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 Born in Denmark in 1936, John Tchicai
first learned to play the violin before the irresistible charm of the
saxophone got him horny and together they eloped. Tchicai attended the
Academy of Music and Royal Conservatory in Copenhagen before breaking
loose to blow at festivals and clubs around Scandenavia and Eastern
Europe. In 1962, he met free-jazz saxophonist, Albert Ayler, and followed the siren call to New York, joining the New York Contemporary Five with Archie Shepp, Bill Dixon and Don Cherry.
Albums:
- John Tchicai and The Archetypes - Love is Touching
Living
on the Higher Art Side of New York, he co-founded the New York Art
Quartet in 1964 with Rosewell Rudd, spreading the word liberally, which
led to him being invited to become a charter member of the Jazz
Composers Guild and Jazz Composers Orchestra. The wild side still
pulled, however, and in 1965 a spontaneous jam with John Coltrane led
to him playing on the seminal album, 'Ascension'. "They were active
years," says the man with typical understatement. "I managed to do a
lot in a short time." Europe won him back in 1966 and he went on to
become one of the liberating jazz voices, leading the Cadentia Nova Dancia
from its mere nine-piece beginnings into the 26-piece free jazz
supernova it became before burning out in 1971. From 1972 he
concentrated his energies on teaching and learning: teaching others a
little of the jazz mysteries while studying yoga and Tibetan and Hindu
cultures, which provided a context for his creative spirit. John Tchicai's avant-garde credentials are impeccable,
but he is also one of the few jazz players in the world to have worked
with John Lennon (on 'Life With The Lions'). Formal recognition has
come in the shape of Denmark's first ever Lifetime Grant for Jazz, but
his real constituency lies in the freeform demi-monde. There, his music
can seek true originality, drifting cool and unanchored, informed by
the logic of creativity and nothing else. "Music is a common language,"
he explains, "and we can communicate all over the world in that
language." For lovers of South African Jazz Tchicai's collaboration
work with the late Johnny "M'Bizo" Diyani is worth
mentioning - a tribute to Diyani was recorded in the late 90's but
remains unreleased so far - watch this space. Currently, John lives in
Davis, California, where he teaches music at the University as well as
continuing to compose and arrange and to lead a septet, The Archetypes
which includes guitarists Mark Oi and Michael Grandi, Margriet Naber-Tchicai on keyboards Jeff Simons on bass, Andrew Enberg on drums and Basho Fujimoto on congas. The group's debut CD, Love Is Touching (BW055) is released on MELT.
http://www.dcn.davis.ca.us/~jomnamo/rub_news/page_news.html
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