Lee Konitz
| Lee Konitz | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Background information | |
| Born |
October 13, 1927 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Genres | Jazz, cool jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, composer |
| Instruments | Saxophone |
| Years active | 1945–present |
| Labels | RCA, Atlantic, Verve, Prestige, Palmetto, Whirlwind |
Lee Konitz (born October 13, 1927) is an American composer and alto saxophonist.
He has performed successfully in a wide range of jazz styles, including bebop, cool jazz, and avant-garde jazz. Konitz's association with the cool jazz movement of the 1940s and 1950s includes participation in Miles Davis's Birth of the Cool sessions and his work with pianist Lennie Tristano. He was notable during this era as one of relatively few alto saxophonists to retain a distinctive style when Charlie Parker exerted a massive influence.
Like other students of Tristano, Konitz was noted for improvising long, melodic lines with the rhythmic interest coming from odd accents, or odd note groupings suggestive of the imposition of one time signature over another. Other saxophonists were strongly influenced by Konitz, notably Paul Desmond and Art Pepper.
Konitz was born on October 13, 1927 in Chicago, Illinois to Jewish parents of Austrian and Russian descent. Aged 11, Konitz received his first instrument: a clarinet. However, he later dropped the instrument in favor of the tenor saxophone. He eventually moved from tenor to alto. His greatest influences at the time were the swing big bands, to whom he and his brother listened on the radio, specifically, Benny Goodman. Hearing Goodman on the radio is, in fact, what prodded him to ask for a clarinet. He recalls improvising on the saxophone before ever learning to play any standards.
Konitz began his professional career in 1945 with the Teddy Powell band as a replacement for Charlie Ventura. A month later, the band parted ways. Between 1945 and 1947, he worked off and on with Jerry Wald. In 1946, he first met pianist Lennie Tristano, and the two worked together in a small cocktail bar. His next substantial work was done with Claude Thornhill, in 1947, with Gil Evans arranging and Gerry Mulligan as a composer, in most part.
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