The Art of the Improvisers
sat 19 sep 2026 23:00 hrs
Part 7 of the series on saxophonist and composer Julius Hemphill
Saxophonist and composer Julius Hemphill (Fort Worth, 1938 – New York, 1995) was one of the most dynamic, original and inventive figures in jazz from the late 1960s onwards. Although his discography is relatively small, it contains many masterpieces and hidden gems. In 1968, Hemphill co-founded the Black Artists Group, a collective of Black innovative musicians in St. Louis. In 1976, he was one of the co-founders, as well as the principal composer and arranger, of the World Saxophone Quartet.
In this episode, we hear music from the following albums:
Julius Hemphill / Peter Kowald – Live at Kassiopeia (NoBusiness, 2011)
Julius Hemphill – alto saxophone, soprano saxophone / Peter Kowald – double bass
Recorded on 8 January 1987 at Kassiopeia in Wuppertal
Julius Hemphill & Abdul Wadud – Oakland Duets (Music & Arts, 1993)
Julius Hemphill – alto saxophone, soprano saxophone / Abdul Wadud – cello
Recorded on 13 and 14 November 1992 at the Oakland Museum in Oakland, California
Oliver Lake – Julius Hemphill – Buster Bee (Sackville Recordings, 2002)
Julius Hemphill – alto saxophone, soprano saxophone, flute / Oliver Lake – alto saxophone
Recorded on 1 March 1978 at Eastern Sound, Toronto
Many of Hemphill’s former students, including David Sanborn, Tim Berne, James Carter and Marty Ehrlich, regularly perform his compositions. English alto saxophonist Seymour Wright puts it like this:
“[Hemphill’s] music sounds fantastic. Beautiful, often swinging compositions bring together long, meaningful lines, stacking and balancing them against each other. These lines can shift from horizontal to vertical, from flat to a complete stop, and back again. Solid, often slow rhythms build up, creating open, layered spaces for solo dialogue and exchange.”
It may sound a little vague and abstract, but once you hear the music, it all makes perfect sense.
Photo: Brian McMillen
