David Liebman (born September 4, 1946) is an American

saxophonist The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of Single-reed instrument, single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed (mouthpi ...

flautist The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...

and jazz educator. He is known for his innovative lines and use of

atonality Atonality in its broadest sense is music that lacks a tonal center, or key. ''Atonality'', in this sense, usually describes compositions written from about the early 20th-century to the present day, where a hierarchy of harmonies focusing on ...

. He was a frequent collaborator with pianist Richie Beirach. In June 2010, he received a NEA Jazz Masters lifetime achievement award from the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the feder ...

(NEA).

Biography

Early life and career

David Liebman was born in 1946 into a Jewish family in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

. As a child in 1949, he contracted

polio Poliomyelitis ( ), commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 75% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe ...

. He began classical piano lessons at the age of nine and saxophone by twelve. His interest in jazz was sparked by seeing

John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the Jazz#Post-war jazz, history of jazz and 20th-century musi ...

perform live in New York City clubs such as Birdland, the

Village Vanguard The Village Vanguard is a jazz club at Seventh Avenue South in Greenwich Village, New York City. The club was opened on February 22, 1935, by Max Gordon. Originally, the club presented folk music and beat poetry, but it became primarily a jaz ...

and the

Half Note In music, a half note (American) or minim (British) is a Musical note, note played for half the duration of a whole note (or semibreve) and twice the duration of a quarter note (or crotchet). It was given its Latin name (''minima'', meaning "le ...

. Throughout high school and college, Liebman pursued his jazz interest by studying with Joe Allard, Lennie Tristano, and Charles Lloyd. Upon graduation from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

(with a degree in American history), he began to seriously devote himself to the full-time pursuit of being a jazz artist. In the early 1970s, after recording with

Genya Ravan Genya Ravan (born Genyusha Zelkowitz; April 19, 1940), also known as Goldie, is an American rock music, rock singer and music producer. She was lead singer of the Escorts, Goldie and the Gingerbreads, and Ten Wheel Drive. Early life Genyusha Zel ...

and Ten Wheel Drive, Liebman took the leading role (as president) in organizing several dozen musicians into a cooperative, Free Life Communication, which became an integral part of the fertile New York loft jazz scene in the early 1970s and was funded by The New York State Council of the Arts and the Space for Innovative Development. After one year spent with Ten Wheel Drive, a rock group with experimental leanings, Liebman secured the saxophone/flute position with the group of John Coltrane's drummer,

Elvin Jones Elvin Ray Jones (September 9, 1927 – May 18, 2004) was an American jazz drummer of the post-bop era. Most famously a member of John Coltrane's quartet, with whom he recorded from late 1960 to late 1965, Jones appeared on such albums as ''My Fa ...

. Within two years, Liebman reached the zenith of his apprenticeship period when

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th century music, 20th-century music. Davis ado ...

hired him. These years, 1970–74, were filled with tours and recordings. At the same time, Liebman began exploring his own music, first in the Open Sky Trio with Bob Moses and then with pianist Richie Beirach in the group Lookout Farm. This group recorded for the German-based ECM label as well as A&M Records while touring the U.S., Canada, India, Japan and Europe. Lookout Farm was awarded the number one position in the category "Group Deserving of Wider Recognition"in the 1976 ''Down Beat'''s International Critics' Poll. In these years he also played and recorded with Pee Wee Ellis. Dave Liebman BDDS

In 1977, Liebman toured the world with pianist

Chick Corea Armando Anthony "Chick" Corea (June 12, 1941 – February 9, 2021) was an American jazz pianist, composer, bandleader and occasional percussionist. His compositions "Spain (instrumental), Spain", "500 Miles High", "La Fiesta", "Armando's Rhumba" ...

, followed up the next year by the formation of the David Liebman Quintet with

John Scofield John Scofield (born December 26, 1951) is an American guitarist and composer. His music over a long career has blended jazz, jazz fusion, funk, blues, soul and rock. He first came to mainstream attention as part of the band of Miles Davis; he ...

Kenny Kirkland Kenneth David Kirkland (September 28, 1955 – November 12, 1998) was an American pianist and keyboardist. Biography Early life Born in Brooklyn, New York, United States, Kirkland was six when he first sat down at a piano keyboard. After years ...

and Terumasa Hino as featured sidemen. After several world tours and recordings by the quintet over three years, he reunited with Richard Beirach. They began performing and recording as a duo, as well as creating the group

Quest A quest is a journey toward a specific mission or a goal. It serves as a plot device in mythology and fiction: a difficult journey towards a goal, often symbolic or allegorical. Tales of quests figure prominently in the folklore of every nat ...

in 1981. Beginning with bassist George Mraz and drummer Al Foster, the group solidified when Ron McClure and

Billy Hart Billy Hart (born November 29, 1940) is an American jazz drumming, jazz drummer and educator. He is known internationally for his work with Herbie Hancock's "Mwandishi" band in the early 1970s, as well as with Shirley Horn, Stan Getz, and Quest (b ...

joined in 1984. Through 1991, Quest recorded seven CDs, toured extensively and did many workshops with students worldwide.

1990s to present

After 23 years with the Dave Liebman Group (featuring guitarist Vic Juris), Liebman formed "Expansions", reaching out to the younger generation, featuring bassist Tony Marino, pianist Bobby Avey, on reeds Matt Vashlishan and Alex Ritz on drums. Over the past decades, Liebman has often been featured with top European jazz artists such as Joachim Kühn,

Daniel Humair Daniel Humair (born 23 May 1938 in Geneva, Switzerland) is a Swiss drummer, composer, and painter. He is widely renowned and became a Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 1986 and Officier in 1992. He has played with many jazz perf ...

Paolo Fresu Paolo Fresu (; born 10 February 1961) is an Italian jazz trumpet and flugelhorn player, as well as a composer and arranger of music. His unique trumpet sound is recognized as one of the most distinctive in the contemporary jazz scene. Fresu pla ...

, Jon Christensen, Bobo Stenson and in the World View Trio with Austrian drummer Wolfgang Reisenger and French bassist Jean-Paul Celea. His ability to play in so many diverse styles has led to big band and radio orchestra performances with the Brussels Jazz Orchestra, the WDR and NDR in Germany, the Metropole Orchestra of the Netherlands, the new music group Klangforum Wien from

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

and, most notably, Liebman was the first improviser to perform with the world-famous Ensemble InterContemporain founded by

Pierre Boulez Pierre Louis Joseph Boulez (; 26 March 19255 January 2016) was a French composer, conductor and writer, and the founder of several musical institutions. He was one of the dominant figures of post-war contemporary classical music. Born in Montb ...

in France. On all these occasions, the music is arranged from Liebman's own compositions and improvisations. He has consistently placed among the top finalists in the ''Down Beat'' Critic's and Reader's Polls since 1973 in the Soprano Saxophone category and on occasion, flute. Lieb has been featured on several hundred recordings of which he has been the leader or co-leader on over one hundred. Nearly three hundred original compositions have been recorded. His artistic output has ranged from straight-ahead classic jazz to chamber music, from fusion to avant garde, with numerous CDs featuring original arrangements of the music of

Thelonious Monk Thelonious Sphere Monk ( October 10, 1917 – February 17, 1982) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist and composer. He had a unique improvisational style and made numerous contributions to the Jazz standard, standard jazz repertoire, includ ...

, Miles Davis, Coltrane,

Kurt Weill Kurt Julian Weill (; ; March 2, 1900April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for hi ...

, Alec Wilder,

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became Standard (music), standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway the ...

Antônio Carlos Jobim Antônio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim (25 January 1927 – 8 December 1994), also known as Tom Jobim (), was a Brazilian composer, pianist, guitarist, songwriter, arranger, and singer. Considered as one of the great exponents of Brazilian ...

Puccini Giacomo Puccini (22 December 1858 29 November 1924) was an Italian composer known primarily for his operas. Regarded as the greatest and most successful proponent of Italian opera after Verdi, he was descended from a long line of composers, s ...

and

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

Liebman has published material on a variety of subjects including instructional DVDs. He has also published chamber music and over the years has contributed regularly to various periodicals, such as the ''Saxophone Journal'' and the ''International Association of Jazz Educators Journal.'' He is the author of several milestone books: ''Self Portrait of a Jazz Artist'', ''Jazz Connections: Miles Davis and David Liebman'', ''A Chromatic Approach to Jazz Harmony and Melody'', and ''Developing a Personal Saxophone Sound.'' Several of these books have been translated to other languages. His teaching activities at universities and in clinic settings have taken him literally around the world as a result of his varied musical directions and expertise on several instruments, along with an ability to articulate the intricacies of the jazz language, aesthetic and technique. Over the years, he has regularly received grantees to study with him funded by the NEA (U.S.), the Canadian Arts Council, as well as Arts Councils of numerous European countries. In 1989, he founded the International Association of Schools of Jazz (IASJ), an organization dedicated to networking educators and students from international jazz schools through periodic meetings, exchange programs and newsletters. Liebman presently serves as the artistic director of the IASJ. He scored music for the JazzEx Ballet Company in the Netherlands in the early 1990s and ''Ocean of Light'' for Katrina and the tsunami tragedies in 2006. Currently, Liebman is the Artist in Residence at the Manhattan School of Music and was visiting Artist at the University of Toronto for year 2014–15. Liebman and musicologist Lewis Porter teamed up to develop ''What It Is: The Life of a Jazz Artist'', Liebman's biography. Released in March 2012, the book was well received by jazz critics. In 2018, Liebman donated his 1955–2017 archives to

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music () is a Private university, private music college in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern Music of the United ...

. In 1989, he was the artistic director of the International Association of Schools of Jazz. He was an Artist in Residence at the

Manhattan School of Music The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music a ...

in New York City, and held an annual Saxophone/Chromatic Harmony Master class held at East Stroudsurg University since 1987. He recorded extensively for Double-Time Records during the 1990s.

Personal life

Liebman has been married to oboist and composer Caris Visentin Liebman since 1987. His only daughter, Lydia Liebman, is a noted jazz publicist. Currently, Liebman resides in New York City.

Discography

Dave Liebman is an incredibly prolific artist, with over 250 albums as a leader.

Awards and nominations

ARIA Music Awards

The

ARIA Music Awards The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austr ...

is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of

Australian music The music of Australia has an extensive history made of music societies. Indigenous Australian music forms a significant part of the unique heritage of a 40,000- to 60,000-year history which produced the iconic didgeridoo. Contemporary fusions o ...

. They commenced in 1987. ! , - ,

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, ''Duologue'' (with

Mike Nock Michael Anthony Nock (born 27 September 1940) is a New Zealand jazz pianist, who lives and works in Australia. Biography Nock was born in Christchurch, New Zealand, but spent his childhood in Ngāruawāhia. Nock began studying piano at 11. H ...

) , Best Jazz Album , , ARIA Award previous winners. , -

French Jazz Academy

! , - , 1988 , ''Homage to Coltrane'' , Record of the Year , , , -

Grammy Awards

! , - , 1998 , " My Favorite Things" from ''Thank You, John'' , Best Jazz Solo , , , - , 2004 , "Sing, Sing, Sing", from ''Beyond The Line'' - Dave Liebman Big Band (Omnitone) , Best Jazz Solo , , , -

International Association of Jazz Educators

! , - , 2000 , Dave Liebman , Hall of Fame , , , -

References

External links

Dave Liebman's web site

Dave Liebman
at AllAboutJazz.com
Interview with Dave Liebman
* Ted Panken
"In Conversation with Dave Liebman"
* Carole Dely
"A Conversation with Dave Liebman in Paris"
Web Journal Sens Public. {{DEFAULTSORT:Liebman, Dave 1946 births Living people ARIA Award winners Avant-garde jazz musicians Musicians from Brooklyn New York University alumni American jazz soprano saxophonists American male saxophonists Jazz soprano saxophonists American jazz flautists Lafayette High School (New York City) alumni Miles Davis Enja Records artists Red Records artists Verve Records artists Timeless Records artists ECM Records artists Chesky Records artists Household Records artists Jewish American musicians Jewish jazz musicians Jazz musicians from New York (state) 21st-century American saxophonists American male jazz musicians Afro Blue Band members Quest (band) members Sunnyside Records artists American jazz educators Double-Time Records artists RareNoiseRecords artists 21st-century American flautists Educators with disabilities American musicians with disabilities NEA Jazz Masters