Steve Swell (born in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.free jazz Free jazz is an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventions, such as regular tempos, tones, and chord changes. Musicians duri ...

trombonist, composer, and educator.

Music career

Swell studied at Jersey City State Teachers College before moving to New York City in 1975 where he began his musical life, playing in top 40 bands, salsa bands, big bands (most notably those of

Buddy Rich Bernard "Buddy" Rich (September 30, 1917 – April 2, 1987) was an American jazz drummer, songwriter, conductor, and bandleader. He is considered one of the most influential drummers of all time. Rich was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York ...

and Lionel Hampton) and performed on Broadway in Bob Fosse's ''Dancin' ''. He then became a member of

Makanda Ken McIntyre Makanda Ken McIntyre (born Kenneth Arthur McIntyre; also known as Ken McIntyre) (September 7, 1931 – June 13, 2001) was an American jazz musician, composer and educator. In addition to his primary instrument, the alto saxophone, he played flu ...

's band which led to tours and recordings with

Tim Berne Tim Berne (born October 16, 1954) is an American avant-garde jazz saxophonist and record label owner. His primary instruments are the alto and baritone saxophones. Biography Berne was born in Syracuse, New York, United States. He has said that ...

Joey Baron Bernard Joseph Baron (born June 26, 1955 in Richmond, Virginia) is an American avant-garde jazz drummer who plays frequently with Bill Frisell and John Zorn. Music career Baron was born on June 26, 1955, in Richmond Virginia. When he was nine, ...

, Herb Robertson,

Jemeel Moondoc Jemeel Moondoc (August 5, 1946 – August 29, 2021) was a jazz saxophonist who played alto saxophone. He was a proponent of a highly improvisational style. He was born in Chicago, Illinois, United States, and studied clarinet and piano before s ...

Anthony Braxton Anthony Braxton (born June 4, 1945) is an American experimental composer, educator, music theorist, improviser and multi-instrumentalist who is best known for playing saxophones, particularly the alto. Braxton grew up on the South Side of Ch ...

, Cecil Taylor, William Parker, Bill Dixon, Butch Morris, John Zorn, Dave Burrell,

Elliott Sharp Elliott Sharp (born March 1, 1951) is an American contemporary classical composer, multi-instrumentalist, and performer. A central figure in the avant-garde and experimental music scene in New York City since the late 1970s, Sharp has released ...

Rob Mazurek Rob Mazurek (born 1965) is an American composer, cornetist, improviser and visual artist living in Chicago, Illinois. Biography Rob Mazurek is an American electro-acoustic composer, cornetist, improviser and visual artist living in Chicago, Il ...

Perry Robinson Perry Morris Robinson (September 17, 1938 – December 2, 2018) was an American jazz clarinetist and composer. He was the son of composer Earl Robinson. Early life and education Robinson was born and grew up in New York City. He attended the Le ...

Ken Vandermark Ken Vandermark (born September 22, 1964) is an American composer, saxophonist, and clarinetist. A fixture on the Chicago-area music scene since the 1990s, Vandermark has earned wide critical praise for his playing and his multilayered compos ...

. He is greatly influenced by

Roswell Rudd Roswell Hopkins Rudd Jr. (November 17, 1935 – December 21, 2017) was an American jazz trombonist and composer. Although skilled in a variety of genres of jazz (including Dixieland, which he performed while in college), and other genres of musi ...

, with whom he studied in the mid-1970s. He was also a student of

Grachan Moncur III Grachan Moncur III (June 3, 1937 – June 3, 2022) was an American jazz trombonist. He was the son of jazz bassist Grachan Moncur II and the nephew of jazz saxophonist Al Cooper. Biography Born in New York City, United States, (his paternal gran ...

and

Jimmy Knepper James Minter Knepper (November 22, 1927 – June 14, 2003) was an American jazz trombonist. In addition to his own recordings as leader, Knepper performed and recorded with Charlie Barnet, Woody Herman, Claude Thornhill, Stan Kenton, Benny Goo ...

. Swell has led a number of projects, including Slammin' the Infinite (w/

Sabir Mateen Sabir Mateen (born April 16, 1951) is an American musician and composer from Philadelphia. His musical style is primarily avant-garde jazz. He plays tenor and alto saxophone, B♭ and alto clarinet, and flute. As a young man, Mateen was origi ...

, Matthew Heyner, Klaus Kugel), Fire Into Music (with William Parker, Jemeel Moondoc, Hamid Drake), Unified Theory of Sound (with Cooper-Moore,

Matt Lavelle Matt Lavelle (born 1970 in Paterson, New Jersey) is a jazz trumpet, flugelhorn, alto clarinet, and bass clarinet player. Career Lavelle began his music career with Hildred Humphries, a swing era veteran who played with Count Basie and Billie Holi ...

) and his large ensemble Nation of We (aka NOW Ensemble). Swell has received a number of awards including a USArts International (NEA) travel grant in 2006, grants from MCAF (LMCC) in 2008 & 2012,

Foundation for Contemporary Arts The Foundation for Contemporary Arts (FCA), is a nonprofit based foundation in New York City that offers financial support and recognition to contemporary performing and visual artists through awards for artistic innovation and potential. It was ...

and was nominated for Trombonist of Year, 2008, 2011 & 2020 by the

Jazz Journalists Association The Jazz Journalists Association (JJA) is an international organization of all types of media professionals who document, promulgate, or appreciate jazz. As of 2016, it has approximately 250 members, including professional journalists, students, ind ...

. He was chosen Trombonist of the Year 2008-2010, 2012 & 2014-2021 by ''El Intruso'', the Argentine jazz journal. In 2008 he received a fellowship award from The Jubilation Foundation of the Tides Foundation for his work in the New York City public school system and was selected by the ''Down Beat'' Critics Poll in the Trombone category 2010-2022. He also received the 2014 Creative Curricula grant from the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council. Steve earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from SUNY in 2016.

Discography

As leader or co-leader

* ''

Observations Observation is the active acquisition of information from a primary source. In living beings, observation employs the senses. In science, observation can also involve the perception and recording of data via the use of scientific instrument ...

'' (

CIMP Creative Improvised Music Projects, usually abbreviated CIMP or C.I.M.P., is an American jazz record company and label. It is associated with ''Cadence Magazine'' and Cadence Jazz Records. The label is noted for its minimal use of electronic proc ...

, 1996) - Steve Swell & Chris Kelsey Duo * '' Out and About'' (CIMP, 1996) - Steve Swell Quartet featuring Roswell Rudd w/Ken Filiano, Lou Grassi * ''

Moons of Jupiter There are 82 known moons of Jupiter, not counting a number of moonlets likely shed from the inner moons. All together, they form a satellite system which is called the Jovian system. The most massive of the moons are the four Galilean moons: ...

'' (CIMP, 1997) - Steve Swell Quartet w/Mark Whitecage, Dominic Duval, Jay Rosen * '' Atmospheels'' (CIMP, 1999) - Steve Swell Trio w/Will Connell, Lou Grassi * ''Flurries Warm and Clear'' (CIMP, 1999) - Steve Swell Trio w/Ned Rothenberg, Tomas Ulrich * ''Steve Swell presents Particle Data Group'' (

Cadence In Western musical theory, a cadence (Latin ''cadentia'', "a falling") is the end of a phrase in which the melody or harmony creates a sense of full or partial resolution, especially in music of the 16th century onwards.Don Michael Randel (199 ...

, 2001) * ''The Implicate Order at Seixal'' (

Clean Feed Clean may refer to: * Cleaning, the process of removing unwanted substances, such as dirt, infectious agents, and other impurities, from an object or environment * Cleanliness, the state of being clean and free from dirt Arts and media Music A ...

, 2001) - Steve Swell, Ken Filiano, Lou Grassi + Rodrigo Amado, Paulo Curado * ''Poets of the Now'' (CIMP, 2002) * Unified Theory Of Sound: '' This Now!'' - (Cadence Jazz, 2003) - Steve Swell, Jemeel Moondoc, Cooper-Moore, Wilber Morris, Kevin Norton, Matt LaVelle * New York BrassWood Trio: ''Still in Movement'' (CIMP, 2003) * ''Suite for Players, Listeners and Other Dreamers'' (CIMP, 2003) - Steve Swell, Roy Campbell, Charles Burnham, Will Connell, Kevin Norton, Francois Grillot * ''Invisible Cities'' (Drimala, 2004) - Steve Swell/Perry Robinson Duo * ''Not Just...'' (CIMP, 2005) - Steve Swell/Dave Taylor Quintet Billy Bang, Tomas Ulrich, Ken Filiano * ''Double Dipoid'' (CIMP, 2006) - Steve Swell/Dave Taylor Quartet w/Warren Smith, Chad Taylor * '' Swimming in a Galaxy of Goodwill and Sorrow'' (

RogueArt RogueArt (also written Rogueart and Rogue Art) is a French independent record label based in Paris. It was founded by record producer Michel Dorbon in 2005 and specialises in jazz and improvised music. History RogueArt was founded by record p ...

, 2007)- Steve Swell's Fire Into Music w/Jemeel Moondoc, William Parker, Hamid Drake * Rivers of Sound Ensemble: '' News from the Mystic Auricle'' (Not Two, 2008) - Steve Swell, Roy Campbell, Sabir Mateen, Hilliard "Hill" Greene, Klaus Kugel * ''Magical Listening Hour'' (Cadence Jazz, 2009) - Steve Swell/

Nate Wooley Nate or NATE may refer to: People and fictional characters * Nate (given name) *A nickname for Nathanael *A nickname for Nathaniel Organizations * National Association for the Teaching of English, the UK subject teacher association for all aspec ...

/Michael Attias/Louie Belogenis * '' Planet Dream'' (Clean Feed, 2009) - Steve Swell, Rob Brown, Daniel Levin * ''Feynman's Diagrams'' (Nacht, 2013)- Steve Swell/Kirk Knuffke Duo * ''Kanreki'' (Not Two, 2015) * ''Kende Dreams'' ( Silkheart, 2015) * ''Soul Travelers'' (RogueArt, 2016) * ''Music for Six Musicians: Hommage À Olivier Messiaen'' (Silkheart, 2017) with Slammin' the Infinite * '' Slammin' the Infinite'' (Cadence Jazz, 2004)- Steve Swell, Sabir Mateen, Matt Heyner, Klaus Kugel * ''

Remember Now ''Remember Now'' is an album by American jazz trombonist Steve Swell, which was recorded in 2005 and released on the Polish Not Two label. It was the second release by Slammin' the Infinite, a quartet with Sabir Mateen on reeds, Matthew Heyner on b ...

'' (NotTwo, 2006) - Steve Swell, Sabir Mateen, Matt Heyner, Klaus Kugel * ''

Live @ the Vision Festival ''Live @ the Vision Festival'' is an album by American jazz trombonist Steve Swell, which was recorded at the 2006 Vision Festival and released on the Polish Not Two label. It was the third release by Slammin' the Infinite, this time a quintet with ...

'' (NotTwo, 2007) - Steve Swell, Sabir Mateen, Matt Heyner, Klaus Kugel, John Blum * '' 5000 Poems'' (NotTwo, 2010) - Steve Swell, Sabir Mateen, Matt Heyner, Klaus Kugel, John Blum with

Ullmann Ullmann is a German surname also associated with Jewish Europeans. It means "man from Ulm". Notable people with the surname include: * Alexander de Erény Ullmann (1850–1897), Hungarian deputy and political economist * Andrew Ullmann (born 1963) ...

/Swell 4 * ''Desert Songs and Other Landscapes'' (CIMP, 2004) - Barry Altschul, Hill Greene * ''News? No News!'' (Jazzwerskstatt, 2010)- Barry Altschul, Hill Greene * ''Live in Montreal'' (CIMP, 2010)- Barry Altschul, Hill Greene with Nation of We * ''Live at the Bowery Poetry Club'' (Ayler, 2006) * ''The Business of Here'' (Cadence Jazz, 2012) with Inner Ear * ''Breathing Steam'' (Kilogram, 2010) Mikolaj Trzaska, Steve Swell, Per Ake Holmlander, Tim Daisy * ''Return from the Center of the Earth'' (Bocian, 2013) - Mikolaj Trzaska, Steve Swell, Per Ake Holmlander, Tim Daisy With

Marshall Allen Marshall Belford Allen (born May 25, 1924) is an American free jazz and avant-garde jazz alto saxophone player. He also performs on flute, oboe, piccolo, and EWI (an electronic valve instrument made by Steiner, Crumar company). Allen is best ...

* '' PoZest'' (CIMP, 2000)

Collaborations

* The Trascendentalists: ''Real Time Messengers'' (CIMP, 2003) - Steve Swell, Daniel Carter, Tom Abbs, Dave Brandt * The Diplomats: '' We Are Not Obstinate Islands'' (Clean Feed, 2006) - Rob Brown, Harris Eisenstadt * International Trio: ''Donkere Golven'' (W.E.R.F., 2011) - Joachim Badenhorst, Steve Swell, Ziv Ravitz * Platform 1: ''Takes Off'' (Clean Feed, 2012) - Ken Vandermark, Magnus Broo, Steve Swell, Joe Williamson, Michael Vatcher * ''Dragonfly Breath'' (NotTwo, 2013) - Paul Flaherty/Weasel Walter/C Spenser Yeh/Steve Swell * ''Latecomers'' (Ictus, 2013) -

Andrea Centazzo Andrea Centazzo (born 1948) is an Italian-born American composer, percussionist, multimedia artist and record label founder. Music career Centazzo was born in Udine, Italy. In the 1970s he played percussion in avant-garde jazz with John Zorn, S ...

/Giancarlo Schiaffini/Steve Swell/Anthony Coleman * ''Estuaries'' (dEN, 2013) - Andrew Raffo Dewar/Garrison Fewell/Steve Swell * ''Window and Doorway'' (Driff, 2013) - Pandelis Karayorgis/Guillermo Gregorio/Steve Swell * New Atlantis Octet: ''Unto the Sun'' (NotTwo, 2013) - Ed Ricart, Roy Campbell, Steve Swell, Aaron Martin, Jason Ajemian, Vattel Cherry, Andrew Barker, Sam Lohman * ''Turning Point'' (NoBusiness, 2014) - Dave Burrell / Steve Swell Digital Release * ''Schemata and Heuristics for Four Clarinets #1'' (Relay, 2014) - Ned Rothenberg/Guillermo Gregorio/Zara Acosta-Chen/Miguel Malla - https://web.archive.org/web/20140508042901/http://timdaisyrelayrecords.bandcamp.com/track/schemata-and-heuristics-for-clarinets-1-by-steve-swell-relay-new-composers-004 * ''Steve Swell's Nation Of We'' (Ayler, 2006) - Saxes: Rob Brown, Will Connell, Saco Yasuma, Sabir Mateen,

Ras Moshe Theodore Burnett III (born March 22, 1968, Brooklyn, New York), who performs under the name Ras Burnett, is a composer, multi-instrumentalist specializing in saxophone and flute, musicologist and educator. Ras comes from a musical family. His pate ...

Trumpets: Roy Campbell, Lewis Barnes, Matt LaVelle Trombones: Dick Griffin, Peter Zummo, Steve Swell, Dave Taylor Piano: Chris Forbes Bass: Matthew Heyner, Todd Nicholson Drums: Jackson Krall- https://ayler-records.bandcamp.com/album/live-at-the-bowery-poetry-club

As sideman

With

* '' Tongue in Groove'' ( JMT, 1992) * '' Crackshot'' (Avant, 1995) With

* ''

Pace Yourself ''Pace Yourself'' is an album by saxophonist Tim Berne's Caos Totale which was recorded in 1990 and released on the JMT label.Shimada, T.JMT label discography accessed October 9, 2014 Reception The AllMusic review by Brian Olewnick states "''Pac ...

'' (JMT, 1991) * '' Nice View'' (JMT, 1994) With

* ''Trillium R Opera'' (Braxton House, 1997) With Rob Brown * '' Radiant Pools'' (RogueArt, 2005) With

Jaki Byard John Arthur "Jaki" Byard (; June 15, 1922 – February 11, 1999) was an American jazz multi-instrumentalist, composer, and arranger. Mainly a pianist, he also played tenor and alto saxophones, among several other instruments. He was known for hi ...

and the

Apollo Stompers The Apollo Stompers was a jazz big band led by Jaki Byard. Accounts vary on when the Apollo Stompers was formed. These range from the 1950s to the mid-1970s. For a time, two versions of the band existed: one of New York musicians, and the other of ...

* ''

Phantasies ''Phantasies'' is the name of a series of animated cartoons produced by the Screen Gems studio for Columbia Pictures from 1939 to 1946. The series, featuring characters such as Willoughby Wren and Superkatt, is notable as being the last theatr ...

'' (Soul Note, 1984) With Bill Dixon * '' 17 Musicians in Search of a Sound: Darfur'' ( AUM Fidelity, 2007) With

* ''

Spirit House A spirit house is a shrine to the protective spirit of a place that is found in the Southeast Asian countries of Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines. The spirit house is normally in the form of sma ...

'' (

Eremite A hermit, also known as an eremite (adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions. Description In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Ch ...

, 2001) * ''

Live at the Vision Festival ''Live at the Vision Festival'' is an album by American jazz saxophonist Jemeel Moondoc, which was recorded live at the 2001 Vision Festival and released on Ayler Records, a Swedish label founded by Jan Ström and Åke Bjurhamn.The Zookeeper's House'' (

Relative Pitch Relative pitch is the ability of a person to identify or re-create a given musical note by comparing it to a reference note and identifying the interval between those two notes. For example, if the note ''Do'' and ''Fa'' is played on a piano, a per ...

, 2014) With William Parker * ''Flowers Grow in My Room'' (Centering, 1994) * '' Sunrise in the Tone World'' (AUM Fidelity, 1995) * '' Mayor of Punkville'' (AUM Fidelity, 1999) * ''

Raincoat in the River ''Raincoat in the River'' is a live album by bassist and composer William Parker's Little Huey Creative Music Orchestra, which was recorded in Boston in 2001 and released on the Eremite label.

'' (Eremite, 2001) * '' Spontaneous'' (Splasc(H), 2002) * '' For Percy Heath'' (Victo, 2005) * '' Essence of Ellington'' (Centering, 2012) With

* ''

Broad Strokes ''Broad Strokes'' is an album by trombonist Roswell Rudd. It was recorded during March 1999–January 2000 at various locations, and was released by Knitting Factory Works in 2000. On the album, Rudd appears in a broad range of ensemble contexts, ...

'' (Knitting Factory, 2000) With

Alan Silva Alan Silva (born Alan Lee da Silva; January 22, 1939 in Bermuda) is an United States of America, American free jazz double bassist and Keyboard instrument, keyboard player. Biography Silva was born a British subject to an Azores, Azorean/Portug ...

* ''

Alan Silva & the Sound Visions Orchestra ''Alan Silva & the Sound Visions Orchestra'' is a live album by multi-instrumentalist Alan Silva. It was recorded in May 1999 at St. Nicholas of Myra Church in New York City during the annual Vision Festival, and was released in 2001 by Eremite Re ...

'' (Eremite, 2001) * '' H.Con.Res.57/Treasure Box'' (Eremite, 2003) With Cecil Taylor * ''All the Notes'' (DVD) Cecil Taylor and Orchestra Humane - Chris Felver Films (2005) With

* ''Resonance Ensemble: Head Above Water'' * ''Resonance Ensemble: What Country Is This?'' * ''Resonance Ensemble: Kafka in Flight'' * ''Resonance Ensemble: Live in Krakow'' * ''Resonance Ensemble: Live in the Ukraine'' With

Tom Varner Tom Varner (born June 17, 1957 in Morristown, New Jersey, United States) is an American jazz horn (French horn) player and composer. Varner grew up in Millburn, New Jersey, and studied piano in his youth with Capitola Dickerson of Summit, Ne ...

* '' The Mystery of Compassion'' (Soul Note, 1992)

References

External links

Official website

Steve Swell
@

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 ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Swell, Steve Avant-garde jazz musicians American jazz trombonists Male trombonists Musicians from Newark, New Jersey 1954 births Living people 21st-century trombonists 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians RogueArt artists NoBusiness Records artists