"Summit Conference" was a manifestation of my dream to perform with artists who have backgrounds and experience similar to my own, musicians who are exploring the same plane of artistic thought," says bassist Reggie Workman. "I wanted to create a recording deeply rooted in our history and evolution, yet also truly futuristic."
For his 1994 Postcards debut, Workman assembled a group of musical heavyweights, including Sam Rivers on tenor and soprano sax and on flute, Andrew Hill on piano, Julian Priester on trombone, and Pheeroan akLaff on drums. He puts them through their paces in a power set that never stops burning and never stops exploring. "It is a true summit conference," he explains. "The CD has the musical mark of my personal experience and direction, but in no way stifles or compromises the wonderful musical abilities and directions of the individual participants."
Summit Conference also highlights the compositional talents of four of the artists, with Workman's "Estelle's Theme" and "Summit Conference," Sam Rivers's "Meteor" and "Solace," Julian Priester's "Breath," and Andrew Hill's "Gone". The disc also includes "Encounter" by the late John Carter and "Conversation" by Sonelius Smith.
With Cerebral Caverns, Workman took the next exciting step beyond Summit Conference. Reassembling the nucleus of Summit Conference with Sam Rivers and Julian Priester, Workman added rising star Geri Allen on piano and, on different compositions, Al Foster (drummer for Joe Henderson and the late Miles Davis) and Gerry Hemingway -- and new flavors with harp, tablas, and electronics.
"Summit Conference conveyed that we lived through the music," explains Workman, "we started with the music and we are still contributing. For Cerebral Caverns, I wanted to make a different statement," he continues, "so there are the additional voices of harpist Elizabeth Panzer and Bangladesh native Tapan Modak on tablas. And, although Geri Allen doesn't have the historical experience that Sam, Julian, and I have, she is an ideal addition to the summit conference. She's a brilliant pianist, and I know will be heard from for a long time to come."
By varying the combination of players from piece to piece and by incorporating his straight-ahead and free jazz influences with his classical and Eastern music sensibilities, Workman has created a kaleidoscope of textures. On "Ballad Explorations I," Rivers and Priester communicate with Workman effortlessly. The interplay of Priester's trombone, Rivers's tenor sax, and Workman's bass creates a dark, pensive mood of shaded tones that's a seamless dialogue."What's In Your Hand" is an up, bright, exploratory piece that captures the moment with a trio of Workman, Allen, and Hemingway. "This piece was basically unplanned, as if we were saying 'we're all here right now, and we all have something to say, so let's say it.' The title," Workman explains, "comes from a statement I recall Adam Clayton Powell making to Congress: "All right, what's in your hand? What are you bringing to the table?" This was improvised, and I found that both Geri and Gerry really had something to say, they really had something in their hands."
The medieval romance of Tristan and Isolde was the inspiration for "Half of My Soul (Tristan's Love Theme)," part of a suite that Workman wrote and his wife choreographed for a dance project. The whole ensemble participates in this piece (with Al Foster on drums), with Workman's bass the constant of the story and the harp and flute interspersed to evoke emotions of love and struggle, overcoming obstacles for a higher plane of love.
Reggie Workman has traversed a diverse and prestigious pathway in his 35+-year career, and is currently collaborating not only with the Summit Conference and Cerebral Caverns musicians but also with Mal Waldron, Cecil Taylor, Butch Morris, David Murray, and Marilyn Crispell, and with Oliver Lake and Andrew Cyrille in Trio 3. A music educator as well as a musician, he is a professor in and curriculum coordinator for the Jazz and Contemporary Music Program at New York's New School and conducts music education seminars nationally and internationally.
"I have been fortunate," notes Workman, who grew up in Philadelphia and now lives in the New York City area, "to have collaborated with such great artists as Thelonious Monk, Sun Ra, Miles Davis, Yusef Lateef, Art Blakey, Max Roach, Wayne Shorter, Nina Simone, Alice Coltrane, Abbey Lincoln, Sonny Stitt, and -- very importantly -- with John Coltrane and the other members of his pioneering 1960's jazz group. I have truly enjoyed a fruitful experience in the world of music."
With Cerebral Caverns, while firmly rooted in this jazz legacy, Reggie Workman continues, as always, to grow -- taking the next step into the musical future.
ARKADIA JAZZ
