Charlie Haden with Ravi Coltrane & Geri Allen at Healdsburg Jazz Festival

Charlie Haden has forged a brilliant career out of seizing the musical moment. He returns to Healdsburg for an unprecedented trio encounter with pianist Geri Allen, with whom he first recorded more than two decades ago, and tenor saxophonist Ravi Coltrane, the son of Haden’s late partner in sonic revolution, John Coltrane. “No matter who I'm playing with, spontaneity takes priority,” Haden says. “Making something happen that's never happened before, that's what I stress more than anything else. And I seek out musicians that feel the way that I do.” Haden found his first group of likeminded improvisers in late 1950s Los Angeles, where he became a founding member of Ornette Coleman’s radical but blues-drenched quartet. In a generation rife with bassists boasting flawless technique, Haden stood out as a player capable of expressing the deepest of emotions with seemingly simple, harmonically open lines. His gift for cutting to the heart of a composition while leaving ample space for other musicians has made Haden a galvanizing collaborator, whether anchoring Keith Jarrett’s classic 1970s quartet, caressing spirituals with Hank Jones, creating moody film noir-inspired albums with Quartet West or leading his politically charged Liberation Music Orchestra. ...

read more

Charlie Haden has forged a brilliant career out of seizing the musical moment. He returns to Healdsburg for an unprecedented trio encounter with pianist Geri Allen, with whom he first recorded more than two decades ago, and tenor saxophonist Ravi Coltrane, the son of Haden’s late partner in sonic revolution, John Coltrane. “No matter who I'm playing with, spontaneity takes priority,” Haden says. “Making something happen that's never happened before, that's what I stress more than anything else. And I seek out musicians that feel the way that I do.” Haden found his first group of likeminded improvisers in late 1950s Los Angeles, where he became a founding member of Ornette Coleman’s radical but blues-drenched quartet. In a generation rife with bassists boasting flawless technique, Haden stood out as a player capable of expressing the deepest of emotions with seemingly simple, harmonically open lines. His gift for cutting to the heart of a composition while leaving ample space for other musicians has made Haden a galvanizing collaborator, whether anchoring Keith Jarrett’s classic 1970s quartet, caressing spirituals with Hank Jones, creating moody film noir-inspired albums with Quartet West or leading his politically charged Liberation Music Orchestra.

He’s also a savvy talent scout who boosted the career of a brilliant young pianist named Geri Allen in the late 1980s. The Detroit native had already earned a reputation as a fierce improviser when Haden and drummer Paul Motian joined her in a searching trio that revealed her burnished lyricism. Now an esteemed master herself, Allen has recorded more than a dozen albums, and has two more just released on Motema Records.

While his surname attracted attention when he first started performing in New York, Ravi Coltrane has taken his time developing his own sound. He and Geri have worked together frequently. He’s truly come into his own in recent years. Last year he toured extensively with the Blue Note 7, an all-star band assembled to celebrate the label’s 75th year, and released the luminous album “Blending Times” (ArtistShare), which features Haden’s ravishing composition “For Turiya,” a piece the bassist wrote years ago for Ravi’s mother, Alice Coltrane.

www.healdsburgjazzfestival.org

show less