwood against the rippling underscore of Hanna's brushes.
Levy's "Lunarcy"- the longest cut of the set, at nine minutes- sheds light on the superlative relationship between leader and the composer through a lubricious switch to a galloping double time in the closing minutes. Throughout the entire set Marsh always seems sure of what he wants to say and how he wants to say it. Any undermining friction arises in his various attempts to communicate these incisive decisions to his band mates and their ensuing anxiousness to assimilate them.
Words of praise are also due Chuck Nessa, who demonstrates how high the bar can be set by a label chief who is also a stalwart music lover (not as common a combination, I fear, as it once was). Three sets of liners - the originals by Larry Kart (author of a seminal essay in the Tristano/Konitz/Marsh set from Mosaic), guest musings by web bulletin board ace Jim Sangrey, and production details from Nessa himself - couple with choice session pics and a streamline design. Four alternate takes of "I Have a Good One For You" offer a windfall similar to that on Sam Rivers' Fuschia Swing Song reissue on Blue Note a few years back. Each one offers a chance to hear the quartet working through a piece and hashing out various ideas. Levy even takes a turn on electric keys, a choice he also makes on a voluptuous reading of the Mandel ballad, "A Time For Love."
The cake’s icing? Everything conveys a meticulously remastered sonic sweetness thanks to Chicago studio engineer Steve Wagner. If only all such reissue projects could carry this sort of devotion to detail and obvious reverence for the source.
Note: copies are available direct from Chuck Nessa: cnessa@earthlink.net or at your discriminating local brick & mortar.
~ Derek Taylor
Re: the opening sentence: sure, Brown, Ball, Marsh, Mosca, Konitz are the names most associated with Tristano's teaching, & all but Konitz kept close to his aesthetic, but I'm pretty sure that there were plenty more musicians who studied with him who didn't sound like Tristanoites, if you see what I mean. E.g. didn't Sheila Jordan study with Tristno at one point? Is there a good source for the history of Tristano's teaching &/or a list of his students? I suspect it'd be much more than the usual suspects.
Posted by: nd at May 7, 2004 7:26 PMGood point, Nate. But I think those named in that lead sentence were still held to the stereotypes of the Tristano ‘style’ most prominently, partly because they worked with him so intensely during that fertile stretch in the 50s. My (admittedly poorly stated) argument being that the subjective traits often ascribed toward the ‘school’ weren’t very representative to begin with. I’d be very interested to read a more comprehensive list of Tristano alum too. I know Jimmy Halperin studied with him, but he’s one that fits into the Marsh/Brown/Mosca. Others I think included: Connie Crothers, Lenny Popkin, Billy Bauer, Bill Russo, Roger Mancuso, Don Ferrara, Willie Dennis, Charles Mingus, Betty Scott and Mary Lou Williams.
Posted by: derek at May 8, 2004 1:34 PMThis is Warne's youngest son Jason. First, thanks for making a wonderful web page.
YOu'd think my knowledge about pop and Lenny would be extensive; it isn't, but it's pretty good, so here I go.
My full opinion would probably be book lenght, so in short (or as short as I could make it and still have it be legitimate) many people thought Lennie was a mysterious figure. He wasn't. He had a monumental work ethic towards perfecting his craft that he also expected from his students, which involved getting his students to get their egos out of the way and focusing on honest self exrression via/ harmonic, melodic, and rythmic advancement. Therefore he, along with my father, wanted to stay out of any sort of intimidation scene where stroking one's ego would probably be part of the picture. They felt it was phony. So Lennie kept to himself to some degree and only permitted people into his circle that he felt were serious about learning and playing. It was interpreted as mysterious behavior for some reason. From what my father and other have told me, he was a strate ahead man (with a good sense of humor).
Of my father's playing, my opinion is of course a little biased for obvious reasons, but also non biased do to the fact that I myself am a player. Pop's biggest accomplishment in my opinion was his use of rhthym. He would often begin and end phrases on very percise divisions of the beat, for example, the 3/32 bear of a measure, and he would also extend or shorten the length of a chord into or away from the next chord, respectively. That;s whay many reviewers say he had sounded as if he was playing between beats.
The Warne Marsh community seems to be growing more and more even 17 years after his death. I'll write more later and thank you all so much for your interest
Good to see you online. I enjoyed your messages at the English Warne Marsh site.
Stay in touch.
Posted by: Chuck Nessa at June 14, 2004 7:09 PMGood to see you BOTH online! Chuck, maybe I'm way out of date over here in France, but have the two Von Freemans n6 & n11 been reissued on CD? I have the two LPs but the wonderful stash of alternate takes on the Warne Marsh CD makes me wonder if a similar stockpile of extras is tucked away in the Nessa archives..
Posted by: dan warburton at June 14, 2004 9:47 PMThanks to Jason and Chuck for sounding off here.
Dan, not to type out of turn, but both Vonski discs have been reissued on cd. Each has a long extra cut added to its respective running time. SERENADE AND BLUES is still on Nessa and HAVE NO FEAR was licensed to the Japanese Bomba label. Last I heard both are are available direct through Chuck. Essential music.
good to see you all on line. jason, good to hear what you have to say. to add to that, basically in one sentence, lennie would say "Q: how do you think bud powell became as great a pianist as he was? A: by spending his whole life at the piano." your dad had this uncanny, original and clever way of improvising that i admire from a few people that studied with lennie, like sal mosca! i believe in the basics. know classic jazz like art tatum etc. hello to k.c. and your mom, gerry. jimmy halperin
Posted by: jimmy at July 2, 2004 11:51 AMStubbled upon this web site looking up my grandmother. Jimmy Halperin this is Elizabeth Betty Scott's granddaughter (Carol's daughter) I saw your name so I'm posting a note hoping you'll see it. I'm 24 now and as I'm sure you've heard my grandmother passed away a few years I would love to hear any stories anyone has of my grandmother and Lennie for that matter I would like to know more about the two of them. Unlike the rest of my family I do not play any instrument I do sing very well but a little shy I would have loved to have studied with Betty. Thanks
Posted by: Elizabeth at November 11, 2004 7:49 PMPardon an extreme foreigner, please. Having almost "lived"
Tristano, Konitz, Marsh since 1958 as a pro sax player, I feel that
the "genius" bit lies surely, in their brand new approach to the melodic line. Both Mr. Marsh and Mr. Konitz wrote lines
which, though having slight tinges of Mr.T, were quite distinctly different from "bop" lines. Just as "classical" music needs no "emoting" by the performer, so the fluid lines of this style resist interference. You cannot play them without sensing beauty and proportion....and to bend or distort the sound is unthinkable. They are also ageless because they do not include fashionable cliches from that era.
There have been players over here (Britain) who benefitted enormously from
contact with Lennie Tristano; Bruce Turner and Gray Allard were both aquaintances of mine who revealed aspects of the Tristano approach to me while I was a young player, and Peter Ind, who survives, is still, I believe an active performer to this day. Also Chris Burchall had a band devoted to this music - under recorded - under valued, but excellent performances. Warne's influence is now enormous among younger European players, I believe Lars Gullin
spread the word............and it continues to flourish.......
(Perhaps you can all persuade The Real Book to include
Warne's lines as well as The Tristano/Konitz ones )
Errata: previous pompous message.
It's "Chas." Burchill - not "Chris".
Mind you, all this was years ago in the 'late '50s and '60s
There is one man with a band (over here) who features
Tristano-type pieces in his repertoire (Sunflower by Don Ferrara for example, Lennie-Bird etc) and that is Geoff
Simkins.....an altoist (mainly) with a rather beautiful turn
of phrase...........that's if he hasn't got fed up with the
lack of exposure for jazz of any type (except Courtney Pine) over here.
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