For Alto

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For Alto
Foralto.jpg
Studio album by
Anthony Braxton
Released1971
Recorded1969
GenreJazz
Length72:58
LabelDelmark Records
Anthony Braxton chronology
Three Compositions of New Jazz
(1968) 		For Alto
(1971) 		Silence
(1969)

For Alto is a jazz double-LP by composer/multi-reedist Anthony Braxton, recorded in 1969 and released on Delmark Records in 1971.[1][2] The tracks on this album are performed by Braxton on alto saxophone, with no additional instrumentation or musicians and no overdubbing.

Reception[]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
All About Jazz(favorable)[3]
AllMusic4.5/5 stars[4]
DownBeat5/5 stars
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music4/5 stars[5]
MusicHound Jazz3.5/5[6]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz4/4 stars
The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide4/5 stars[7]
Sputnikmusic3.5/5 stars[8]

The album is recognized as one of the landmarks of free jazz and improvised music. The AllMusic review by Thom Jurek stated: "For Alto is one of the greatest solo saxophone records ever made, and maybe one of the greatest recordings ever issued, period".[4] The Penguin Guide to Jazz gives For Alto a four-star rating (of a possible four) along with its "crown" token of merit, and describes it as "one of the genuinely important American recordings. While some landmark performances retain only a mystical aura of their original significance, [For Alto] remains powerfully listenable and endlessly fascinating."[9] On All About Jazz Derek Taylor observed "This is a recording and artistic statement that completely changed the rules. Braxton's gall seemed audacious to some, but revolutionary to far more and the hindsight of history has proven this latter camp correct. His opened the gates for solo improvisatory expression for all players up to the challenge to pass through and in the intervening years many of the giants of improvised music have followed suit".[10]

Track listing[]

  1. "Dedicated to Multi-Instrumentalist Jack Gell"  – 0:42
  2. "To Composer John Cage"  – 9:30
  3. "To Artist Murray dePillars"  – 4:17
  4. "To Pianist Cecil Taylor"  – 5:18
  5. "Dedicated to Ann and Peter Allen"  – 12:54
  6. "Dedicated to Susan Axelrod"  – 10:24
  7. "To My Friend Kenny McKenny"  – 10:06
  8. "Dedicated to Multi-Instrumentalist Leroy Jenkins"  – 19:47

Personnel[]

Anthony Braxton - alto saxophone

References[]

  1. ^ Taylor, Derek (1 September 2000). "Anthony Braxton: For Alto". All About Jazz. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
  2. ^ Shatz, Adam (29 October 2000). "70's Redux: Notes From the Jazz Underground". The New York Times. Retrieved 28 February 2021.
  3. ^ Taylor, Derek (September 1, 2000). "Anthony Braxton: For Alto". All About Jazz. Retrieved September 25, 2019.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b Jurek, Thom. For Alto – Review at AllMusic. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  5. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. 1 (4th ed.). MUZE. p. 815. ISBN 0195313739.
  6. ^ "For Alto". Acclaimed Music. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
  7. ^ Swenson, J., ed. (1985). The Rolling Stone Jazz Record Guide. USA: Random House/Rolling Stone. p. 29. ISBN 0-394-72643-X.
  8. ^ robertsona. Review: For Alto . Sputnikmusic. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
  9. ^ Cook, Richard; Brian Morton (2006) [1992]. "Anthony Braxton". The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings. The Penguin Guide to Jazz (8th ed.). New York: Penguin. p. 150. ISBN 0-14-102327-9.
  10. ^ Taylor, D., All About Jazz Review, September 1, 2000

External links[]

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