Chase Baird
Chase Baird | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 18, 1988 Seattle, Washington |
| Genres | Jazz, Third Stream, Pop |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, composer |
| Instrument | Saxophone |
| Years active | 2004–present |
| Labels | Junebeat |
| Website | www |
Chase Baird (born March 18, 1988) is an American jazz saxophonist and composer whose music blends jazz, classical and popular styles with jazz improvisation.[1]
Biography
Baird was born in Seattle, Washington, and exposed to creative musicianship at an early age. His father was a trumpet player who dabbled in rock bands and owned an eclectic collection of instruments. At age 10, Baird's family relocated Salt Lake City, Utah, where he began to study the saxophone.[2] His proclivity towards jazz came naturally, as jazz recordings by Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Dexter Gordon, Dave Brubeck, the Jazz Crusaders, Michael Brecker, Pat Metheny and many others were frequently played around at home.[1]
Baird's first musical inspirations included the saxophonists Gato Barbieri and Michael Brecker. Upon listening to Brecker’s 1990 GRP recording, Now You See It… (Now You Don’t), Baird recalled having distinctly drawn to Brecker's style, particularly his interpretation of ballads. Around age 12, he began to memorize the tenor solos from Brecker's recordings, including spending several months mastering ‘Syzygy,’ from the first Michael Brecker solo album. At age 14, Brecker heard a recording of Baird's and told him he'd like to meet him in person. This experience led to a period of mentorship by Brecker.[1]
In 2002, Baird was chosen as outstanding student tenor sax player at Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival in Moscow, Idaho. Later, he joined the Monterey Jazz Festival's All-Star High School Big Band, which played at a number of festivals throughout Japan and at venues on the East and West coasts of the United States.[2]
At age 16, his family relocated the San Francisco bay area. During this time, Baird enrolled at a community college and later at California State University, Long Beach, to study psychology.[2] He eventually determined to pursue musical performance exclusively and relocated to New York City to finish his studies at the Juilliard School.[1]
In 2010, he recorded his debut album Crosscurrent which featured pianist Julian Waterfall Pollack, drummer Steve Lyman, bassist Chris Tordini, guitarist John Storie of New West Guitar Group, and percussionist James Yoshizawa.[3][4]
He has performed with artists including Joe Lovano, Herbie Hancock, Matthew Morrison and Morgan James.[1][5]
Musical Style & Theory
Baird's music incorporates elements from classical music and rock. He has expressed an interest in the exploration of consciousness and its impact on sound, citing the later music of John Coltrane as an example: “He was trying to take [himself] to a higher state of consciousness, to find the love and joy in it, and bring that to the physical world. That’s the feeling I’m looking for."[1]
In 2010, Baird published an article entitled Harmonic Grounding: A New Perspective on Chromatic Improvisation in Downbeat Magazine. This article lays the groundwork for a theoretical approach to the construction of melodies with an enhanced sense of dissonance and chromatic "color." Baird orients the approach around the intervals of the perfect fifth and major third. He claims that these intervals are the next most consonant intervals to the octave, as they are the first in the overtone series to utilize a pitch different from the fundamental. His theory resembles and expounds upon George Russell's Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization.[6]
Discography
As leader
| Title | Year | Label | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crosscurrent | 2010 | Junebeat |
As sideman
| Album artist | Title | Year | Label | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joshua Maxey | Language of Sound and Spirit | 2012 | Independent Release | ||||
| Joshua Maxey | Cycles of Sound | 2012 | Independent Release | ||||
| Morgan James | Hunter | 2014 | Epic |
 |
References
- ^ a b c d e f Kolhasse, Bill. "On Principle: Saxophonist Chase Baird" (HMTL). Pasatiempo. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
- ^ a b c Self, Alisha. "Meet saxophone prodigy Chase Baird" (HMTL). Park Record. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
- ^ Wiegand, David. "CD Review: Chase Baird, Crosscurrent" (HMTL). SF Gate. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
- ^ Lindsay, Bruce. "Chase Baird: Crosscurrent". All About Jazz. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
- ^ Collar, Matt. "Hunter" (HMTL). AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
- ^ Baird, Chase. "Harmonic Grounding: A New Perspective on Chromatic Improvisation" (HMTL). Downbeat. Retrieved 2014-06-20.
External links
- Official Site: http://www.chasebaird.com/