Jazz: Anthony Braxton at 80 is still awe-inspiring

Saxophonist-bandleader-visionary Anthony Braxton turns on June and if you re not familiar with his mesmerizing sound world that likely has more to do with a media obsessed with superficiality than Braxton s prowess The sheer volume of his output going back to the s can be intimidating but if you re willing to greet his music with an open mind you may find yourself a friendly experiencer as Braxton likes to refer to his devoted following Anthony Braxton's Trillium X Animal Music A slew of previously unreleased and new recordings available from Braxton s ever-growing universe has appeared lately Recorded in there was a series of double CDs chronicling his visit to England with what turned out to be one of the most of compelling quartets of late th-century music He was joined by pianist Marilyn Crispell bassist Mark Dresser and percussionist Gerry Hemingway These difficult-to-obtain sets exposed a group bursting with potency and inventiveness The Burning Ambulance Music label has unearthed several hours of previously unavailable recordings from that same tour and it s a revelation Quartet England showcases four artists operating at a high level of communication Braxton s imaginative sax solos levitate above the dynamic rhythm section and Crispell s responses are beguiling It s magnificent music that pays off with close listening The entire effort is available digitally as of Braxton s birthday and you can sample a lot of it at anthonybraxton-bam bandcamp com Braxton demonstrates his willingness to forge paths with artists not necessarily associated with the jazz locality on live at pioneer works october just published on the historically adventurous ESP-Disk label The recording is the product of his latest collaboration with the noisy duo Wolf Eyes known for stunning blasts of electronic goop Braxton matches Wolf Eyes intensity as the three produce euphoric to my ears and droning abstract sound paintings that likely won t remind you of anything else in your record collection Cyrus Chestnut in Daily News TNS Also available in time for Braxton s th is his latest opera Trillium X PMP A live and studio performance of the work in its entirety is spread out across eight CDs I am in awe of the entire thing Let s hope Braxton makes it to and all his singular utopian ideas come to fruition And here s a roundup of jazz performances this month Live jazz in Denver in June The Jack Dunlevie Trio plays Leonard Bernstein at Nocturne on June and Pianist Cyrus Chestnut appears at Dazzle June - There s a Free Improv Jam scheduled for the second and last Saturday of every month at Denver s Chaos Bloom Theater S Broadway The Jazz Aspen Snowmass June Experience features Christian McBride Takuya Kuroda Benny Green Brian Lynch and more June - get the schedule at jazzaspensnowmass org Big Bad Voodoo Daddy appears at the Boulder Theater on June Harold Lopez-Nussa presents Timba a la Americana at Dazzle June - Vocalist Jenna McLean brings her quintet to Nocturne June and Herb Alpert The Tijuana Brass plays the Paramount Theatre on June Keep in mind that Alpert played Red Rocks in that s a phenomenal run