Saturn, Conjunct the Grand Canyon in a Sweet Embrace

Wadada Leo Smith & Anthony Braxton

Wadada Leo Smith & Anthony Braxton

The partnership between Smith and Braxton began in Chicago with the AACM. In the time that has passed since, they have performed together in a number of different settings. In 1969 they traveled to Paris, where they played alongside Leroy Jenkins and Steve McCall in a group that would later record as the Creative Construction Company. The recordings from Paris, as well later recordings in New York, document the beginning of a relationship and language that would grow in time. As a duo they have played together three times. The combination of trumpet and saxophone is one of the most recognized sounds in jazz. The results have produced some of the most important movements and advancements in jazz. Time will tell if Smith and Braxton’s performances will add to that canon, but with their collective history the odds are good.

Between the two of them they have compiled one of the most impressive bodies of work in modern music. They have authored four books on their individual theories of music, written an opera, formed two record labels for the documentation of their recordings, held a chair at a university, and received a MacArthur Grant among other things.