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Women in jazz/improv


David Ayers

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I guess like you I knew most of these names from recordings and concerts. Does anyone really not know any of these musicians? FWIW there are quite a lot of names missing - some of them eminent indeed. I think it's a topic worth active review.

On the topic of men bringing women into their projects except as singers it occurs to me the 'avant-garde' got off to a particularly shaky start, with Coltrane maybe the first notable exception.

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8 minutes ago, mjazzg said:

Anyone mentioned Sylvie Courvousier? Impressive catalogue, ECM to Relative Pitch via Intakt

I don't know her. Whats a good starting point?

9 minutes ago, David Ayers said:

I guess like you I knew most of these names from recordings and concerts. Does anyone really not know any of these musicians? FWIW there are quite a lot of names missing - some of them eminent indeed. I think it's a topic worth active review.

On the topic of men bringing women into their projects except as singers it occurs to me the 'avant-garde' got off to a particularly shaky start, with Coltrane maybe the first notable exception.

Sonny Simmons and Barbara Donaldson have been mentioned a couple of times here too. 

I guess that the jazz avant garde was not really "progressive" in today's sense of the term. No reason why it would or should have been.

On that note, have we forgotten Carla Bley?

Edited by Rabshakeh
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2 minutes ago, Rabshakeh said:

I don't know her. Whats a good starting point?

It's quite a range but amongst those I have and enjoy these should give you an idea (and you get a Lotte Anker bonus too)

https://www.discogs.com/master/1325006-Sylvie-Courvoisier-Abaton

https://www.discogs.com/release/1748364-Lotte-Anker-Sylvie-Courvoisier-Ikue-Mori-Alien-Huddle

https://www.discogs.com/release/9531356-Sylvie-Courvoisier-Mary-Halvorson-Crop-Circles

Ikue Mori too

 

 

 

 

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1 minute ago, mjazzg said:

Thanks. I'll start with that Intakt one with all three.

2 minutes ago, sidewinder said:

There’s a whole load of really excellent players over here not yet mentioned - who are not improv but more mainstream jazz. Trish Clowes, Amy Roberts, Laura Jurd, Tori Freestone, Kate Williams and Karen Sharpe come immediately to mind.

Are they British? I don't believe I have ever seen their names.

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Despite qualms, I am enjoying this thread. The "best albums of the 2000s" towards the end of 2019 didn't have anything like this wealth of new recommendations.

 

1 minute ago, sidewinder said:

Indeed they are !

Go on, give us a hint at where to start. Pretty please.

Edited by Rabshakeh
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Angelika Niescier took some time to break through but is now more widely known through recordings on Intakt, not least her most recent with Alexander Hawkins. That's a fine record which shows sides of her that her leader dates don't. Let's mention too that Alex has made terrific records with Tomeka Reid and - to outstanding effect - as co-leader with the polymathic Elaine Mitchener. So that's one 'white guy' who knows where to look for interesting collaborators.

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Is this strictly an improv thread or improv and jazz? A few more suggestions from the UK:

More mainstream - Nérija, Seed Ensemble, Kokoroko (all of whom share band members)

More improvy - Cath Roberts, Hannah Marshall, Ute Kanngeisser, Sue Lynch, Charlotte Keeffe, Sylvia Hallett, Angharad Davies

Edited by paulfromcamden
typo
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2 hours ago, paulfromcamden said:

Is this strictly an improv thread or improv and jazz? A few more suggestions from the UK:

More mainstream - Nérija, Seed Ensemble, Kokoroko (all of whom share band members)

More improvy - Cath Roberts, Hannah Marshall, Ute Kanngeisser, Sue Lynch, Charlotte Keeffe, Sylvia Hallett, Angharad Davies

Thanks for mentioning all of them from two very different 'scenes', I think Jennifer Allum could be added to the second group of names.

My straightahead tip, I'm really enjoying Josephine Davies' Satori albums 

https://josephinedavies-whirlwind.bandcamp.com/album/in-the-corners-of-clouds

I've enjoyed listening to Tori Freestone and Trish Clowes from Sidewinder's list. To which we could add Alcyona Mick

 

Edited by mjazzg
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7 hours ago, Rabshakeh said:

Thanks. I'll start with that Intakt one with all three.

Are they British? I don't believe I have ever seen their names.

Amy Roberts is an altoist and graduate of Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester who sounds a bit like Bruce Turner. (OK on Bruce Turner?)

Saw Karen Sharpe on tenor with Nikki Iles on piano at RNCM and Karen again at Southport, this time on baritone in a British re-creation of the Mulligan Concert Jazz Band.

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3 minutes ago, BillF said:

Amy Roberts is an altoist and graduate of Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester who sounds a bit like Bruce Turner. (OK on Bruce Turner?)

Hails from Devon I think. As does another fine altoist - Roz Harding, featured in current Mike Westbrook groups. Roz’s dad used to sell me LPs. :)

Edited by sidewinder
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10 minutes ago, sidewinder said:

Hails from Devon I think. As does another fine altoist - Roz Harding, featured in current Mike Westbrook groups. Roz’s dad used to sell me LPs. :)

Yes, from Devon. Proud Mum and Dad turned up for a gig - with the ubiquitous Alan Barnes IIRC - in Wilmslow.

(Incidentally, I'm thinking of going to the Wilmslow venue next month for my first gig since March 2020 to see Greg Abate and American pianist & singer Daryl Sherman.)

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1 minute ago, sidewinder said:

Good that Mr Abate is back in his second home. Things must be starting to normalise.

Mr Barnes is in this neck of the woods with Dave Newton and Art Themen I think in the not too distant future so I think I feel a gig is imminent.

Good to hear that Alan's up and about again. No sign of that always full gig list that used to be on his website, but this brought more than a smile to my face:

https://www.alanbarnesjazz.com/post/manage-your-blog-from-your-live-site

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12 minutes ago, BillF said:

Good to hear that Alan's up and about again. No sign of that always full gig list that used to be on his website, but this brought more than a smile to my face:

https://www.alanbarnesjazz.com/post/manage-your-blog-from-your-live-site

Good read. I remember seeing that mid 70s Humph band with Bruce Turner, Mike Pyne and - with relevance to this thread - Kathy Stobart. Ms Stobart was very impressive on both tenor and baritone.

Mike Pyne playing cornet on a feature rings a bell too. I’d forgotten that.

Edited by sidewinder
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On 10/14/2021 at 2:38 PM, Д.Д. said:

What a strange discussion to have in 2021. There are more excellent female jazz musicians than ever before. There is nothing exotic or particularly distinctive about being a female player anymore. Are we going to have a thread for tall jazz musicians next? 

I agree with one point here - some of the most extreme gender inequities have narrowed in the past two decades.

That said, I wouldn’t assume that means that others don’t remain:

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6 hours ago, dicky said:

Anat Cohen. Anat is a friend of a friend who I've met on a few occasions. The last such time she told me about hanging out with Ornette and preparing eggs for him at his place.

Here she is from 2012 at a synagogue performing Lonnie Smith's And The World Weeps with Paquito D'Rivera...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6V030_WP78
 

I enjoyed her Notes From The Village.

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On 10/14/2021 at 5:38 PM, Д.Д. said:

What a strange discussion to have in 2021. There are more excellent female jazz musicians than ever before. There is nothing exotic or particularly distinctive about being a female player anymore. Are we going to have a thread for tall jazz musicians next? 

Grumbling aside, I like Ikue Mori and Shayna Dulberger (an excellent bassist, not sure if she's active anymore: https://chriswelcome.bandcamp.com/album/wound-unwound-and-within).     

100% agree. Just listen with your ears. Glad the scene is more diverse, at least in terms of participants, than it was even 20 years ago. 

Here's an interview with Shayna that I did years ago. https://www.cliffordallen.me/interviews/the-long-distance-bassist-an-interview-with-shayna-dulberger

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