In 1976, when the World Saxophone Quartet played its first concert, it introduced a new sound to jazz. No bass. No drums. No piano. Just four saxophones: the late Julius Hemphill playing alto, with ...

Call it stereotyping, but the truth is occasionally we’ll see a pairing of musician and instrument we don’t expect. We’d be surprised, for example, to find a burly, hulking guy playing a piccolo. We’d ...

For more than four decades, Hamiet Bluiett found a way to combine the avant-garde with traditional jazz. Along the way, he redefined the role of the baritone saxophone, and co-founded one of the most ...