Bennie Wallace
Bennie Wallace ( born November 18, 1946 in Chattanooga, Tennessee) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist.
Life and work
Bennie Wallace grew up in Tennessee, influenced by rhythm and blues, bluegrass, gospel and country music of the Grand Ole Opry radio show. In his high school years he heard the plates of Sonny Rollins, Stanley Turrentine, John Coltrane and the late Eddie Lockjaw Davis. Meanwhile, Wallace blues and bebop played at gigs in or around Knoxville. Through the music of the South, relatively isolated from influences of the New York jazz scene, he found to his own musical language.
He first played in clubs around his hometown of Chattanooga, studied clarinet at the University of Tennessee, where he among other things, Taking lessons from Bill Scarlett. In 1969 he completed his studies; In 1971 he moved to New York, played in both avant-garde jazz circles of the then Loftszene, where he also Tommy Flanagan met, but also worked with more traditional oriented musicians such as Barry Harris, Big Band Buddy Rich, Monty Alexander, Sheila Jordan and the National Jazz Ensemble together. Starting in 1977, Bennie Wallace formed his own trio, which belonged to Tommy Flanagan and bassist Glen Moore as Eddie Gomez, Dave Holland and drummer Eddie Moore, Jack DeJohnette, Elvin Jones and Billy Hart. Advanced were his various bands to guest soloists such as Chick Corea, John Scofield and Jimmy Knepper. It began a long collaboration with the Munich jazz label Enja: In the years 1977 to 1984 seven boards should arise. In 1985 he made his debut on Blue Note Records, which he was known in the U.S. and in Europe to a wider audience. From his work records projects The Art of the Saxophone from 1987 with guest saxophonist Oliver Lake, Jerry Bergonzi, Lew Tabackin and Harold Ashby out.
Wallace also made several European tours and festival appearances, including the George Gruntz Concert Jazz Band in 1978. Between 1990 and 1993, Wallace worked in California with film music projects, then reported back with a new trio in the jazz scene in his music he some his film music title integrated (If I Lose ). In 1998, he took a George Gershwin album, Someone To Watch Over Me 2004 Wallace appeared on the Berlin Jazz Festival and worked on the music of Coleman Hawkins.
His music
From the swing era perspective ( Coleman Hawkins, Ben Webster ) integrates the traditionalist Bennie Wallace Sonny Rollins / John Coltrane - hard bop tradition with the influences of Southern music, like the blues and gospel, rhythm and blues influences of Eddie Lockjaw Davis, street music (like on Sweeping Through The City with the gospel group the Wings of Song and on Twilight Time with the blues musician Stevie Ray Vaughan ).
Honors
For his debut album, The Fourteen Bar Blues ( Enja ) Bennie Wallace received the 1979 German Record Prize.
His recordings
As a leader
As a sideman
Literature and sources
- Martin Kunzler: jazz lexicon. Rowohlt, Reinbek 1993
- Bill Milkoski: Liner Notes to The Art Of The Saxophone ( Denon, 1987)
- Richard Cook & Brian Morton: The Penguin Guide to Jazz on CD. Sixth Edition, Penguin, London 2002
- Bielefeld Catalog Jazz 2001