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PlayersLogan Richardson; DeterminedConcerto DesignerA son of Kansas City, where the codes of swingblossomed during the 1930s, saxophonist LoganRichardson knows about that hard-to-describeentity known as the “jazz tradition.” But whilehe was playing standards like “Misty” at age 14,no such repertoire appears on Richardson’ssophomore release, Ethos, issued on GregOsby’s imprint, Inner Circle.On the disc, Richardson collages 15 compactoriginals into a quasi-concerto for alto framed byan ensemble, aligned in varying configurationsof voice, vibraphone, guitar, cello, bass anddrums. The proceedings demonstrate thatRichardson’s ties to the jazz lifeblood lie asmuch in his notion that “the tradition itselfmeans to move forward”—an ethos that linkshim to Charlie Parker, Ornette Coleman andOliver Lake, all referenced therein—as in hiscommand of the raw materials that such forebearsdeployed to fuel their musical production.“When we learn about Bird and JohnColtrane, we’re supposed to take in and drawfrom all their music, but also learn about ourselves,”Richardson said. “As a child, you naturallymimic whoever is around you—theirlaugh, the tone of their voice, how they saythings, their personality—and then branch offand start developing your own ideals. But manymusicians seem to think it’s cool to say backexactly what they were taught for the rest oftheir lives. That seems stagnant.”Richardson’s career has been anything butstagnant since 2007, when he released CerebralFlow (Fresh Sound), his similarly configureddebut. Recently home from a week in Spainwith Nasheet Waits’ Equality Quartet, he wasanticipating a springtime Minnesota engagementwith pianist Jason Moran, concerts with trumpeterAmbrose Akinmusire and pianist JesseElder, and summer work with vibraphonistStefon Harris. More consequentially, Richardsonwas a month removed from his firstEuropean leader tour, an eight-city Italiansojourn with Waits, Akinmusire, bassist JoeSanders and vibraphonist Mike Pinto.“The way the music transformed nightlyturned me on, and I decided to make changes,”Richardson said. Whatever label accepts his nextdocument will present a unit comprisingRichardson, Waits, Moran, Akinmusire, Sandersand fellow Missourian Pat Metheny, who contactedRichardson after hearing him on Moran’sBig Bandwagon debut at Town Hall.“It was the first time he’d seen me, but heknew about me from his brother, Mike, wholives in Kansas City, and he had my albums andliked them,” Richardson said. “It was like an e-mail from a peer, only it’s Pat Metheny. Hedoesn’t want to say, ‘OK, dude, I want to playwith you.’ So I was like, ‘What can I do to makethis happen?’”Pragmatically, Richardson is not of the mindsetto let opportunities slip by.“I’m an extreme optimist, a major dreamer,”Richardson said. “I was never someone to getdiscouraged. If someone dissed me or made mefeel bad, it made me come back stronger thenext day. That’s maybe an element of comingup how I did. The ghetto of Kansas City. Not toomuch to no money. My mom was extremelysupportive, and after years of showing my dedication—Ididn’t date or go to parties because Ithought it would interfere with my progressmusically—I finally got my own horn.”After briefly attending Berklee College ofMusic in Boston, Richardson moved to NewYork in 2001 to study at the New School. Histeachers included Mark Turner and SteveWilson, as well as Greg Tardy and JoeChambers, both early employers, along withWaits, with whom he developed, as Richardsonputs it, “a big brother scenario.” Until Waitsbrought him on the road in 2007, Richardson“made money and survived” as a woodwindrepairman and instrument-builder atManhattan’s Sam Ash Music store. Duringthose years, he read As Serious as Your Life,Valerie Wilmer’s collective biography of theindividualists of the ’60s whose spirit he seemsto channel.“She quoted Anthony Braxton that the nextmusicians will not only devise new musical systemsbut actually build their own instruments tobring forth new sounds and ideas,” Richardsonsaid. “It made sense because of what I was doingand made me think on a different scale. Youhave to get lost to find the most beautiful oasisthat nobody knows about. I spent so much timerestricting and not letting everything in. Now Ithink that everything is valid, it’s just a matter ofhow it makes you feel.” —Ted PankenELEKTRA CARRAS22 DOWNBEAT August 2009