Fred Hess (September 3, 1944,

Abington, Pennsylvania Abington is an unincorporated area, unincorporated community in Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States, coterminous with the ZIP Code 19001. Places of interest * Jefferson Abington Hospital * Abington Senior High Scho ...

– October 27, 2018) was an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

tenor saxophonist.

Formative years

Born in

Abington Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Abington Township is a Township (Pennsylvania), township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is adjacent to Philadelphia's northern fringe. The population was 58,502 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it ...

on September 3, 1944, Fred Hess was raised in

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

and studied at

Trenton State College The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) is a public university in Ewing Township, New Jersey. It is part of New Jersey's public system of higher education. Established in 1855 as the New Jersey State Normal School, TCNJ was the first normal school, ...

. He also studied composition at, and performed in, The Festival at Sandpoint in 1990. His early experiences included studies with saxophonist

Phil Woods Philip Wells Woods (November 2, 1931 – September 29, 2015) was an American jazz alto saxophonist, clarinetist, bandleader, and composer. Biography Woods was born in Springfield, Massachusetts. After inheriting a saxophone at age 12, he began t ...

, performances with bandleader

Fred Waring Fredrick Malcolm Waring Sr. (June 9, 1900 – July 29, 1984) was an American musician, bandleader, choral director, and radio and television personality, sometimes referred to as "America's Singing Master" and "The Man Who Taught America How to ...

, and composing music for the world premiere of a

Sam Shepard Samuel Shepard Rogers III (November 5, 1943 – July 27, 2017) was an American playwright, actor, director, screenwriter, and author whose career spanned half a century. He wrote 58 plays as well as several books of short stories, essays, ...

play.

Career

As a composer, Hess's influences encompass avant-garde classical sources, as well as

Anthony Braxton Anthony Braxton (born June 4, 1945) is an American experimental composer, educator, music theorist, improviser and multi-instrumentalist who is best known for playing saxophones, particularly the alto. Braxton grew up on the South Side of Chi ...

and the members of the AACM. He moved to

Boulder, Colorado Boulder is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city in Boulder County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 108,250 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the most ...

, in 1981, where he founded the Boulder Creative Music Ensemble. He then completed further studies at the

University of Colorado, Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder, CU, or Colorado) is a public research university in Boulder, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1876, five months before Colorado became a state, it is the flagship university of the University o ...

, taking his doctorate in composition in 1991. He recorded his first albums as a leader in the early 1990s, and was the director of music composition at

Metro State College Metropolitan State University of Denver (MSU Denver or Metro State) is a public university in Denver, Colorado, United States. It is located on the Auraria Campus, along with the University of Colorado Denver and the Community College of Denver ...

in Denver, Colorado. In addition to his own projects as a leader (BCME and The Fred Hess Group), he was the founding director of Denver's Creative Music Works Orchestra and was a member of drummer

Ginger Baker Peter Edward "Ginger" Baker (19 August 1939 – 6 October 2019) was an English drummer. His work in the 1960s and 1970s earned him the reputation of "rock's first superstar drummer", for a style that melded jazz and Music of Africa, Africa ...

's Denver Jazz Quintet, as well as ensembles led by trumpeter

Ron Miles Ronald Glen Miles (May 9, 1963 – March 8, 2022) was an American jazz trumpeter, cornetist, and composer. He recorded for the labels Prolific (1986), Capri Records (Jazz record label), Capri (1990), and Rykodisc, Gramavision. His final album, ...

. His most recent performing group was the Fred Hess Big Band. Hess's playing was influenced by

Lester Young Lester Willis Young (August 27, 1909 – March 15, 1959), nicknamed "Pres" or "Prez", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and occasional clarinetist. Coming to prominence while a member of Count Basie's orchestra, Young was one of the most i ...

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 ...

, the

Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians The Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM) is an American nonprofit organization, founded in 1965 in Chicago by pianist Muhal Richard Abrams, pianist Jodie Christian, drummer Steve McCall, and composer Phil Cohran. The AA ...

, and

Eric Dolphy Eric Allan Dolphy Jr. (June 20, 1928 – June 29, 1964) was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, and bandleader. Primarily an alto saxophonist, bass clarinetist, and flautist, Dolphy was one of several multi-instrumentalists to gain ...

. Among his releases is ''Extended Family'', issued in 2003 on

Tapestry Records Tapestry is a form of textile art which was traditionally woven by hand on a loom. Normally it is used to create images rather than patterns. Tapestry is relatively fragile, and difficult to make, so most historical pieces are intended to hang ...

Death

Hess died at the age of seventy-four on October 27, 2018.Fred Hess
(death and funeral information). Denver, Colorado: Fairmount Funeral Home, Cemetery & Crematory, retrieved online June 4, 2023.

Discography

* ''Sweet Thunder'' (

Capri Capri ( , ; ) is an island located in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the Sorrento Peninsula, on the south side of the Gulf of Naples in the Campania region of Italy. A popular resort destination since the time of the Roman Republic, its natural beauty ...

, 1991) * ''You Know I Care'' (

, 1994) * ''Faith'' (

Cadence Jazz Cadence Jazz is an American record company and label specializing in noncommercial modern jazz. It is associated with ''Cadence'' magazine. Cadence Jazz was founded by Bob Rusch in Redwood, New York in 1980. By 2000 the label had issued more t ...

, 2000) * ''Exposed'' (

CIMP Creative Improvised Music Projects, usually abbreviated CIMP or C.I.M.P., is an American jazz record company and label. It is associated with ''Cadence'' magazine and Cadence Jazz Records. The label is noted for its minimal use of electronic pr ...

, 2001) * ''Right at Home'' (Tapestry, 2002) * ''Between the Lines'' (Tapestry, 2003) * ''Ninth Street Park'' (Tapestry, 2003) * ''Extended Family'' (Tapestry, 2003) * ''Long and Short of It'' (Tapestry, 2004) * ''Crossed Paths'' (Tapestry, 2005) * ''How Bout Now'' (Tapestry, 2006) * ''In the Grotto'' (Alison, 2007) * ''Single Moment'' (Alison, 2008) * ''Hold On'' Fred Hess Big Band (Dazzle), 2009) * ''Into the Open'' Fred Hess Big Band (Alison, 2010) * ''Speak'' Fred Hess Big Band (Alison, 2012)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hess, Fred American jazz saxophonists American male saxophonists Jazz musicians from Pennsylvania University of Colorado Boulder alumni CIMP artists 1944 births 2018 deaths American male jazz musicians 20th-century American saxophonists