Anton Schwartz: When Music Calls

Joel Roberts

CD/DVD Reviewer since 1999

Joel Roberts has been contirbuting to AAJ since its earliest days.

Recent articles (244 total)

Published: October 1, 1998

Tenor saxophonist Anton Schwartz makes a strong first impression as both a player and composer on his debut recording. Schwartz has a smooth, full-bodied tenor sound and a straight-ahead, gimmick-free style that emphasizes melody over improvisational fireworks. His patient, solidly swinging approach suggests the influence of players like Ben Webster and Stanley Turrentine.

It is as a composer, though, that Schwartz, who held the tenor sax chair in the Harvard Jazz Band between Don Braden and Josh Redman, really shines. Along with fresh takes on Rodgers and Hart's "Where or When" and Sonny Rollins' "Doxy," he offers eight originals that rise well above average fare. The stylistically diverse compositions range from the up-tempo romp "Too Much Pepper," to the Jobim-esque "Denouement," to the moody, meditative title cut. Schwartz writes tunes that sound as if they've been around for a while—which is meant as praise. The slow, melancholy ballad "Through the Years" is one of several tunes that had me checking the credits to see if it was a standard from the '40s or '50s that I didn't recognize. Joined by a trio of talented San Francisco cohorts, Schwartz has made a fine album of mainstream jazz that heralds the arrival of another young cat worth watching.

Track Listing: Too Much Pepper; Rabbit Days; Where or When; Tidepool; Through the Years; Poketown; D

Personnel: Anton Schwartz, tenor sax; Paul Nagel, piano; John Shifflett, bass; Jason Lewis, drums; Josh Jones, congas (3, 4, 8).

Record Label: AntonJazz
Style: Straight-ahead/Mainstream

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Date	Venue	Tickets
May29	Anton's Loft - Oakland Oakland, CA	buy
Jun14	San Pedro Square Market San Jose , CA	buy
Jun14	San Pedro Square Market San Jose , CA	buy
Jun15	The Sound Room Oakland, CA	buy
Jun16	Fenix San Rafael, CA
Jun22	San Francisco Jazz Festival San Francisco, CA
Jun29	Tula's Seattle, WA
Jul04	Cerrito Vista Park El Cerrito, CA
Jul20	Anton's Loft - Seattle Seattle, WA	buy
Aug06	Vintage Wine Bar San Jose, CA
Oct05	House Concert - Lance And Laurie Burien, WA
Oct06	Seattle Jazz Vespers Seattle, WA
Oct27	The Jazz Brooklyn, NY
Jan05	Jazz at Peace Danville, CA
Mar01	Pacifica Performances Pacifica, CA