Alliance for Improvised Music

New Show


A FRESH VOICE ON THE SCENE
by Walt Davis

Here are some quotes from critics over the last 2 years: "displayed a powerful and original musical vocabulary" (Chicago Reader); "a formidable figure and an original voice" (Chicago Tribune); "restlessly inventive" (The Wire); "continually inventing his own musical language" (Lovely Music); "not only flew but soared ... [with] a seemingly limitless array of sounds" (the Reader again); "a uniquely American hybrid and one of the most substantive and satisfying threads in the contemporary music crazy quilt" (Fanfare); "he plays his own music, an intensely personal mode of expression, instantly recognizable yet entirely free from cliché ... a magisterial and exemplary demonstration of the improviser's art, yet open to surprise" (The Wire again).

So who is this surprising, unique, inventive voice? The latest hip kid from the NY downtown scene? One of the numerous exciting young musicians on the Chicago scene? I almost hesitate to tell you, but they are writing about legendary violinist Leroy Jenkins. Most specifically, they are talking about solo performances which Leroy has given over the last couple years and which can be heard on his latest album, Solo (Lovely Music). Leroy's solo performances draw primarily from three sources - the African-American tradition, the classical tradition, and himself. This isn't done in an artificial manner, it's not a clumsy fusion. It's done with equal respect and consummate mastery, to create an original musical expression. It is music brimming with soul. All the critics make note of two things: the breathtaking energy of his playing and the logic and coherence of his performance. "A master who cuts across all categories" (San Francisco Chronicle). Perhaps String Magazine put it best when they called Jenkins: "not only the father of extended improvisational string music, but also one of the guiding lights of creative music as a whole ... Jenkins has not only been a musical force but a moral one, guiding his peers in all areas of their musical lives."

Make no mistake about it, Leroy Jenkins is a legend. Shortly after moving to Chicago in 1965, he joined the Association for the Advancement of Creative Music (AACM). With Anthony Braxton, Wadada Leo Smith, and Steve McCall, he formed the Creative Construction Company in 1969, and that group gave NY its first taste of the new Chicago music in 1970. Around the same time, he played with Ornette Coleman, Cecil Taylor, Albert Ayler, Archie Shepp, Rahsaan Roland Kirk, and Alice Coltrane. Then in 1971, with Jerome Cooper and Sirone, he formed the Revolutionary Ensemble and Jenkins gained prominence as the most significant violinist of the modern era. His performances since then, whether with his band Sting, with Joseph Jarman and Myra Melford, with Henry Threadgill, or solo, have further cemented his legendary status. He's even won a "Bessie" award for Mother of Three Sons, a collaboration with Bill T. Jones. As Wire also noted: "Jenkins's playing in itself sufficiently justifies the existence of the AACM."

But forget all that history. You shouldn't come hear Leroy Jenkins because of what he played then, you need to come hear him because of what he plays now. He's older than the hills and he's still the baddest kid on the block.

Leroy Jenkins will be giving a solo violin performance on Thurs, Oct. 14, at the Nelson Music Room on Duke's East Campus. The show starts at 8 pm, tickets are $16 reserved, $14, and $8 students. Advance tickets are available at the Page Center Box Office (684-4444). This show is co-sponsored by the Duke Institute of the Arts.

Walt Davis is the president of AIM and a dj at WXDU.

(photo credit: Linda Harris)


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