Julius Hemphill
Encyclopedia
Julius Arthur Hemphill was a jazz
composer and saxophone
player. He performed mainly on alto saxophone; less often soprano and tenor saxophones and flute
.
(also, incidentally, the hometown of Ornette Coleman
), and studied the clarinet
before learning saxophone. Gerry Mulligan
was an early influence. Hemphill joined the United States Army
in 1964, and served for several years, and later performed with Ike Turner
for a brief period. In 1968, Hemphill moved to St. Louis, Missouri
and co-founded the Black Artists' Group (BAG), a multidisciplinary arts collective that brought him into contact with artists such as saxophonists Oliver Lake
and Hamiet Bluiett
, trumpeters Baikida Carroll
and Floyd LeFlore, and writer/director Malinke Robert Elliott.
Hemphill moved to New York City in the mid-1970s, and was active in the then-thriving free jazz
community. He taught saxophone lessons to a number of notable musicians, including David Sanborn
and Tim Berne
. Hemphill was probably best known as the founder of the World Saxophone Quartet
, a group he formed in 1976, after collaborating with Anthony Braxton
in several saxophone-only ensembles. Hemphill left the World Saxophone Quartet in the early 1990s, and formed a saxophone quintet.
Hemphill recorded over twenty albums as a leader, about ten records with the World Saxophone Quartet
and also recorded or performed with Björk
, Bill Frisell
, Anthony Braxton
and others. Late in his life, ill-health (including diabetes and heart surgery) forced Hemphill to stop playing saxophone, but he continued writing music until his death. His saxophone sextet, led by Marty Ehrlich
, also released several albums of Hemphill's music, but without Hemphill playing. The most recent is titled The Hard Blues, recorded live in Lisbon
after Hemphill's death.
The best source on Hemphill's life and music is a multi-hour oral history interview that he conducted for the Smithsonian Institution
in March and April 1994, and which is held at the Archives Center of the National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.
With the World Saxophone Quartet
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
composer and saxophone
Saxophone
The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
player. He performed mainly on alto saxophone; less often soprano and tenor saxophones and flute
Flute
The flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
.
Biography
Hemphill was born in Fort Worth, TexasFort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
(also, incidentally, the hometown of Ornette Coleman
Ornette Coleman
Ornette Coleman is an American saxophonist, violinist, trumpeter and composer. He was one of the major innovators of the free jazz movement of the 1960s....
), and studied the clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
before learning saxophone. Gerry Mulligan
Gerry Mulligan
Gerald Joseph "Gerry" Mulligan was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, composer and arranger. Though Mulligan is primarily known as one of the leading baritone saxophonists in jazz history – playing the instrument with a light and airy tone in the era of cool jazz – he was also...
was an early influence. Hemphill joined the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
in 1964, and served for several years, and later performed with Ike Turner
Ike Turner
Isaac Wister Turner was an American musician, bandleader, songwriter, arranger, talent scout, and record producer. In a career that lasted more than half a century, his repertoire included blues, soul, rock, and funk...
for a brief period. In 1968, Hemphill moved to St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis, Missouri
St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...
and co-founded the Black Artists' Group (BAG), a multidisciplinary arts collective that brought him into contact with artists such as saxophonists Oliver Lake
Oliver Lake
Oliver Lake is an American jazz saxophonist, flutist, composer and poet. He is known mainly on alto saxophone but also performs on soprano saxophone and flute....
and Hamiet Bluiett
Hamiet Bluiett
Hamiet Bluiett is an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer. His primary instrument is the baritone saxophone, and he is considered one of the finest living players of this instrument...
, trumpeters Baikida Carroll
Baikida Carroll
Baikida Carroll is an American jazz trumpeter.Carroll studied at Southern Illinois University and at the Armed Forces School of Music early in his career. Following this he became a member of the Black Artists Group in St. Louis, where he directed their free jazz ensemble...
and Floyd LeFlore, and writer/director Malinke Robert Elliott.
Hemphill moved to New York City in the mid-1970s, and was active in the then-thriving free jazz
Free jazz
Free jazz is an approach to jazz music that was first developed in the 1950s and 1960s. Though the music produced by free jazz pioneers varied widely, the common feature was a dissatisfaction with the limitations of bebop, hard bop, and modal jazz, which had developed in the 1940s and 1950s...
community. He taught saxophone lessons to a number of notable musicians, including David Sanborn
David Sanborn
David Sanborn is an American alto saxophonist. Though Sanborn has worked in many genres, his solo recordings typically blend jazz with instrumental pop and R&B. He released his first solo album Taking Off in 1975, but has been playing the saxophone since before he was in high school...
and Tim Berne
Tim Berne
Tim Berne is an American jazz saxophone player and composer.Described by critic Thom Jurek as commanding "considerable power as a composer and ... frighteningly deft ability as a soloist," Berne has composed and performed prolifically since the 1980s...
. Hemphill was probably best known as the founder of the World Saxophone Quartet
World Saxophone Quartet
The World Saxophone Quartet is a jazz ensemble founded in 1977, implementing elements of free funk and African jazz into their musical routines.-History:...
, a group he formed in 1976, after collaborating with Anthony Braxton
Anthony Braxton
Anthony Braxton is an American composer, saxophonist, clarinettist, flautist, pianist, and philosopher. Braxton has released well over 100 albums since the 1960s...
in several saxophone-only ensembles. Hemphill left the World Saxophone Quartet in the early 1990s, and formed a saxophone quintet.
Hemphill recorded over twenty albums as a leader, about ten records with the World Saxophone Quartet
World Saxophone Quartet
The World Saxophone Quartet is a jazz ensemble founded in 1977, implementing elements of free funk and African jazz into their musical routines.-History:...
and also recorded or performed with Björk
Björk
Björk Guðmundsdóttir , known as Björk , is an Icelandic singer-songwriter. Her eclectic musical style has achieved popular acknowledgement and popularity within many musical genres, such as rock, jazz, electronic dance music, classical and folk...
, Bill Frisell
Bill Frisell
William Richard "Bill" Frisell is an American guitarist and composer.One of the leading guitarists in jazz since the late 1980s, Frisell's eclectic music touches on progressive folk, classical music, country music, noise and more...
, Anthony Braxton
Anthony Braxton
Anthony Braxton is an American composer, saxophonist, clarinettist, flautist, pianist, and philosopher. Braxton has released well over 100 albums since the 1960s...
and others. Late in his life, ill-health (including diabetes and heart surgery) forced Hemphill to stop playing saxophone, but he continued writing music until his death. His saxophone sextet, led by Marty Ehrlich
Marty Ehrlich
Marty Ehrlich is a multi-instrumentalist and is considered one of the leading figures in experimental or avant-garde jazz....
, also released several albums of Hemphill's music, but without Hemphill playing. The most recent is titled The Hard Blues, recorded live in Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
after Hemphill's death.
The best source on Hemphill's life and music is a multi-hour oral history interview that he conducted for the Smithsonian Institution
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
in March and April 1994, and which is held at the Archives Center of the National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
As leader
- 1972: Dogon A.D.Dogon A.D.-Track listing:# "Dogon A.D." -14:30# "Rites" - 8:07# "The Painter" - 15:00-Personnel:* Julius Hemphill - alto sax, flute* Baikida E.J. Carroll - trumpet* Abdul Wadud - cello* Philip Wilson - drums* Oliver Sain - engineer...
(Freedom) - 1975: Coon Bid'nessCoon Bid'nessCoon Bid'ness is an album released by Julius Hemphill in 1975 featuring performances by Hemphill, Baikida Carroll, Abdul Wadud, Phillip Wilson, Arthur Blythe, Barry Altschul and Daniel Zebulon...
(Black Lion RecordsBlack Lion RecordsBlack Lion Records was a jazz record label based in London, England.Black Lion was founded by Alan Bates in 1968. The label had two series of releases, one for British jazz musicians and one for international musicians...
) (re-released in 1995 as Reflections) - 1976: Live in New York (RedRed RecordsRed Records is an Italian jazz record label established in 1976.Artists who have recorded for the label include Joe Henderson, Bobby Watson, Billy Higgins, Roberto Gatto, Franco d'Andrea, Dave Liebman, Cedar Walton, Edward Simon, Stafford James, Ray Mantilla, Jim Snidero, Black Note, Julius...
) - 1977: Blue Boyé (Screwgun)
- 1977: Roi Boyé and the Gotham Minstrels (SackvilleSackville RecordsSackville Records is a Canadian music record label. Although the label has been used to issue material in various styles, the company particularly specializes in jazz music. Most of the company's releases have been newly recorded in Canada....
) - 1977: Raw Materials and ResidualsRaw Materials and ResidualsRaw Materials and Residuals is an album by jazz saxophonist Julius Hemphill featuring cellist Abdul Wadud and percussionist Don Moye recorded in 1977 for the Italian Black Saint label.-Reception:...
(Black Saint) - 1978: Buster Bee (Sackville)
- 1980: Flat-Out Jump SuiteFlat-Out Jump SuiteFlat-Out Jump Suite is an album by jazz saxophonist Julius Hemphill recorded in 1980 for the Italian Black Saint label.-Reception:The Penguin Guide to Jazz selected this album as part of its suggested Core Collection....
(Black Saint) - 1984: Georgia Blue (Minor Music)
- 1988: Julius Hemphill Big BandJulius Hemphill Big BandJulius Hemphill Big Band is an album by jazz saxophonist Julius Hemphill recorded in 1988 for the Elektra/Musician label.-Reception:The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album 3 stars stating "The only recording by altoist Julius Hemphill at the head of a big band is a mostly very...
(ElektraElektra RecordsElektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009....
) - 1991: Fat Man and the Hard BluesFat Man and the Hard BluesFat Man and the Hard Blues is an album by jazz saxophonist Julius Hemphill recorded in 1991 for the Italian Black Saint label.-Reception:The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album 5 stars stating "These miniatures are most notable for their fresh melodies, logical arrangements, and...
(Black Saint) - 1991: Live from the New Music Cafe (Music & ArtsMusic & ArtsMusic & Arts is an American record label based in Kensington, California.Music & Arts is owned and operated by Music and Arts Programs of America, Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to informal education in the arts, established in California in 1984...
) - 1992: Oakland Duets (live) (Music & Arts)
- 1993: Five Chord StudFive Chord StudFive Chord Stud is an album by jazz saxophonist/composer Julius Hemphill recorded in 1993 for the Italian Black Saint label.-Reception:The Allmusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album 4½ stars stating "The generally fascinating music rewards repeated listenings but one has to have an open mind...
(Black Saint) - 1995: Reflections (Freedom)
- 1997: At Dr. King's Table (New WorldNew WorldThe New World is one of the names used for the Western Hemisphere, specifically America and sometimes Oceania . The term originated in the late 15th century, when America had been recently discovered by European explorers, expanding the geographical horizon of the people of the European middle...
) - 1998: Chile/New York: Sound Environment (Black Saint)
- 2003: One AtmosphereOne AtmosphereOne Atmosphere is an album composed entirely by Texas-born saxophonist Julius Hemphill. Tzadik Records released the album in August 2003. It is considered experimental and avant-garde.-Track listing:# "One Atmosphere" - 9:01# "Savannah Suite" - 8:20...
(TzadikTzadik RecordsTzadik Records is a record label based in New York City specialising in avant-garde and experimental music. The label was established by the eclectic composer and saxophonist John Zorn in 1995; Zorn is the executive producer of all Tzadik releases...
)
With the World Saxophone Quartet
World Saxophone Quartet
The World Saxophone Quartet is a jazz ensemble founded in 1977, implementing elements of free funk and African jazz into their musical routines.-History:...
| Title | Year | Label | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Point of No Return Point of No Return (WSQ album) -Track listing:# "Dar el Sudan" - 2:48# "Bajou Scetches" - 10:13# "Point of No Return" - 10:32# "Sacred Sheetless" - 24:26# "Hymn for the Old Year" - 3:38-Personnel:*Hamiet Bluiett — baritone saxophone... |
1977 | Moers Music | ||
| Steppin' with the World Saxophone Quartet Steppin' with the World Saxophone Quartet -Track listing:# "Steppin'" - 9:06# "Ra-Ta-Ta" - 5:26# "Dream Scheme" - 7:18# "P.O. in Cairo" - 10:47# "Hearts" - 3:01# "R&B" - 8:39-Personnel:*Hamiet Bluiett — baritone saxophone... |
1979 | Black Saint Black Saint/Soul Note Black Saint and Soul Note are two affiliated Italian jazz independent record labels. Since their conception in the 1970s, they have released albums from a variety of influential jazz musicians, particularly in the genre of free jazz.-History:... |
||
| W.S.Q. W.S.Q. -Track listing:# "Sundance" - 2:38# "Plainsong" - 4:19# "Connections" - 8:06# "W.S.Q." - 5:15# "Pillars Latino" - 5:19# "Suite Music: The Key/Ballad for Eddie Jefferson/Pam-Maw/Hattie Wall" - 5:24... |
1981 | Black Saint | ||
| Revue Revue (WSQ album) -Track listing:# "Revue" - 8:00# "Affairs of the Heart" - 5:40# "Slide" - 3:41# "Little Samba" - 5:26# "I Heard That" - 3:23# "Hymn for the Old Year" - 4:24# "Ming" - 4:21... |
1982 | Black Saint | ||
| Live in Zurich Live in Zurich -Track listing:# "Hattie Wall" - 1:40# "Funny Paper" - 4:45# "Touchic" - 5:21# "My First Winter" - 6:54# "Bordertown" - 7:30# "Steppin'" - 7:15# "Stick" - 5:18... |
1984 | Black Saint | ||
| Live at Brooklyn Academy of Music Live at Brooklyn Academy of Music -Track listing:# "One/Waltz/Time" - 3:51# "Great Peace" - 14:58# "Kinda' Up" - 3:50# "Paper Works" - 8:07# "Open Air " - 10:14# "Georgia Blue" - 6:35-Personnel:... |
1986 | Black Saint | ||
| Plays Duke Ellington Plays Duke Ellington Plays Duke Ellington was the seventh album by the jazz group the World Saxophone Quartet, released in 1986.The album marked a departure for the quartet, in that their first six albums had been of music written by the four musicians themselves; this was their first venture into jazz standards.-Track... |
1986 | Elektra Elektra Records Elektra Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group. In 2004, it was consolidated into WMG's Atlantic Records Group. After five years of dormancy, the label was revived by Atlantic in 2009.... / Nonesuch Nonesuch Records Nonesuch Records is an American record label, owned by Warner Music Group and distributed by Warner Bros. Records.-Company history:Nonesuch was founded in 1964 by Jac Holzman to produce "fine records at the same price as a trade paperback", which would be half the price of a normal LP... |
||
| Dances and Ballads Dances and Ballads -Track listing:# "Sweet D" - 6:35# "For Lester" - 4:20# "Belly Up" - 6:44# "Cool Red" - 5:12# "Hattie Wall" - 4:04# "Adjacent" - 4:49# "West African Snap" - 3:41... |
1987 | Elektra / Nonesuch | ||
| Rhythm and Blues Rhythm and Blues (WSQ album) -Track listing:# "For the Love of Money" - 4:13# "Let's Get It On" - 5:33# "I Heard That" - 4:48# "Loopology" - 3:09# " The Dock of the Bay" - 4:30... |
1989 | Elektra / Nonesuch | ||
| Metamorphosis Metamorphosis (WSQ album) -Track listing:# "Holy Men" - 2:48# "Lullaby" - 4:51# "Metamorphosis" - 3:28# "Su Mama Ah Zumu" - 6:25# "Africa" - 8:54# "Ballad For The Blackman" - 7:52# "Masai Warrior's Dance" - 5:14... |
1991 | Elektra / Nonesuch |
External links
- Biography in Handbook of Texas
- His page on the Internet Movie Database
- Tim BerneTim BerneTim Berne is an American jazz saxophone player and composer.Described by critic Thom Jurek as commanding "considerable power as a composer and ... frighteningly deft ability as a soloist," Berne has composed and performed prolifically since the 1980s...
discusses Hemphill: http://www.screwgunrecords.com/page_a.php?pageid=interviews&sub=berne_on_hemphill - Biography and recordings of his works from the Isabella Stewart Gardner MuseumIsabella Stewart Gardner MuseumThe Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum or Fenway Court, as the museum was known during Isabella Stewart Gardner's lifetime, is a museum in the Fenway-Kenmore neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, located within walking distance of the Museum of Fine Arts and near the Back Bay Fens...