Rudresh Mahanthappa

Hailed by Pitchfork as “jaw-dropping… one of the finest saxophonists going,” alto saxophonist, composer and educator Rudresh Mahanthappa is widely known as one of the premier voices in jazz of the 21st century. He has over a dozen albums to his credit, including the acclaimed Bird Calls, which topped many critics’ best-of-year lists for 2015 and was hailed by PopMatters as “complex, rhythmically vital, free in spirit while still criss-crossed with mutating structures.” His most recent release, Hero Trio, was considered to be one of the best jazz albums of 2020 by critics and fans alike. Rudresh has been named alto saxophonist of the year for nine of the last eleven years running in Downbeat Magazine’s International Critics’ Polls (2011-2013, 2015-2018, 2020-1), and for five consecutive years by the Jazz Journalists’ Association (2009-2013) and again in 2016. He won alto saxophonist of the year in the 2015-2018 & 2020 JazzTimes Magazine Critics’ Polls and was named the Village Voice’s "Best Jazz Artist" in 2015. He has also received the Guggenheim Fellowship and the Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, among other honors, and is currently the Anthony H. P. Lee ’79 Director of Jazz at Princeton University.

Born in Trieste, Italy to Indian émigrés in 1971, Mahanthappa was brought up in Boulder, Colorado and gained proficiency playing everything from current pop to Dixieland. He went on to studies at North Texas, Berklee and DePaul University (as well as the Stanford Jazz Workshop) and came to settle in Chicago. Soon after moving to New York in 1997 he formed his own quartet featuring pianist Vijay Iyer. The band recorded an enduring sequence of albums, Black Water, Mother Tongue and Codebook, each highlighting Mahanthappa’s inventive methodologies and deeply personal approach to composition. He and Iyer also formed the duo Raw Materials.

Coming deeper into contact with the Carnatic music of his parents’ native southern India, Mahanthappa partnered in 2008 with fellow altoist Kadri Gopalnath and the Dakshina Ensemble for Kinsmen, garnering wide acclaim. Apti, the first outing by Mahanthappa’s Indo-Pak Coalition (with Pakistani-born Rez Abbasi on guitar and Dan Weiss on tabla), saw release the same year; Agrima followed nine years later and considerably expanded the trio’s sonic ambitions. In 2020, Rudresh released Hero Trio, an album of “covers” paying tribute to his musical heroes followed by the digital EP Animal Crossing in 2022 with the same trio. He also co-led a project celebrating the centenary of Charlie Parker with the blessing of the Parker estate.

Tags

Rudresh Mahanthappa saxophone, alto

Album Review

Agrima by Jerome Wilson

Multiple Reviews

Rudresh Mahanthappa’s Indo-Pak Coalition & Rez Abbasi’s Invocation

Album Review

Hero Trio by Mark Corroto

Radio & Podcasts

Rudresh Mahanthappa: "Just because you're improvising doesn't mean you're...

Album Review

Hero Trio by Emmanuel Di Tommaso

Radio & Podcasts

Bird at 100: Rudresh Mahanthappa, Joe Lovano, Vincent Herring and More

Album Review

Hero Trio by Jerome Wilson

Radio & Podcasts

Press fro Hero Trio:

RUDRESH MAHANTHAPPA – HERO TRIO

Rudresh is “making truly some of the most original jazz out there at the moment." – Brian Zimmerman, Jazziz

One of “the best jazz recordings of 2020 to date…. Mahanthappa salutes the musical heroes who have shaped his art… a bracing reexamination of music by these innovators, as filtered through a bebop and post-bop lens. Mahanthappa’s ferocity of expression and technical fluidity in Parker’s ‘Red Cross’ and other works underscores just how deeply Bird has influenced him.” – Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune

Press fro Hero Trio:

RUDRESH MAHANTHAPPA – HERO TRIO

Rudresh is “making truly some of the most original jazz out there at the moment." – Brian Zimmerman, Jazziz

One of “the best jazz recordings of 2020 to date…. Mahanthappa salutes the musical heroes who have shaped his art… a bracing reexamination of music by these innovators, as filtered through a bebop and post-bop lens. Mahanthappa’s ferocity of expression and technical fluidity in Parker’s ‘Red Cross’ and other works underscores just how deeply Bird has influenced him.” – Howard Reich, Chicago Tribune

"An early contender for Album of the Year.... Mahanthappa’s sound on alto is as expressive as ever, and it’s easy to hear the joy these three find in such disparate sources." – Bret Saunders, Denver Post

“Hero Trio, is bound to be album of the year.” – Daniel King, Mother Jones

"The fierce saxophonist fascinates with his improvisatory jags, rapid cascading runs, and edgy pressure cooker sound. Joined by bassist François Moutin, drummer Rudy Royston responds in kind with his own fearless, across-the-kit propulsive flurries." – Jeff Potter, Modern Drummer

4-stars. “These tributes burst with so much interpretive ingenuity, sparkling friction and caffeinated improvisational interplay that they demand considerable replay.” – John Murph, DownBeat

“The riveting cry of his alto saxophone is one of the most recognizable sounds in jazz…On his 16th recording Hero Trio, Mahanthappa breaks through to the past – his and ours. He proudly proclaims Parker’s bebop–but then ‘Red Cross’ flies apart, into free showers of 16th notes.” – Thomas Conrad, Stereophile

“On his latest album, Rudresh Mahanthappa honors his musical idols and proves himself worthy of similar reverence.” – JazzTimes

"Mahanthappa has deep history with both Royston and Moutin, and on the album he often urges them out on the ledge. The intensity of their cohesion shines on 'I’ll Remember April' a standard associated with both Rollins and Parker, and given a syncopated funk treatment here. – Nate Chinen, WBGO

“The three men deal with the melody reverently, conjuring the anarchic but ferocious spirit of 1940s bebop, but then they slip the leash and go wild, with Royston dropping massive Max Roach-style bombs behind the kit as Mahanthappa journeys all the way to the land of the free and back...there’s always a strong, emotional core to his work, and this disc in particular feels like a passion project.” – Phil Freeman, Stereogum

“….a genuinely expansive, and often thrilling, ride though songs form Mahanthappa’s personal pantheon.…In a year of precious little joy, this is quite simply a jewel of a jazz record.” – Jason Bivins, Dusted

“…a perfect panacea for these serious times… Like all truly memorable horn players, Mahanthappa has an instantly recognizable tone and here he wields it with his usual fire and invention…..Best of all, the trio animates the album's two curveballs, Stevie Wonder's ‘Overjoyed’ and Johnny Cash's ‘Ring of Fire’ with an audible and accessible joy. A near perfect mix of buoyancy and mastery, a welcome revelation.” – Robert Baird, Qobuz

"Hero Trio is that ‘all-covers’ record, which is about the only thing this boundary-pushing composer, bandleader and ace reedman hadn’t yet attempted in one of the most creative jazz careers since the turn of the 21st century....Hero Trio has just as many delightful surprises and audacious musicianship as any other Mahanthappa record." – S. Victor Aaron, SomethingElse! Reviews

4-stars. “Mahanthappa’s trio convincingly puts a distinctive stamp on the eclectic source material, with sparkling cocktails of grooves, hooks and solos that unfurl in structures that can be straight and not so straight….The result is an overwhelming feeling of joy amid all the ‘chops,’ a desire to emote as well as excel technically.” – Kevin Le Gendre, Jazzwise

4.5 stars. “Like Bird, he is immediately identifiable after hearing any of his music and his musicianship is extraordinary… From the blistering opening track, a cover of Charlie Parker’s Red Cross, to a sinuous reading of I Can’t Get Started, the arrangements offer new ideas about the original that are simply wonderful…Bird would love every note.” – Keith Black, Winnipeg Free Press

4-stars “... this outfit brings exceptional vitality and an unmistakable chemistry to its music. Future releases from the Hero Trio would be most welcome indeed.” – Troy Dostert, All About Jazz

“Adventurous jazz is not always as much fun to listen to as it is on Hero Trio, a stellar meeting of compositions, arrangements, and astute performances propelled by real passion.” – Steve Feeney, ArtsFuse

"The album, and the set, wind up with an explosive and highly creative reimagining of Parker’s tune Dewey Square... a top pick as one of the best of this year.” – Lynn René Bayley, Art Music Lounge

“… a superb tribute to groundbreaking artists of various genres… showcases Mahanthappa’s unique style while maintaining a reverence for, and highlighting, the ingenuity of the source material.” – Hrayr Attarian, Chicago Jazz Magazine

“Not wasting a progressive note if he doesn't have to, he finds a way to mix June Carter, Ira Gershwin and Charlie Parker together seamlessly.” – Chris Spector, Midwest Record

"Just sit back and enjoy—while marveling at the limitless potential for talent and creativity in artists dedicated to their craft." – "The Best Jazz on Bandcamp: June 2020.”

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