TRACKLIST
A1 Juneteenth
A2 Still Waters
B1 After You Said Yes
B2 Tawaafa
ABOUT
I've Known Rivers from the poem by Langston Hughes
Anthony Davis, piano
James Newton, flute
Abdul Wadud, cello
Recorded and mixed at Vanguard Studios, April 1982, New York
Engineered by John Kilgore
Mastered at Masterdisk by Bob Ludwig, New York
Juneteenth was composed in 1982 specifically for this record date. Juneteenth is a compound word meaning June the 19th, the date the slaves in Texas were "freed" in 1863. This date has been celebrated by blacks everywhere since as a reminder of the beginning of their "freedom". Juneteenth's musical organization is mainly based on eight different rhythmic motives. These motives are constantly being developed by variation, diminuation, augmentation, repetition and so on.
I consider the rhythmic thrust (swing) that carries the composition from the first note to the end to be a very important element; for it is the Afro-Americans' gift to the world. Monk had just died while I was composing this piece; perhaps you can hear some of his nomenclature in the composition. - JN
Anthony Davis, pianist and composer, has received international recognition both for his innovative piano and ensemble composition and for his own virtuoso performances. Born in Paterson, New Jersey, he grew up a serious student of both classical piano and Afro-American music. Davis studied music at Yale University, and there came in contact with prominent musicians such as Ed Blackwell, Marion Brown, and Leo Smith. At New Haven, he also met other young musicians, including George Lewis, Mark Helias, and Jay Hoggard, with whom he was to form enduring alliances. In 1975 Davis began touring extensively in Europe, with Leroy Jenkins, James Newton, and as a solo pianist. In the ensuing five years, Davis greatly enhanced his stature as a composer, with the release of five albums of his own music, including, in 1981, Episteme (on Gramavision Records) written for a large new music ensemble.
Davis has recently received several commissions for composition including a chamber work for the Houston Symphony Orchestra, and piece for the Brooklyn Philharmonic Orchestra.
James Newton has been called "The most accomplished and original flutist now playing jazz." (New York Times). Born in Los Angeles in 1953, Newton heard jazz, blues and gospel music in his home as a child.
It wasn't till Newton was 16 that he discovered the flute, and he began formal study two years later when he entered California State University at Los Angeles.
Newton became involved in classical music, performing with orchestras and chamber groups. Newton has won numerous awards both in the U.S. and in Europe, including #1 flute player in the 1982 Downbeat Critics’ Poll. He has toured the U.S. as a soloist and in ensembles with, among others, Bobby Bradford, Arthur Blythe, Oliver Lake, Hamiett Bluiett and Sunny Murray.
Newton uses techniques such as singing and playing simultaneously, using special fingering, and microtonal slides and overtones, as integral elements to his playing.
He is a complete master of the flute, and as a result of his single-minded devotion to his instrument Newton has achieved prominence as one of the finest of all contemporary flute players.
Abdul Wadud, a native of Cleveland, Ohio, began to study classical cello at the age of nine. He was an exceptional student and won many prizes and awards for his playing, including a full scholarship to the Oberlin Conservatory of Music. Coming from a musical family, Wadud was exposed to jazz music early on, and he began his long time association with other creative artists, such as Julius Hemphill while in high school. In 1971 Wadud moved to New Jersey and soon became an important member of the growing creative music community of New York City, recording and performing with, among others, Cecil Taylor, Anthony Davis, Lester Bowie, Chico Freeman, Oliver Lake, James Newton, Leroy Jenkins, Michael Gregory Jackson and Arthur Blythe. Wadud has done a great deal to expand the range and vocabulary of the cello, and in effect has created a new tradition for the instrument. This tradition draws not only on the classical origins of the cello but on blues, folk music and on the heritage of African music in America.
