Jon Irabagon Trio w/Barry Altschul in Moers 2011

Jon Irabagon Trio
June 11, 2011
Moers Festival Festivaltent, Moers, Germany

Jon Irabagon - saxophone
Peter Brendler - bass
Barry Altschul - drums

This is a take on the standard "Three Little Words", covered by Sonny Rollins, John Coltrane and others. This is a 33-minute exercise in invention, energy and incredible stamina, most of it given to a continuous solo by Jon. An even more extreme variation of the same can be found on his recent "Foxy" where Sonny Rollins' "Doxy" is literally given a full cd treatment.

A riveting performance, to say the least. This one is posted here with Jon's approval, so here we go:

  Three Little Words by kinabalu

Jon has just launched his own label, Irabbagast Records with two brand new releases, so readers are advised to seek them out. In my own language, rabbagast means something like wild man which may be true of his playing at times, but not true of his own personality. A very pleasant guy and a fan of my home town, so what more can you wish?

Jon Irabagon in Bergen 2012

Here is a video recording featuring the excellent sax player Jon Irabagon. This was the final tune in a three-set performance at Dyvekes Vinkkjeller in downtown Bergen, arranged by Evans Jazz Club, recorded Friday 19 October during a brief tour of Western Norway. The line-up is

Jon Irabagon - alto sax
Norvald Dahl - piano
Axel Grieg - bass
Nils Drønen - drums

They did a bunch of self-penned tunes, but also some fine covers, as the one selected here, "Resolution" off John Coltrane's seminal "A Love Supreme". Jon's been regularly in town over the last few years, playing in different constellations, some local as on this night, but also visiting with Mostly Other People Do The Killing, a quartet which takes an unorthodox view of genre distinctions and which tends to name their tunes after small towns in Pennsylvania. Jon is similarly laissez faire about jazz dogma, playing inside or outside the mainstream as it suits him.

Mary Halvorson Quintet - Live in Saalfelden '12

Just a taste of the Saalfelden Festival: much more in the next future.

Rec. live at the "33rd Jazzfestival Saalfelden", Saalfelden,
Austria, on August 25, 2012 (mics recording)

Mary Halvorson,guitar
Jonathan Finlayson,trumpet
Jon Irabagon,alto sax
John Hébert,bass
Ches Smith,drums

1. Sinks When She Rounds The Bend (No. 22) [09:26]
2. Love In Eight Colors (No. 21) [13:18]
3. Hemorrhaging Smiles (No. 25) [11:38]
4. Sleep [13:40]
5. Mile High Like (No.16) [05:40]

Total Time 53:45

All compositions by M.Halvorson.

Hemorrhaging Smiles (excerpt)