Lee Konitz Trio at Dazzle Jazz Club

Alto Saxophonist Lee Konitz has enjoyed one of the most creative and
prolific careers in modern jazz. After an early experience with the
Claude Thornhill Orchestra (arranged by Gil Evans), Stan Kenton’s Orchestra,
the innovative small groups of pianist Lennie Tristano, and the Miles Davis
Capitol Orchestra (aka Miles Davis Tuba Band), Konitz turned freelance and has remained on the cutting
edge of post-bop improvisation ever since.

He has occasionally led a nonet (now resurrected!) and various quartets,
but his exceptionally large and varied discography also includes an early...

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Alto Saxophonist Lee Konitz has enjoyed one of the most creative and
prolific careers in modern jazz. After an early experience with the
Claude Thornhill Orchestra (arranged by Gil Evans), Stan Kenton’s Orchestra,
the innovative small groups of pianist Lennie Tristano, and the Miles Davis
Capitol Orchestra (aka Miles Davis Tuba Band), Konitz turned freelance and has remained on the cutting
edge of post-bop improvisation ever since.

He has occasionally led a nonet (now resurrected!) and various quartets,
but his exceptionally large and varied discography also includes an early
unaccompanied saxophone solo album, several innovative albums of duets
that spanned jazz styles, and collaborations which reads like the "who’s who”
of the Jazz world. Lee Konitz is the only still active musician to have played
all three ever excisting Birdland clubs in New York City.

Like Gil Evans or Coleman Hawkins Lee has always been open and interested to play
with younger musicans and ti participate in exciting new musical projects co-lead
by them (like the Lee Konitz New Nonet or the Lee Konitz-Ohad Talmor String Project).
A new book about Lee Konitz (by Andy Hamilton) was published in 2007. He has received the NEA Jazz Masters Award the
following year.

Recently Lee Konitz has performed in a duo setting with pianist Dan Tepfer and his New Quartet, followed by a CD released with Brad Mehldau, Charlie Haden and the late Paul Motian.
In 2012 another quartet constellation featuring Bill Frisell, Gary Peacock and Joey Baron has emerged.

Lee was voted "Alto Saxophonist of the Year" by Downbeat Magazine Critics Poll in 2010 and numerous times before that.

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