Works with Anthony Braxton

Between 1995 and 2005 I worked closely with Anthony Braxton as a performer, recording artist, and collaborator. During this period I participated in ensembles ranging from quartet to orchestra, contributed to numerous recordings and international performances, and was introduced to approaches to composition, notation, improvisation, and musical systems that continue to inform my artistic and pedagogical practice.

I was lucky enough to meet Anthony Braxton at a time in my life when I really needed some guidance. It was not a matter of the saxophone alone but about finding a solid fundamental way of understanding trans-idiomatic creativity. I could not have been luckier.

What Anthony gave me in our period of mentorship was something beyond words. He showed me shapes and colors and angles, a way to see music and understand how to play them in his own musical notation system. He gave me a way to view the body and motion and to understand gesture across disciplines.

He gave me the tools to understand his vast and beautiful vision of transformation and the role of creativity in ritual. I am forever grateful for the courage to be true to himself and the spirit and sincerity that he embodies and that he was kind enough to share his universe with me.