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Odean Pope "Harp" Quartet at Chris’ Jazz Café
Odean Pope Quartet: Harp, Violin, and Two Saxophones Chris' Jazz Café Philadelphia, PA April 27, 2019 Time honored saxophonist Odean Pope has always been creative with fresh musical ideas. Who knew that this time he would field an unusual ensemble of harp, violin, and two saxophones without a rhythm section? Indeed, curiosity is what brought this reviewer to the show. First of all, this was not crossover (jazz/classical) music ...
read moreOdean Pope Quartet at the Philadelphia Museum of Art
Odean Pope Quartet “Friday Nights" Music Series Philadelphia Museum of Art Philadelphia, PA January 11, 2019 The great tenor saxophonist Odean Pope came up in Philadelphia and still calls it home. He obtained his sea legs together with pianist Ray Bryant, John Coltrane and other young woodshedding musicians in Germantown and around the city way back in the 1950s when they were developing the new hard bop approach. And he ...
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Odean Pope Quartet Chris' Jazz Café Philadephia, PA August 4, 2018 Saxophonist Odean Pope is a living legend who has been blowing strong for sixty years, early on including John Coltrane among his Philadelphia cohorts and serving Max Roach as a charter member of the latter's groups. So when he gets on stage, you expect something special. In this set at Chris' Jazz Café, you got it. Since each ...
read moreSittin' In with the Odean Pope Trio at the Kimmel Center
Odean Pope TrioSEI Innovation Studio @ The Kimmel Centerjny: Philadelphia, PAApril 12, 2017 The Kimmel Center's informal Sittin' In program is always about direct connections and communion, but April's exceptional event raised the bar up to the ceiling. Not everyone was even able to sit since the basement theater was packed enough to require some standing along the walls. The enthusiastic crowd came out to acknowledge Jazz Appreciation Month, to honor some local icons and ...
read moreOdean Pope Quartet at Chris’ Jazz Cafe
Odean Pope Quartet Chris' Jazz Café Philadelphia, PA July 19, 2014 Legendary tenor saxophonist Odean Pope, in addition to his international status and iconic recordings, often appears in Philadelphia, his home town, but usually in festivals, concerts, and other situations where he is part of a bigger mix. His one evening show at Chris' Jazz Café gave listeners a special opportunity to hear him in an intimate setting where they could really attend to ...
read moreOdean Pope: Odean's Three
It's been a banner year for tenor saxophone trios. Not the most common lineup, this challenging ensemble has seen some terrific releases from musicians both famous and unsung, veterans and newcomers alike. Now Philadelphia saxophonist Odean Pope adds his superb contribution with Odean's Three. It might not be fair to judge any jazz musician by the standard of whether he's become a 'household name.' What's famous among jazz fans--a group dedicated to esoteric musicians if ever there was ...
read moreOdean Pope: Odean's List
Though best known for his lengthy tenure accompanying legendary drummer Max Roach, Philadelphia-based tenor saxophonist Odean Pope has long demonstrated a flair for writing and arranging that is as impressive as his sideman work. His most arresting compositions have been conceived for his decades-old Saxophone Choir, while smaller-scale projects have featured his improvisational prowess in collaboration with peers such as Dave Burrell, Khan Jamal and Sunny Murray. The octet featured on Odean's List gracefully integrates the intricate charts of Pope's ...
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Odean Pope Odean's List In+Out Records 2009
Saxophonist Odean Pope is probably one of the most underappreciated jazz musicians of his generation. While Pope is most often cited for his long tenure with drummer Max Roach, his own recordings--from trio outings to his explosive saxophone choir albums--show a tough-toned tenor titan who writes and scores brilliantly for groups of any size and plays his heart out on every occasion. Pope came up on the ...
read moreOdean Pope: A Singular Voice in the Choir
Grounded in the Baptist spirituals of his youth followed by a musical upbringing in Philadelphia with the likes of John Coltrane and organist Jimmy Smith as mentors, tenor saxophonist Odean Pope is the bridge between hard bop and free.
His contributions to jazz are of major historical significance and through his over two decade long fruitful association with drummer Max Roach, groundbreaking saxophone choir, trio and quartet work and educational outreach he has influenced generations of ...
read moreOdean Pope: To The Roach & Serenity
Odean Pope Quartet To The Roach CIMP 2006 Odean Pope Serenity CIMP 2007
The many-sided figure defined by the intersecting lines among saxophonists Coleman Hawkins, Charlie Parker, John Coltrane and Ornette Coleman is the space that tenor saxophonist Odean Pope inhabits and expands upon. A nexus among players of his generation, Pope is on the cusp of bop ...
read moreOdean Pope: Preaching With the Choir
After more than forty years of being a highly regarded musician's musician, saxophonist Odean Pope threatens to break out into mass consciousness with the release of his sizzling tour de force session with his Saxophone Choir, appropriately titled Locked and Loaded: Live at The Blue Note (Half Note, 2006). While he also works in trio and quartet settings, his signature Saxophone Choir fulfills his early desire to translate the power and majesty of a gospel choir to his beloved reeds. ...
read moreOdean Pope Saxophone Choir: Locked and Loaded
On Locked and Loaded, Odean Pope and his saxophone choir offer up lush, drum-tight voicings as gorgeous and rich as any golden age big band section, then shift gear from full-throated crooning to full-throttle blowing with no audible effort. The first two tracks, both Pope originals, set the agenda: the standard-ish ballad “Epitome," which is nearly devoid of improvisation, is followed by the wildly swinging “Prince Lasha," which is just about all improvisation, and free at that. Pope plays both ...
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