Hemphill Stringtet - The Hemphill Stringtet Plays the Music of Julius Hemphill CD
SKU
OOYH 035
Curtis Stewart - violin
Sam Bardfeld - violin
Stephanie Griffin - viola
Tomeka Reid - cello
“In the second half of the 20th century, no one wrote multi-horn polyphony better than Fort Worth-born multi-reedist Julius Hemphill (1938-1995). Just listen to the harmonized voices on, say, the title track from the World Saxophone Quartet's Revue, or "Otis' Groove" from the Julius Hemphill Sextet's Fat Man and the Hard Blues.
Hemphill arrived fully formed with 1972's Dogon A.D. (for "adaptive dance"), originally released on his own Mbari label, later reissued by Arista Freedom. On that album, he debuted a biting tone on alto, wrote modern sounding lines with deep blues roots, and led a quartet highlighted by Abdul Wadud's cello. He'd been a founder of St. Louis' Black Artists Group, became a fixture on the mid-'70s Lower Manhattan loft scene, was the most interesting composer in the aforementioned World Saxophone Quartet, and formed his own all-saxophone sextet after leaving the WSQ. He remained musically active even after physical infirmities (diabetes, heart disease) rendered him unable to play.
So, how do Hemphill's compositions work as chamber music? On the version of "Revue" that opens the album, the strings' sonority lets the listener luxuriate in Hemphill's gorgeous harmonies before the quartet takes off into the stratosphere for a collective improvisation that allows each member a brief solo spot. Ehrlich emphasizes that the scores can be played as written by non-improvising musicians, or extemporized on as Hemphill's groups did, and the Stringtet does here.”-The Stash Dauber
- LabelOut of Your Head
- UPC806102129553