Denardo Ornette Coleman (born April 19, 1956) 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, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

drummer. He is the son of Ornette Coleman and

Jayne Cortez Jayne Cortez (May 10, 1934 – December 28, 2012) was an African-American poet, activist, small press publisher and spoken-word performance artist whose voice is celebrated for its political, surrealistic and dynamic innovations in lyricism and ...

Biography

Born to

and Ornette Coleman in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

, in 1956,"Coleman, Denardo (Ornette)"
, Encyclopedia of Jazz Musicians, Jazz.com Denardo Coleman began playing drums at the age of six. At the age of 10 he joined his father's band, making his first appearance on record on the 1966 Ornette Coleman album '' The Empty Foxhole'', with

Charlie Haden Charles Edward Haden (August 6, 1937 – July 11, 2014) was an American jazz double bass player, bandleader, composer and educator whose career spanned more than 50 years. In the late 1950s, he was an original member of the ground-breaking ...

on bass. Haden said of Denardo's playing on that recording: "He’s going to startle every drummer who hears him." Denardo also featured on his father's later releases, including '' Ornette at 12'' (1968) and ''

Crisis A crisis ( : crises; : critical) is either any event or period that will (or might) lead to an unstable and dangerous situation affecting an individual, group, or all of society. Crises are negative changes in the human or environmental affair ...

'' (1969), and played as a member of Ornette's Prime Time ensemble in the 1970s. He also worked with his mother in the band The Firespitters, and has played with

Geri Allen Geri Antoinette Allen (June 12, 1957 – June 27, 2017) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and educator. In addition to her career as a performer and bandleader, Allen was also an associate professor of music at the University of Pittsburgh ...

Pat Metheny Patrick Bruce Metheny ( ; born August 12, 1954) is an American jazz guitarist and composer. He is the leader of the Pat Metheny Group and is also involved in duets, solo works, and other side projects. His style incorporates elements of progre ...

James Blood Ulmer James "Blood" Ulmer (born February 8, 1940) is an American jazz, free funk and blues guitarist and singer. Ulmer plays a Gibson Byrdland guitar. His guitar sound has been described as "jagged" and "stinging". His singing has been called "ragg ...

, and

Jamaaladeen Tacuma Jamaaladeen Tacuma (born Rudy McDaniel; June 11, 1956) is an American free jazz bassist born in Hempstead, New York. He was a bandleader on the Gramavision label and worked with Ornette Coleman during the 1970s and 1980s, mostly in Coleman's P ...

. In the 1980s Coleman started to manage his father's career, which he continued doing for the next 30 years. Coleman has also done extensive work as a producer, including on albums by both of his parents, and on '' In All Languages'' and '' Virgin Beauty'' in the 1980s and ''Hidden Man'' and ''Three Women'' in the '90s. In 2017, on a new label called Song X Records (referencing the title of one of his father's favorite compositions), he produced ''Celebrate Ornette'', a tribute to his father, in a box set with 24 performances captured on two DVDs, three CDs, and four vinyl LPs.

Discography

As sideman

With Ornette Coleman * '' The Empty Foxhole'' (Blue Note, 1966) * '' Ornette at 12'' (Impulse!, 1968) * ''

'' (Impulse!, 1969; Real Gone Music, 2017)Richard Brody
"The Best Jazz Reissues and Rediscoveries of 2017"
''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...

'', December 15, 2017. * '' Of Human Feelings'' (Antilles, 1979) * '' Song X'' (Geffen, 1985) with

* '' Prime Design/Time Design'' (Caravan of Dreams, 1985) * '' In All Languages'' (Caravan of Dreams, 1987) * '' Virgin Beauty'' (Portrait, 1988) * ''

Tone Dialing Dual-tone multi-frequency signaling (DTMF) is a telecommunication signaling system using the voice-frequency band over telephone lines between telephone equipment and other communications devices and switching centers. DTMF was first developed ...

'' (Harmelodic/Verve, 1995) * '' Sound Museum: Hidden Man'' (Harmolodic/Verve, 1996) * '' Sound Museum: Three Women'' (Harmolodic/Verve, 1996) * '' Sound Grammar'' (Sound Grammar, 2006) With Jayne Cortez & the Firespitters * ''Taking the Blues Back Home'' (Virgin, 1996) * ''Borders of Disorderly Time'' with Bobby Bradford,

Frank Lowe Frank Lowe (June 24, 1943 – September 19, 2003) was an American avant-garde jazz saxophonist and composer. Biography Born and brought up in Memphis, Tennessee, Lowe took up the tenor saxophone at the age of 12. As an adult he moved to San Fra ...

, ,

Charnett Moffett Charnett Moffett (June 10, 1967 – April 11, 2022) was an American jazz bassist. Moffett began playing bass in the family band, touring the Far East in 1975 at the age of eight. In the mid-1980s, he played with Wynton Marsalis and Branford Ma ...

, Bern Nix, T. K. Blue, Alex Harding (Bola Press, 2003) With

*''

Tales of Captain Black ''Tales of Captain Black'' is an album by American guitarist James Blood Ulmer (credited simply as "James Blood" on the cover) featuring Ornette Coleman, Jamaaladeen Tacuma, and Denardo Coleman recorded in 1978 and originally released on the Ar ...

'' (Artists House, 1978) With

*''Song X'' (Nonesuch, 1985) With

*''Treasure'' (King Japan, 2010)

References

External links

* Denardo Colemanat

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

Denardo Coleman
at Jazz.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Coleman, Denardo 1956 births Living people Musicians from Los Angeles Jazz musicians from California American jazz drummers African-American jazz musicians 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 20th-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Prime Time (band) members 20th-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American people