''Old Locks and Irregular Verbs'' is an album by American jazz saxophonist

Henry Threadgill Henry Threadgill (born February 15, 1944) is an American composer, saxophonist and flautist. He came to prominence in the 1970s leading ensembles rooted in jazz but with unusual instrumentation and often incorporating other genres of music. He h ...

, which was recorded in 2015 and released on

Pi Recordings Pi Recordings is a jazz record label founded by Seth Rosner in 2001. He was soon joined as partner by Yulun Wang. Pi specializes in avant-garde jazz. Its first two albums were by Henry Threadgill. Pi's roster includes Amir ElSaffar, Anthony Braxt ...

. It features an extended work that Threadgill composed as a tribute to cornetist and composer-conductor Lawrence D. Butch Morris, who died in 2013. Morris and Threadgill were old friends and colleagues on the New York City jazz scene; they both performed on ''

Ming The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

'' (1980) by David Murray. Threadgill formed a new band for the occasion named Ensemble Double Up, a septet where he doesn't play, but instead conducts.''Old Locks and Irregular Verbs''
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Reception

The ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

'' review by Seth Colter Walls states, "Despite the fact it doesn’t contain a single note of his own searing saxophone playing, ''Old Locks and Irregular Verbs'' remains pure Threadgill—and a highlight in career stocked with more than a few classics."Walls, Seth Colte
''Old Locks and Irregular Verbs'' review
at ''

'' In a review for ''

Stereophile ''Stereophile'' is a monthly American audiophile magazine which reviews high-end audio equipment, such as loudspeakers and amplifiers, and audio-related news. History Founded in 1962 by J. Gordon Holt. ''Stereophile'' is the highest-circulation ...

'', Fred Kaplan says about the album, "It's his true career milestone, one of the great jazz compositions of the past several years, a musical masterpiece beyond category."Kaplan, Fre
''Old Locks and Irregular Verbs'' review
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The ''

Down Beat ' (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 which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chi ...

'' review by Bill Meyer notes, "Threadgill doesn’t attempt to shape the music on the fly the way Morris did, but ensures that the transitions from full-band statements to smaller interactions occur without loss of momentum or clarity."Meyer, Bill. ''Old Locks and Irregular Verbs'' review. ''Down Beat'' June 16: page 61. Print. In his review for ''

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...

'' John Garratt states, "Henry Threadgill may be in his early 70s, but he continues to make music that sounds like no one else. Even when he branches out and doesn’t quite sound like himself, he remains inimitable to a startling degree."Garratt, Joh
''Old Locks and Irregular Verbs'' review
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All About Jazz ''All About Jazz'' is a website established by Michael Ricci in 1995. A volunteer staff publishes news, album reviews, articles, videos, and listings of concerts and other events having to do with jazz. Ricci maintains a related site, ''Jazz Near ...

review by Dan Bilawsky says, "Threadgill's masterful blend of the independent and interdependent is alive and well in ''Old Locks and Irregular Verbs''."Bilawsky, Da
''Old Locks and Irregular Verbs'' review
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Track listing

:''All compositions by Henry Threadgill'' # "Part One" – 19:16 # "Part Two" – 3:53 # "Part Three" – 16:39 # "Part Four" – 7:12

Personnel

- composition *

Jason Moran Jason Moran may refer to: * Jason Moran (criminal) (1967–2003), Australian mobster * Jason Moran (musician) Jason Moran (born January 21, 1975) is an American jazz pianist, composer, and educator involved in multimedia art and theatrical inst ...

–

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

David Virelles David Virelles (born 1983) is a Cuban jazz pianist and composer. Early life Virelles was born in Cuba in 1983Jurek, Tho"Artist Biography" AllMusic. Retrieved 21 February 2015. and grew up in Santiago. His father is José Aquiles, a singer-songwr ...

– piano *Roman Filiu –

alto sax The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in E, smaller than the B tenor ...

* Curtis Macdonald – alto sax *Christopher Hoffman –

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a Bow (music), bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), t ...

*Jose Davila –

tuba The tuba (; ) is the lowest-pitched musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, the sound is produced by lip vibrationa buzzinto a mouthpiece. It first appeared in the mid-19th century, making it one of the ne ...

*Craig Weinrib –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

References

{{Authority control 2016 albums Henry Threadgill albums Pi Recordings albums