In that period of time, his unique fusion of gospel and jazz was beginning to form. at All Souls Church, located at 80th and Lexington in New York City. web design by sheppco, The family of Mr. Russell has announced a celebration of his life on Saturday, May 8, at 4:00 PM. Songs. Like George Russell, Evans played piano but is better known as a jazz arranger and composer. Share. It's like a vocabulary. His performances have ranged from solo piano to a groove-oriented jazz trio to a soulful, fresh-sounding larger ensemble that intrigues the listener's intellect and touches their soul. ↓. ↓. ", "I love sharing the information that I have with others. Featured peformers: Barry Galbraith (guitar), Art Farmer (trumpet), Bill Evans (piano), George Russell (drum, liner notes, composer), Jack Lewis (producer), Fred Reynolds (producer). He's known as a source of encouragement and inspiration to anyone who crosses his path. As a player myself, knowing harmonic theory gives me a lot of security. For the jazz guitarist, please use George Russell … George Russell's book, The Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization, first published in 1953, was the first theoretical contribution to come from jazz, and was responsible for introducing modal improvisation which resulted in the seminal recording of Miles Davis' "Kind of Blue." George Russell, jazz piano performer/ composer/ arranger, musical theorist. I learn everybody's names the first day. or talking about class material. He began taking piano lessons when he was 7 years old. LPM-2534; Vinyl LP). Then students can open up to receive the harmony package I'm trying to sell them. Mr. Russell passed away peacefully at age 86 on Monday, July 27, from complications of Alzheimer's disease. Biography. Giddins picks five songs from his list of 101 entry-way jazz recordings. at All Souls Church, located at 80th and Lexington in New York City. The composer and pianist George Russell is certainly under-appreciated in the realm of modern jazz. Modal Jazz, Avant-Garde Jazz, Experimental Big Band, Third Stream, Jazz, Big Band. A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, George W. Russell Jr. is a performer, composer, and educator. After that, there's not a class that goes by where I am not talking to every student, whether it's 'Hello, how are you?' Young Russell sang in the choir of the African Methodist Episcopal Church and listened to the Kentucky Riverboat music of Fate Marable. FROM THE PUBLISHER'S DESCRIPTION. George Russell is a hugely influential, innovative figure in the evolution of modern jazz, the music's only major theorist, one of its most profound composers, and a trail blazer whose ideas have transformed and inspired some of the greatest musicians of our time. As Russell continued studying music in college, he discovered jazz and its harmonies. The family of Mr. Russell has announced a celebration of his life on Saturday, May 8, at 4:00 PM. I try to teach it in a way that is compelling, so that students understand the application of it in their own performance. We were both from Cincinnati and I think that he liked that fact-though he had much to say about racism there and I completely agreed. His new book, Jazz, is a new guide for novice listeners and longtime fans alike. Seams are solid with no splitting. George Russell, a composer, educator and theorist who had a powerful effect on the jazz forms and methods that have evolved from the 1950s to the present, has died. ", "I mix in a little humor, I share a bit about myself and what I'm going through. Home | George Russell | The Lydian Chromatic Concept | Purchase The Book | Discography | The Orchestra | Contact You can do it, but it sounds like you don't know what you're saying. George Allen Russell was born in Cincinnati, Ohio to a white father and a Black mother, later the adopted only child of a nurse and a chef on the B & O Railroad, Bessie and Joseph Russell. Gil Evans. As Russell continued studying music in college, he discovered jazz and its harmonies. An accomplished drummer, band leader, and one of modern jazz’s leading composers. It's all analysis. His playing is filled with passion, fire, soul, and spirit, which fits with his motto: "I would rather inspire than require.". It was then that he began to understand, from a theoretical viewpoint, what exactly he was playing both in church and in his classical repertoire. © Concept Publishing. For media inquiries, please contact Media Relations. George Russell was a major innovator in modern jazz: a pianist-composer-theoretician who profoundly influenced Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Gil Evans, … Read more on stereophile.com George Russell His wife and son were at his side. See photos. Genres: Jazz, Bebop. He was also the leader of ensembles, big and small, on more than two dozen albums. 2 talking about this. George Allen Russell [birth name], George Russell & His Smalltet, George Russell Orchestra, George Russell Septet, George Russell's New York Band, The George Russell Sextet. Ohio-born pianist George Russell (1923), the son of a white father and a black mother, was the apostle of modal jazz. George Russell The Jazz Workshop (RCA Victor) Pressing features: US pressing, mono pressing, deep groove: Vinyl grade: VG, light label wear, light spindle marks on B-side label Profile: Born: 23rd June 1923 Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. The latest sounds, stories, ideas, and events. Along with writing about modern jazz for the last quarter-century in Great Britain, Duncan Heining has focused his attentions on drummer-turned-pianist-turned-composer-turned-arranger-turned-conceptualist George Russell since well before the 2009 publication of his biography George Russell: … Genres. I met George Russell in my first semester as a junior-year student at New England Conservatory in 1975. All are welcome. Whatever the subject, George spoke his mind. George Allen Russell (June 23, 1923 – July 27, 2009) was an American jazz pianist, composer and theorist, as well as former drummer. After high school, Russell attended Wilberforce University, where he found gigs playing drums at local clubs. Jazz in the Space Age is an album by George Russell originally released on Decca in 1960. A.D. Amorosi. Composed By – George Russell. Billy Taylor's' 1958 TV show "The Subject Is Jazz" : George Russell interview I try to make it very personal. He was a Black jazz pianist, composer, arranger and theorist. Kindly respond to lydconcept@aol.comif you plan to attend. The interval of a Perfect Fifths is the basis of the entire Lydian Chromatic Concept. I don't have to guess. He has been awarded the Ted Pease Award for Excellence in Teaching and the Curriculum Development Award for the Professional Writing and Music Technology Division. ", "In addition to harmony classes, I teach a gospel/jazz instrumental ensemble, in which we play a lot of my original music. Prior to becoming chair of the Harmony and Jazz Composition Department, Russell served as a professor of harmony and piano. In 1956, the George Russell Smalltet recorded Jazz Workshop, a landmark session, imposing both for its compositional boldness and the inventiveness of its improvisation – … Funding for the Smithsonian Jazz Oral History Program NEA Jazz Master interview was provided by the National Endowment for the Arts. Discography. Double Bass – Milt Hinton ( tracks: A1 to A6, B2, B6), Teddy Kotick ( tracks: B1 to B5) Drums – Joe Harris (3) ( tracks: A1 to A4), Osie Johnson ( tracks: B1 to B9), Paul … He collaborated multiple times with Miles Davis: their 1949 nonet sessions had helped create a new sound world that critics labelled ‘cool jazz’.. Died: 27th July 2009 Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Overview. Ezz-thetics is typical of George Russell Sextet early Sixties works, along with Stratusphunk, and Stratus Seekers. George Russell's Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization. He first expressed himself musically on the drums in the drum and bugle corps. His output is great (except, of course, when it isn’t to my taste). RCA Victor LPM-1372 (1957) Jacket - VG, wear, corner bends, writing on cover/back. Released in 1957 on RCA Victor (catalog no. "I make a point of developing a relationship with each and every student in my classes. "From inauspicious beginnings as an adopted child in 1920's Cincinnati, George Russell overcame ill-health and transcended racism to become recognized as a unique figure in jazz: a major composer, bandleader, professor, and the music's leading theoretician. Rated #116 in the best albums of 1957. ", "Music is harmony and melody. His compositional theories concerning jazz music being played based on scales rather than chord changes (generally known as "modal jazz") was extremely influential to a particular group of adventurous musicians. American composer, jazz musician (primarily on the piano but also mastered the drums), bandleader and music theorist. George Russell, a jazz composer, educator and musician whose theories led the way to radical changes in jazz in the 1950s and ’60s, died on Monday … ↓. Also Known As. This article, adapted by the author, appears in Chapter 4 of George Russell: The Story of an American Composer, by Duncan Heining (Scarecrow Press, 2010). Kindly respond to. It's not the easiest subject to buy. Vinyl - VG+/VG, Side 1 is VG+ with only a couple very light marks, Side 2 is VG, also mostly clean, however it has a few small but feel-able marks that caused repeating tics. George Russell says the interval of a Perfect 5th establishes ‘tonal gravity’ which pulls towards the tonic (like a Dominant Chord pulls down to the Tonic Chord). There was no written music at church, so he was given the opportunity to develop his ear. The author of The Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization and composer of a significant body of small … If you are a musician, you may know him from his exceptional, and exceptionally difficult treatise on jazz theory "The Lydian Chromatic Concept"....but this theory, watered down and simplified, has been passed on to innumerable young jazzers educated at the Berklee School, in the theory of "chord scales". Without a vocabulary, it's difficult to speak. The moment he landed in New York he showed his skills as a composer, penning Cubano Be Cubano Bop(september 1947) for Dizzy Gillespie and A Bird in Igor's Yard(april 1949) for Buddy DeFranco. George Russell was first and foremost a composer rather than an instrumentalist, and was one of the most important jazz theorists of the latter half of the 20th century. George Russell . New York, NY It was May 1945, the war was still on, Bebop was at its height in New York and George Russell and his two friends, Little Bird and Little Diz, had just arrived in the city. ... George Russell. In that period of time, his unique fusion of gospel and jazz was beginning to form. Along with studying formally, he had the fortune of growing up playing at his local church. An accomplished drummer, band leader, and one of modern jazz’s leading composers. But he's largely been forgotten. The album contains tracks conducted and arranged by Russell performed by Ernie Royal, Bob Brookmeyer, Frank Rehak, Al Kiger, Marky Markowitz, David Baker, Jimmy Buffington, Hal McKusick, Dave Young, Sol Schlinger, Bill Evans, Paul Bley, Barry Galbraith, Howard Collins, Milt Hinton, Don Lamond and Charlie Persip. Cover of Duncan Heining book Stratusphunk: George Russell – His Life and Music. I also teach an instrumental ensemble in mixed styles, where we deal mainly with improvising on the harmonic changes. It is really inspiring to just be around the students, faculty, and staff, and to be a part of their development as musicians.". George Russell is probably the most influential jazz musicians that you've never heard of! All Rights Reserved. GEORGE RUSSELL NEA JAZZ MASTER (1990) Interviewees: George Russell (June 23, 1923 – July 27, 2009) and Alice Russell … All are welcome. Real Name: George Allan Russell. Watch a video of George Russell, Ornette Coleman and the late Robert Palmer of the New York Times from the movie, "Ornette: Made in America," directed by Shirley Clarke. He has also been recognized with the highest award that Berklee gives to faculty, the Most Distinguished Faculty Award.