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BOXED SET
Ten Freedom Summers
Wadada Leo Smith (Cuneiform)
by Ken Waxman
Striving to capture defining moments in African-
American history, trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith has
written 19 compositions to reflect events of the Civil
Rights era from 1954-64, the summers of the title. In
a gestation period that began in 1977 and consumed
most of his time during a three-year stretch before
this four-CD set was recorded in late 2011, Smith
broadened his focus back to the 1857 Dred Scott case
and forward to September 11th. Interpreted by the
jazz-sophisticated members of his Golden Quartet/
Quintet (GQ) plus the Southwest Chamber Music
(SCM) group, 70-year-old Smith calls the program
“one of my life’s defining works” (and has been
rewarded for it as a 2013 Pulitzer Prize Finalist in
Music). Personal rather than pedantic, the
compositions celebrate defining moments. Although
there are related motifs among them, linkage is more
psychological than sonic. Each composition is
designed to stand on its own.
m Ay 2–5
ann hampton callaway and her
trio—From Sassy to divine: a celebration of
Sarah Vaughan
m Ay 6
temple uniV erS ity jazz band
with Terell Stafford and Christian McBride
m Ay 7–12
juilliard jazz orcheS t r a :
the music of duke ellington
m Ay 13–14
claire martin
with Peter Washington and Steve Wilson
m Ay 15 chick corea festival
edS el gomez cubiS t muS ic band
m Ay 16 chick corea festival
elio V illaF r a n c a :
the music of chick corea
with Charnett Moffett and Joe Locke
m Ay 17–18 chick corea festival
marcuS robertS S olo
alF redo rodrÍguez trio
m Ay 19 chick corea festival
henry cole and the aF r o b e at
collectiV e
RESERVATIONS 212-258-9595 / 9795 jalc.org/dizzys
36 May 2013 | THE NEW YORK CITY JAZZ RECORD
Smith has stated that Ten Freedom Summers was
inspired by August Wilson’s 10-play Pittsburgh
Cycle, which similarly deals with the 20th Century
Black experience, plus Civil Rights-era jazz
compositions such as John Coltrane’s “Alabama”
and Max Roach’s LP-length We Insist: Freedom Now!
suite. But as a theorist, educator, AACM member
and improviser, the trumpeter created the
compositions here after his own fashion. Very few
are programmatic on their own, for instance.
The closest would probably be “Thurgood
Marshall and Brown v. Board of Education: A Dream
of Equal Education, 1954”. With stentorian beat
promulgated by the military-styled pacing of
drummers Susie Ibarra and Pheeroan akLaff, the
inevitability of the demands for equal education for
all Americans is underlined. Added to this pulse are
scrubbed John Lindberg basslines, tremolo piano
chording from Anthony Davis and the composer’s
brassy grace notes. Piano key clips and R&B-styled
percussion backbeats reminiscent of Julius
Hemphill’s “The Hard Blues” reinforce the theme,
which reaches its climax with a celebratory sequence
that is carefully harmonized as it heralds the
militancy of the following decade.
Davis is a valuable addition to Smith’s team.
With impeccable keyboard finesse, he negotiates
between the two ensembles, minimizing any fissure
that could arise in the mixture of styles. For instance,
on “Little Rock Nine: A Force for Desegregation in
Education, 1957”, it’s Davis’ easy-going arpeggios
that link Larry Kaplan’s recital-like flute passages
and the SCM’s gentle string swells with the GQ’s
freer voicing. During a finale of echoing tones,
Smith’s slurred grace notes cement both factions.
m Ay 20
caleb chapman’S creS cent S u p e r
band/V oodoo orcheS tra & la
onda caribeÑa
m Ay 21–26
bill charlap trio
with Peter Washington and Kenny Washington
m Ay 27
juilliard jazz enS emble
m Ay 28–juNE 2
bill charlap trio
with Ron Carter and Kenny Washington
Although secondary to Smith’s theme, many of
Ten Freedom Summers’ compositions provide new
validity for Third Stream creation. The most notable
instance is “Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society and
The Civil Rights Act of 1964”, where, backed by the
SCM, solos are divided between Smith and violinist
Shalini Vijayan. Over the course of 24 minutes,
sensitized glissandi on the violinist’s part are not
only conveyed with an exquisite tone, but during the
finale variations stretched tautly without losing their
warmth. While Smith plays in a congruent fashion
rather than complementing violin passages, his
instant theme-reshaping at times prevents Vijayan’s
variations from moving too far out of sync.
What’s more, the underlying strength of Smith’s
composing is such that even when the SCM plays on
its own, the focus isn’t lost in semi-classical
prettiness. Interpreting “Medgar Evers: A Love-
Voice of a Thousand Years Journey For Liberty and
Justice”, the dirge-like tune Smith initially composed
for violinist Leroy Jenkins, the SCM proves itself
capable of mood-appropriate interpretations. Aided
by Davis’ key fanning, the Jeff von der Schmidtconducted
nonet sustains the melancholy mood with
pizzicato lines divided contrapuntally among harp,
violins and viola. Underneath the undulating strings,
percussionist Lynn Vartan provides a thunder claplike
continuum of kettle drum resonations.
Outsized in more than bulk, this four-CD set
manages to commemorate major achievements in
American race relations, legitimize Third Stream
fusion and confirm Smith’s role as a major composer.
For more information, visit cuneiformrecords.com.
This project is at Roulette May 1st-3rd. See Calendar.