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Paul Zaborac / Blog

Inspiration for the saxophone as accompaniment

The inspiration for exploring the concept of using the saxophone as accompaniment came from listening to jazz piano trios, particularly The Bad Plus. In this ensemble, a wide variety of textures can be created despite the limited instrumentation because the piano is capable of providing both accompaniment and melodic material. This affords the ensemble a large degree of flexibility that is not as easily achieved in a jazz saxophone trio due to the saxophone's limited comping ability.

Another ensemble that contributed to the genesis of this exploration was the group Project Trio. In this ensemble of flute, cello, and bass, the flute often serves as an accompaniment instrument through the use of extended techniques such as beat boxing and playing the flute at the same time. This allowed a flexibility in the ensemble, where the melody and accompaniment is shared amongst all three instruments.

This use of extended techniques by the flute in Project Trio led to the concept of similarly using the vast array of extended techniques available to the saxophone as a means for it to function as an accompaniment instrument. Inspiration of how to effectively utilize these extended techniques was largely drawn from the classical saxophone idiom, where they are generally applied in a virtuosic fashion.

These are the three main ideas or concepts that led to the exploration of the saxophone as an accompaniment instrument.