Recorded May 17, 2019 at Berklee College of Music in celebration of Lennie Tristano’s centenary.

• Jimmy Halperin – Tenor Saxophone
• Dave Frank – Piano
• Bob Tamagni – Drums
• Rick McLaughlin – Double bass

Lennie Tristano was born on March 19, 1919 during the so-called Spanish flu pandemic. He was a highly innovative and individual jazz pianist, who contributed to extending the concepts and practices of jazz with his advanced harmonic language, rhythmic complexities, and emphasis on the linear construction of the melody. He also pioneered in teaching jazz improvisation with a profound influence on generations of musicians.

In order to celebrate the centenary of his birth, the Harmony and Jazz Composition Department at Berklee College of Music hosted a series of events in March 2019. Several guests were invited, most of whom—like Dave Frank, Jimmy Halperin, Lee Konitz, and David Liebman—had studied with Lennie, as well as the jazz historian and pianist Lewis Porter. We were especially excited to have Lee at the centenary; he said that he would honor Lennie in any way he could. However, his health prevented him from participating in the centenary.

It is poignant to think about Lee at this point, because of his recent passing at the age of 92, after an incredible career spanning over seven decades. I had the great fortune of interviewing him on several occasions, and he was always gracious and generous. He was the last surviving member of the Lennie Tristano quintet/sextet, which made historic recordings in the late 1940s, especially the first recordings of free jazz. Lee was part of the scene even before the formation of the group; he first met Lennie in Chicago when he was about 15 years old, which was the beginning of their long association until Lennie passed away in 1978.

Dave Frank and Jimmy Halperin are childhood friends—their moms were also friends—and both studied with Lennie in the 1970s. I remember interviewing Dave in 1997, but had forgotten the details; when we met again in 2019, he reminded me that the first time we met, we talked about Lennie in his car parked around the block from Berklee, where he was teaching at the time. I would have never imagined that I would end up teaching at Berklee myself. Dave had fascinating stories to tell about the rigor with which Lennie taught. He recalled that Lennie taught him “the overriding concepts of time…. Big statements all the time, ‘Put every note right in there’… and then he would hit the wall, ‘You gotta put every note right in there,’ pow!” Dave now runs a cool combination studio of jazz and yoga in midtown Manhattan, called Hari NYC, with his wife Hari, a Kundalini Yoga teacher. A prodigious pianist and teacher of jazz improvisation, he has posted many enlightening masterclasses on YouTube.

When I first met Jimmy on Long Island in 1997, I was impressed by his enthusiasm and eloquence with which he described his study with Lennie. He impressed me again during the panel discussion with David Liebman by playing Lennie’s solo of “Line Up” on the saxophone and singing Charlie Christian’s solo on “Stompin’ at the Savoy,” note for note. I should also mention that he is a three-time recipient of the National Endowment for the Arts Jazz Fellowship Grant and that his album, Live at A-Trane: Berlin, was listed as one of the “Best Albums of 2017” by the DownBeat magazine.

Berklee’s celebration of Tristano’s centennial culminated with a concert on March 27 at the Oliver Colvin Recital Hall, featuring Dave Frank (piano) and Jimmy Halperin (tenor saxophone), with Rick McLaughlin (bass) and Bob Tamagni (drums). Jimmy explained that the selection of the repertoire was influenced by Lennie: “The songs that we chose to perform were familiar repertoire of the ‘Tristano School of Jazz’; original compositions based on the American Song Book of the golden era of American Standards. In essence, the compositions are linear improvisations based on the chord changes of the standard songs.” The linearity extended through the improvisations, which Jimmy described as “laying down your ‘line’” and “just letting ‘it’ go where it goes.” Dave also stressed that they “were playing in a purely linear style that night, highlighting the improvised line and minimizing chordal accompaniment.”

Bassist Rick McLaughlin has performed with Mahmoud Ahmed, Don Byron, the Either/Orchestra, Mick Goodrick, Steve Lacy, John Medeski, Roger Miller, Antonio Sanchez, and Miguel Zenon. On top of being a wonderful colleague in the Harmony and Jazz Composition Department at Berklee, he is a terrific teacher with a unique sense of humor and clarity with which he explains all kinds of harmonic concepts, especially Stevie Wonder’s ‘wonders.’ He is highly respected and loved by his students. I know this personally because I have audited his class.

Drummer Bob Tamagni has taught at Berklee for 35 years and has recorded with many prominent artists, including Mike and Pat Metheny, Gary Burton, Greg Hopkins, Giovanni Moltoni, and Bob Nieske’s Big Wolf Project, among others. Jimmy noted how much he loved Bob’s playing, in particular, “the crisp ride cymbals” and “the pulsating abstract time feel of the drums.”

Bob himself reminisced about the concert: “I of course knew of Lennie and his major contribution to jazz, but I wasn’t very familiar with his music. We met the day before with bassist Rick McLaughlin, and they called some standard titles and ran a few down. I remember the forms were standard, but the heads were anything but standard, for sure! The next evening, we were on the stage with a pretty full house. Jimmy said, ‘1, 2, 1234.’ It was like the engine revved and we lifted off! Wasn’t like any ride I’d been on before … off the ground immediately! Jimmy and Dave weaving beautiful lines over these familiar forms. The ensuing improvisations were incredibly creative. True jazz improv! Everyone with open ears and open mind. We just all committed to going wherever it was going and enjoy the ride…. It was a magical experience I’ll never forget. What a blast!”

It was indeed a memorable concert and I would like to congratulate Dave, Jimmy, Rick, and Bob on the release of this album—in the midst of another pandemic.

Eunmi Shim, Ph.D
Author of Lennie Tristano: His Life in Music (University of Michigan Press)
Professor, Harmony and Jazz Composition, Berklee College of Music

Credits

• Evan Tamagni – Engineer, Mixing, Mastering
• Eunmi Shim – Liner Notes
• Ric DiDonato – Photoshop guidance
• Mark Culep – Band photo
• Annatasha Saifol – Photo editing
• Rick McLaughlin – Producer

Special thanks to:

• Lennie Tristano
• Tom Hojnacki for event production, guidance and encouragement
• Berklee College of Music
• The Harmony and Jazz Composition Department at Berklee, the department Chair, George W. Russell, Jr., and Emily Baker, the Department Administrative Assistant

Cover art: Berklee College of Music Catalog, 1974-1975, in the Collection of Berklee College of Music academic publications, BCA-043. Berklee Archives, Stan Getz Library, Berklee College of Music. Used with permission.

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