Lewis Barry Tabackin (born March 26, 1940) is 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 and flutist. He is married to pianist

Toshiko Akiyoshi is an American jazz pianist, composer, arranger, and bandleader. Akiyoshi received fourteen Grammy Award nominations and was the first woman to win Best Arranger and Composer awards in ''Down Beat'' magazine's annual Readers' Poll. In 1984, sh ...

with whom he has co-led large ensembles since the 1970s.

Biography

Tabackin started learning flute at age 12, followed by tenor saxophone at age 15. He has cited

Al Cohn Al Cohn (November 24, 1925 – February 15, 1988) was an American jazz saxophonist, arranger and composer. He came to prominence in the band of clarinetist Woody Herman and was known for his longtime musical partnership with fellow saxophonist ...

and

Coleman Hawkins Coleman Randolph Hawkins (November 21, 1904 – May 19, 1969), nicknamed "Hawk" and sometimes "Bean", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist.Yanow, Scot"Coleman Hawkins: Artist Biography" AllMusic. Retrieved December 27, 2013. One of the first ...

as influences on saxophone, while his flute role models include classical players such as William Kincaid, Julius Baker, and Jean-Pierre Rampal. Tabackin studied flute at the Philadelphia Conservatory of Music and also studied music with composer Vincent Persichetti. In 1962 he graduated from the Conservatory and after serving with the U.S. Army worked with Tal Farlow. He also worked with Chuck Israels in New York City and a band that included

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 ...

Donald Byrd Donaldson Toussaint L'Ouverture Byrd II (December 9, 1932 – February 4, 2013) was an American jazz and rhythm & blues trumpeter, composer and vocalist. A sideman for many other jazz musicians of his generation, Byrd was one of the few h ...

, and Roland Hanna. Later he was a member of '' The Dick Cavett Show'' band and

The Tonight Show Band The Tonight Show Band refers to the house band on the American television variety show ''The Tonight Show'', which has created an important showcase for jazz on American television. The Tonight Show Band has changed in form and composition since ...

with

Doc Severinsen Carl Hilding "Doc" Severinsen (born July 7, 1927) is an American retired jazz trumpeter who led the NBC Orchestra on ''The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson''. Early life Severinsen was born in Arlington, Oregon, to Minnie Mae (1897–1998) ...

. He moved from New York to California with ''

The Tonight Show ''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has been broadcast on NBC since 1954. The program has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2 ...

'' in 1972. During this time he played with Shelly Manne and Billy Higgins. Tabackin met

in 1967 while he was playing in Clark Terry's band and she was invited to sit in for Don Friedman. They formed a quartet in the late 1960s, married in 1969, and in 1973 co-founded the Toshiko Akiyoshi – Lew Tabackin Big Band in Los Angeles, which later became the Toshiko Akiyoshi Jazz Orchestra featuring Lew Tabackin, playing bebop in

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 ...

-influenced arrangements and compositions by Akiyoshi. Tabackin was principal soloist for the band from 1973 through 2003. Critic

Scott Yanow Scott Yanow (born 1954) is an American jazz reviewer, historian, and author. Life and career Yanow was born in New York City and grew up near Los Angeles. Beginning in 1974, Yanow was a regular reviewer of many jazz styles and was the jazz e ...

describes Tabackin as "one of the few jazz musicians who has been able to develop completely different musical personalities on two instruments", with his forceful

hard bop Hard bop is a subgenre of jazz that is an extension of bebop (or "bop") music. Journalists and record companies began using the term in the mid-1950s to describe a new current within jazz that incorporated influences from rhythm and blues, gospe ...

style on sax contrasting with his delicate flute playing.

Jazz Foundation of America

Tabackin supports the

Jazz Foundation of America The Jazz Foundation of America (JFA) is a non-profit organization based in Manhattan, New York that was founded in 1989. Its programs seek to help jazz and blues musicians in need of emergency funds and connect them with performance opportunitie ...

in its mission to help elderly jazz and blues musicians, including those affected by

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...

. He has sat on the Advisory Committee of the Foundation since 2002.

Discography

As leader or co-leader

* ''Tabackin'' (Inner City, 1974) – also released as ''Let the Tape Roll'' (RCA) * ''Day Dream'' (RCA, 1976) * '' Tenor Gladness'' with

Warne Marsh Warne Marion Marsh (October 26, 1927 – December 18, 1987) was an American tenor saxophonist. Born in Los Angeles, his playing first came to prominence in the 1950s as a protégé of pianist Lennie Tristano and earned attention in the 1970s as ...

(Discomate , Inner City, 1976) * ''Dual Nature'' (Inner City, 1976) * ''Trackin' '' (RCA, 1976) * ''Rites of Pan'' (Discomate/Inner City, 1977) * ''Vintage Tenor'' (RCA, 1978) – with Toshiyuki Miyama And His New Herd * ''Lew Tabackin Meets the Tadpoles'' (Insights, 1979) * ''Black and Tan Fantasy'' (Discomate , Ascent , Jazz America Marketing (JAM), 1979) * '' Phil Woods/Lew Tabackin'' (Omnisound , Evidence, 1980) * ''Threedom'' (Discomate, 1980) * ''Duo: John Lewis & Lew Tabackin'' ( Toshiba EMI, 1981) * ''My Old Flame'' (

Atlas An atlas is a collection of maps; it is typically a bundle of world map, maps of Earth or of a continent or region of Earth. Advances in astronomy have also resulted in atlases of the celestial sphere or of other planets. Atlases have traditio ...

, 1982) * ''Lew Tabackin Quartet with Randy Brecker,...'' (Toshiba EMI, 1983) * ''Angelica'' (Toshiba EMI, 1985) * ''Desert Lady'' ( Concord, 1989) * ''I'll Be Seeing You'' (Concord, 1992) * ''What a Little Moonlight Can Do'' (Concord, 1994) * ''Live at Vartan's'' (Vartan Jazz, 1994) * ''L' Archiduc - Round About Five'' ( Igloo Jazz, 1996) * ''Tenority'' (Concord, 1996) * ''In a Sentimental Mood'' (Camerata , Insights, 1998) * ''Pyramid'' (Koch Jazz, 1999) * ''Tanuki's Night Out - Lew Tabackin Trio'' (2002) * '' Vintage: Duke Ellington Songbook'' (T-toc Records, 2008) – with Toshiko Akiyoshi * ''Live in Paris - Lew Tabackin Trio'' (2008) * ''Jazz na Hradě, Lew Tabackin Quartet'' (Multisonic, 2009) * ''Soundscapes'' (2016) * ''The Eternal Duo!'' (

Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at Sony City in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The Sony Group encompasses various businesses, including Sony Corporation (electronics), Sony Semiconductor Solutions (i ...

, 2019) – with Toshiko Akiyoshi

Toshiko Akiyoshi – Lew Tabackin Big Band

* '' Kogun'' (1974) * '' Long Yellow Road'' (1975) * '' Tales of a Courtesan (Oirantan)'' (1975) also known as ''HANA KAI TAN'' (花魁譚) * '' Road Time'' (1976) * '' Insights'' (1976) * '' March of the Tadpoles'' (1977) * '' Live at Newport '77'' (1977) * '' Live at Newport II'' (1977) * '' Salted Gingko Nuts'' (1978) also known as ''SHIO GIN NAN'' (塩銀杏) * '' Sumi-e'' (1979) * '' Farewell'' (1980) * '' From Toshiko with Love'' (1981) also released as ''Tanuki's Night Out'' * '' European Memoirs'' (1982)

Toshiko Akiyoshi Jazz Orchestra featuring Lew Tabackin

* '' Ten Gallon Shuffle'' (1984) * '' Wishing Peace'' (1986) * '' Carnegie Hall Concert'' (1992) * '' Desert Lady / Fantasy'' (1993) * '' Four Seasons of Morita Village'' (1996) * '' Monopoly Game'' (1998) * '' Tribute to Duke Ellington'' (1999) * '' Hiroshima - Rising from the Abyss'' (2001) * '' Last Live in Blue Note Tokyo'' (2003) * '' Toshiko Akiyoshi Jazz Orchestra in Shanghai'' (2011)

Akiyoshi - Tabackin Big Band compilations

* '' Mosaic Select: Toshiko Akiyoshi - Lew Tabackin Big Band'' (

Mosaic A mosaic () is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/Mortar (masonry), mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and ...

, 2008) * '' NOVUS Series '70: The Toshiko Akiyoshi - Lew Tabackin Big Band'' (BMG/Novus) * '' Eternal Best / Best 8'' (BMG) * '' The Best of Toshiko Akiyoshi'' (BMG)

As sideman

With Toshiko Akiyoshi * '' Toshiko at Top of the Gate'' (

Nippon Columbia , often pronounced ''Korombia'', operating internationally as , is a Japanese record label founded in 1910 as Nipponophone Co., Ltd. It affiliated itself with the Columbia Graphophone Company of the United Kingdom and adopted the standard UK C ...

, 1969) * '' Toshiko Akiyoshi in Japan'' aka ''Long Yellow Road'' (

Toshiba is a Japanese multinational electronics company headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. Its diversified products and services include power, industrial and social infrastructure systems, elevators and escalators, electronic components, semiconductors ...

, 1970) * '' Jazz, the Personal Dimension'' ( Victor, 1971) * ''

Meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique to train attention and awareness and detach from reflexive, "discursive thinking", achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state, while not judging the meditat ...

'' (Dan, 1971) * '' Sumie'' (Victor, 1971) * '' Yes, I Have No 4 Beat Today'' (

Nippon Crown is a Japanese record label established as Crown Records on 6 September 1963. It is a spin-off of Nippon Columbia and is owned by karaoke maker Daiichikosho. The record label singles which topped the Oricon Singles Chart are Kaze's "22-Sai no ...

, 1995) * '' Time Stream: Toshiko Plays Toshiko'' (Nippon Crown, 1996) * ''

50th Anniversary Concert in Japan ''50th Anniversary Concert in Japan'' (Japanese title, = ''American visit 50th anniversary commemorative Japanese performance'') is a live concert album recorded by jazz pianist Toshiko Akiyoshi and released in Japan on the T-toc Record label. ...

'' (T-toc, 2006) With

* '' Fancy Free'' (Blue Note, 1969) * '' Electric Byrd'' (Blue Note, 1970) * ''

Kofi Kofi is an Akan people, Akan masculine given name among the Akan people (such as the Bono people, Bono, Akyem, Akwamu, Ashanti people, Ashanti and Fante people, Fante) in Ghana that is given to a boy born on Friday. Traditionally in Ghana, a child ...

'' (Blue Note, 1995) With

Benny Carter Bennett Lester Carter (August 8, 1907 – July 12, 2003) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, trumpeter, composer, arranger, and bandleader. With Johnny Hodges, he was a pioneer on the alto saxophone. From the beginning of his career ...

*'' Central City Sketches'' (MusicMasters, 1987) With Harmonie Ensemble/New York * ''Tchaikovsky, Ellington, Strayhorn: Nutcracker Suites'' ( Harmonia Mundi, 2013) * ''Henry Mancini: Music for Peter Gunn'' (Harmonia Mundi, 2014) With Shelly Manne * ''Plays Richard Rodgers' Musical "Rex"'' (

Discovery Discovery may refer to: * Discovery (observation), observing or finding something unknown * Discovery (fiction), a character's learning something unknown * Discovery (law), a process in courts of law relating to evidence Discovery, The Discovery ...

, 1976) * ''

Essence Essence () has various meanings and uses for different thinkers and in different contexts. It is used in philosophy and theology as a designation for the property (philosophy), property or set of properties or attributes that make an entity the ...

'' (

Galaxy A galaxy is a Physical system, system of stars, stellar remnants, interstellar medium, interstellar gas, cosmic dust, dust, and dark matter bound together by gravity. The word is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek ' (), literally 'milky', ...

, 1977) With Duke Pearson * '' Introducing Duke Pearson's Big Band'' (Blue Note, 1968) * '' Now Hear This'' (Blue Note, 1969) * '' I Don't Care Who Knows It'' (Blue Note, 1996) With Carla White * ''Listen Here'' (

Evidence Evidence for a proposition is what supports the proposition. It is usually understood as an indication that the proposition is truth, true. The exact definition and role of evidence vary across different fields. In epistemology, evidence is what J ...

, 1991) * ''Mood Swings'' (

Milestone A milestone is a numbered marker placed on a route such as a road, railway, railway line, canal or border, boundary. They can indicate the distance to towns, cities, and other places or landmarks like Mileage sign, mileage signs; or they c ...

, 1992) * ''The Sweetest Sounds'' ( DIW, 2000) With others * '' Ridin' High'',

Maynard Ferguson Walter Maynard Ferguson CM (May 4, 1928 – August 23, 2006) was a Canadian jazz trumpeter and bandleader. He came to prominence in Stan Kenton's orchestra before forming his own big band in 1957. He was noted for his bands, which often served ...

(Enterprise, 1967) * '' The Jazz Composer's Orchestra'', Jazz Composer's Orchestra( ECM, 1968) * '' Jimmy Knepper in L.A.'', Jimmy Knepper (Discomate/

Inner City The term inner city (also called the hood) has been used, especially in the United States, as a euphemism for majority-minority lower-income residential districts that often refer to rundown neighborhoods, in a downtown or city centre area. Soc ...

, 1977) * '' Jukin''', The Manhattan Transfer (Capitol, 1971) * ''White Heat'',

Barry Miles Barry Miles (born 21 February 1943) is an English author known for his participation in and writing on the subjects of the 1960s London underground and counterculture. He is the author of numerous books and his work has also regularly appeare ...

(Mainstream, 1971) * ''Night Blooming'',

Leonard Feather Leonard Geoffrey Feather (13 September 1914 – 22 September 1994) was a British-born jazz pianist, composer, and producer, who was best known for his music journalism and other writing. Biography Feather was born in London, England, into an u ...

(Mainstream, 1972) * '' Small Change'',

Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on society's underworld and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He began in the American folk music, fo ...

( Asylum, 1976) * ''Ecue Ritmos Cubanos'', Louie Bellson ( Pablo, 1977) * ''Shortcake'',

Bill Berry William Thomas Berry (born July 31, 1958) is an American musician who was the drummer for the alternative rock band R.E.M. Although best known for his economical drumming style, Berry also played other instruments, including guitar, bass guita ...

( Concord, 1978) * '' Sweet Return'',

Freddie Hubbard Frederick Dewayne Hubbard (April 7, 1938 – December 29, 2008) was an American jazz trumpeter. He played bebop, hard bop, and post-bop styles from the early 1960s onwards. His unmistakable and influential tone contributed to new perspectives fo ...

(Atlantic, 1983) * ''Blues-O-Matic'', John Colianni (Concord, 1988) * ''Take Your Pick'', Howard Alden (Concord, 1996) * ''Jazz Takes on Joni Mitchell'', David Lahm ( Arkadia Jazz, 1999) * ''The Philadelphia Story'', Jimmy Amadie (TPR, 2007)

Video

* '' My Elegy'' (Pioneer LaserDisc, 1984) * '' Strive For Jive'' (V.I.E.W. Video, 1992) * '' In Shanghai'' (Pony Canyon, 2011) * ''The Eternal Duo!'' (Sony, 2019) – with Toshiko Akiyoshi

Awards and honors

DownBeat ''DownBeat'' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm that it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1 ...

'' magazine Critic's Poll winner: * Jazz Album of the Year: 1978 ('' Insights'') * Big Band: 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983 * Flute: 1980, 1981, 2010 ''DownBeat'' magazine Readers' Poll winner: * Big Band: 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982 * Flute: 1981, 1982 Grammy Award nominations: * Best Jazz Instrumental Performance - Big Band: 1976 ('' Long Yellow Road''), 1977 ('' Road Time''), 1978 ('' Insights''), 1979 ('' Kogun''), 1980 ('' Farewell''), 1981 ('' Tanuki's Night Out''), 1984 ('' Ten Gallon Shuffle''), 1985 ('' March of the Tadpoles''), 1992 ('' Carnegie Hall Concert''), 1994 ('' Desert Lady / Fantasy'') ''Swing Journal'' awards: * Gold Disk: 1976 ('' Insights''), Silver Disk: 1974 ('' Kogun''), 1979 ('' Salted Gingko Nuts''), 1996 ('' Four Seasons of Morita Village'')

References

External links

Official site

"Fireside Chat" at All About Jazz

Interview by breakthruradio.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tabackin, Lew 1940 births Living people Jazz musicians from Philadelphia American jazz bandleaders American jazz saxophonists American male saxophonists American jazz flautists American big band bandleaders University of the Arts (Philadelphia) alumni 21st-century American saxophonists 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians The Tonight Show Band members American Jazz Orchestra members Igloo Records artists 21st-century American flautists