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Steve Lacy | |
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![]() Lacy in 1976 | |
Background information | |
Birth name | Steven Norman Lackritz |
Born | New York City, U.S. | July 23, 1934
Died | June 4, 2004 | (aged 69)
Genres | Jazz, dixieland, avant-garde jazz |
Occupation(s) | Musician |
Instrument | Soprano saxophone |
Formerly of | Red Allen, Pee Wee Russell, Pops Foster, Thelonious Monk, Mal Waldron, Roswell Rudd, Cecil Taylor, Michail Bezverkhni |
Steve Lacy (born Steven Norman Lackritz; July 23, 1934 – June 4, 2004) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer recognized as one of the important players of soprano saxophone.[1] Coming to prominence in the 1950s as a progressive dixieland musician, Lacy went on to a long and prolific career. He worked extensively in experimental jazz and to a lesser extent in free improvisation, but Lacy's music was typically melodic and tightly-structured. Lacy also became a highly distinctive composer, with compositions often built out of little more than a single questioning phrase, repeated several times.
The music of Thelonious Monk became a permanent part of Lacy's repertoire after a stint in the pianist's band, with Monk's works appearing on virtually every Lacy album and concert program; Lacy often partnered with trombonist Roswell Rudd in exploring Monk's work. Beyond Monk, Lacy performed the work of jazz composers such as Charles Mingus, Duke Ellington and Herbie Nichols; unlike many jazz musicians he rarely played standard popular or show tunes.