There are not very many saxophonists who can claim that they’ve played with both Warne Marsh or Lee Konitz and fewer yet who have played in that rarified atmosphere with Warne and Lee together at the same time. Ted Brown is one of the few. The only others being Hal McKusick and Jimmy Guiffre. Today we talk with tenor saxophonist Ted Brown live over the telephone from his home in New York City. Possessor of a deep rich languorous tenor sound who set his sights upon pure liquid lyric improvisation so many years ago and has never wavered (nor signed any waivers) in his quest of this Lestorian Ideal. Looping, leaping, skipping a step and pirouetting he has teamed with other saxophonists Gary Foster, Art Pepper, Warne Marsh, and has played with Lee Konitz since 1948 — contrapuntal music at its best. Ted has performed all over New York and the eastern seaboard, Los Angeles, Holland, South Africa, Carnegie Hall, and recently with Lee at Dizzy’s Club Coca Cola. I look forward to talking to him about all of these things and of course Lennie Tristano, his mentor and teacher.


Ted Brown & Lee Konitz | May 28, 2004 Los Angeles | Photos by Mark Weber

AND if you find yourself on Manhattan around January 12th or 13th you can catch his current quartet — Michael Kanan — piano | Murray Wall — bass | Taro Okamoto — drums | Ted Brown — tenor saxophone | January 12 at Kitano’s on 38th Street and Park Avenue | January 13 at Sofia’s restaurant on West 46th Street

KUNM

Thursday ALL THAT JAZZ – KUNM Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA. Terrestrially at 89.9 FM radio and streaming on the web > KUNM.org | January 20, 2o10 Noon Mountain Standard Time | Host MARK WEBER