Hal Russell (born Harold Russell Luttenbacher, August 28, 1926 – September 5, 1992) was an American

free jazz Free jazz, or free form in the early to mid-1970s, is a style of avant-garde jazz or an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s, when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventi ...

composer, band leader and

multi-instrumentalist A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays two or more musical instruments, often but not exclusively at a professional level of proficiency. Also known as woodwind doubler, doubling, the practice allows greater ensemble flexibility and mor ...

who performed mainly on saxophone and drums but occasionally on trumpet or

vibraphone The vibraphone (also called the vibraharp) is a percussion instrument in the metallophone family. It consists of tuned metal bars and is typically played by using Percussion mallet, mallets to strike the bars. A person who plays the vibraphone ...

.Clarke, D.
Donald's Encyclopedia of Popular Music: Hal Russell
Donaldclarkemusicbox.com, accessed May 6, 2014 Russell's fiery music was marked by significant humor, not unlike much of Dutch drummer

Han Bennink Han Bennink (born 17 April 1942) is a Dutch drummer and percussionist. On occasion his recordings have featured him playing soprano saxophone, bass clarinet, trombone, violin, banjo and piano. Though perhaps best known as one of the pivotal figu ...

's output. His music was so accessible that ''People'' magazine hailed ''The Finnish Swiss Tour'' on ECM as one of its top 5 albums of the year. Russell set the table for the free improv and free jazz scene which exploded later in the 1990s in Chicago.

Biography

Born in

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Michigan Michigan ( ) is a peninsular U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, Upper Midwestern United States. It shares water and land boundaries with Minnesota to the northwest, Wisconsin to the west, ...

, United States, and raised in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. It borders on Lake Michigan to its northeast, the Mississippi River to its west, and the Wabash River, Wabash and Ohio River, Ohio rivers to its ...

, from the eighth grade, Russell began playing drums at age four, but majored in trumpet at college; he subsequently drummed in several big bands, including those of

Woody Herman Woodrow Charles Herman (May 16, 1913 – October 29, 1987) 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 roo ...

and

Boyd Raeburn Boyd Albert Raeburn (October 27, 1913 – August 2, 1966) was an American jazz bandleader and bass saxophone, bass saxophonist. Career He was born in Faith, South Dakota, United States. Raeburn attended the University of Chicago, where he led a ...

.Huey, Steve. Hal Russell biography ''

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

'', accessed February 28, 2014. As with many young players in the mid-1940s, Russell's life was irreversibly changed by bebop. In the 1950s he worked with musicians including

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 ...

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday (born Eleanora Fagan; April 7, 1915 – July 17, 1959) was an American jazz and swing music singer. Nicknamed "Lady Day" by her friend and music partner, Lester Young, Holiday made significant contributions to jazz music and pop ...

Sonny Rollins Walter Theodore "Sonny" Rollins (born September 7, 1930) is an American retired jazz tenor saxophonist who is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. In a seven-decade career, Rollins recorded over sixt ...

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 ...

, and

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous Big band, jazz orchestra from 1924 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D ...

. He succumbed to drugs and was a heroin addict for ten years. In 1959, he joined the Joe Daley Trio, whose ''Newport' 1963'', which was mostly studio material, was reputedly one of the earliest free jazz records. In the early 1970s, Russell was the regular percussionist for the band at the suburban Chicago Candlelight Dinner Playhouse. Here he played mostly drums, but occasionally vibes and keyboards. At the same time he would host many young jazz musicians for jam sessions at his home, or in Chicago nightclubs. In 1979, Russell formed the NRG Ensemble, which for most of its existence featured saxophonist Mars Williams, multi-instrumentalist Brian Sandstrom, and percussionist Steve Hunt, among others. At this time he starting playing tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone and trumpet, in addition to drums and vibes. Russell finally issued his first album in 1981 for the Nessa label. In the late 1980s, the group began playing frequently in Europe, and began recording for ECM with ''The Finnish/Swiss Tour''. Russell led the NRG Ensemble until his death. In addition to the NRG Ensemble, Russell always maintained several auxiliary bands, a partnership with pianist Joel Futterman, the rock-oriented trio NRG 3 with Ed Ludwig on drums and Noel Kupersmith on bass, and The Flying Luttenbachers with Chad Organ on tenor sax and

Weasel Walter Weasel Walter (born Christopher Todd Walter, May 18, 1972) is an American composer, improviser, multi-instrumentalist, producer, and founder of ugEXPLODE Records. Walter's work has been informed by techniques and traditions of music including A ...

on drums. Cited by some as a missing link between the AACM and later Chicago

, Russell was experiencing greater public awareness before his death. Just after completing the semi-autobiographical album ''The Hal Russell Story'', Russell died of a heart attack in September 1992.Reich, Howard
Hal Russell obituary
at ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is an American daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1847, it was formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper", a slogan from which its once integrated WGN (AM), WGN radio and ...

Discography

* ''

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'' (Atavistic, 1979, issued 2001) * '' NRG Ensemble'' (Nessa, 1981) – with NRG Ensemble * '' Eftsoons'' (Nessa, 1981) – with Mars Williams * ''

Generation A generation is all of the people born and living at about the same time, regarded collectively. It also is "the average period, generally considered to be about 20–⁠30 years, during which children are born and grow up, become adults, and b ...

'' (Nessa, 1982) – with NRG Ensemble & Charles Tyler * '' Conserving NRG'' (Principally Jazz, 1984) – with NRG Ensemble * '' Hal on Earth'' (Abduction, 1989) – with NRG Ensemble * '' The Finnish/Swiss Tour'' (ECM, 1991) – with NRG Ensemble * '' Albert's Lullaby'' (Southport, 1991, issued 2000) - with Michael Staron * '' Naked Colours'' (Silkheart, 1991 994 – with Joel Futterman * '' Hal's Bells'' (ECM, 1992) * '' The Hal Russell Story'' (ECM, 1993) – with NRG Ensemble With The Flying Luttenbachers *'' Destructo Noise Explosion!: Live at WNUR 2-6-92'' (ugEXPLODE, 1992)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Hal 1926 births 1992 deaths Avant-garde jazz musicians American jazz drummers American jazz saxophonists American male saxophonists American jazz trumpeters American male trumpeters American jazz vibraphonists 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 20th-century American saxophonists 20th-century American trumpeters The Flying Luttenbachers members 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians NRG Ensemble members Drummers from Detroit