Wikipedia

Ralph Alessi

Ralph Alessi (born March 5, 1963) is an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and ECM recording artist.[1][2] Alessi is known as a virtuosic performer[3] whose critically-acclaimed projects include his Baida Quartet, with Jason Moran, Drew Gress, and Nasheet Waits,[4][5] and This Against That, his quintet with Andy Milne, Gress, Mark Ferber, and Ravi Coltrane.[6][7][8] Alessi has also recorded and performed with artists including Steve Coleman, Uri Caine, Fred Hersch, and Don Byron.[9][10]

Ralph Alessi
Background information
Birth nameRalph Peter Alessi
Born (1963-03-05) March 5, 1963 (age 61)
San Francisco, California
GenresJazz
Occupation(s)Jazz musician, composer
InstrumentTrumpet
LabelsECM, RKM

Alessi is known for his work as an educator,[11] and in 2001 he founded the School for Improvisational Music in Brooklyn, New York.[1] He has taught at the Eastman School of Music, NYU, NEC,[12] the University of Nevada, Reno,[13] Siena Jazz University,[14] and University of the Arts Bern.

Early life and career

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Alessi was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area.[15] His parents met as performers at the Metropolitan Opera: his mother, Maria Leone Alessi, sang in the chorus; his father, Joseph Alessi Sr., was principal trumpet for nearly 15 seasons.[16] His brother, Joseph Alessi, is a trombonist with the New York Philharmonic.[16]

Alessi also began as a classical musician, and performed with the San Francisco Symphony and San Francisco Opera in his teens.[17] He later attended the California Institute of the Arts, studying with Charlie Haden while earning a BFA in jazz trumpet performance and MFA in jazz bass performance.[15] In 1986, he met fellow CalArts student Ravi Coltrane, who became one of his longest-standing collaborators.[7] JazzTimes describes their "musical bond" as "arguably developing into a rapport on par with the highest echelon of trumpet/tenor combinations";[6] Coltrane once gave an interview with NPR focused entirely on his favorite song, Alessi's "Who Wants Ice Cream".[18]

Select discography

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As leader

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As sideman

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With David Ake

  • Bridges (Posi-Tone, 2013)
  • Humanities (Posi-Tone, 2018)

With Don Byron

  • You are #6 (Blue Note, 2001)
  • Ivey Divey (Blue Note, 2006)

With Michael Cain

With Uri Caine

With James Carney

  • Fables from the Aqueduct (1994, Jacaranda)
  • Offset Rhapsody (1997, Jacaranda)
  • Ways & Means (2009, Songlines)

With Steve Coleman

  • A Tale of 3 Cities (Novus/BMG, 1994)
  • Myths, Modes, and Means (Novus/BMG, 1995)
  • The Way of the Cipher (Novus/BMG, 1995)
  • The Sign and the Seal (BMG, 1996)
  • Genesis (BMG, 1997)
  • The Sonic Language of Myth (BMG, 1999)
  • Lucidarium (Label Bleu, 2003)

With Ravi Coltrane

With Scott Colley

With David Gilmore

  • Ritualism (2000, Kashka)

With Drew Gress

  • 7 Black Butterflies (Premonition, Koch, 2005)
  • The Irrational Numbers (Premonition, 2007)
  • The Sky Inside (Pirouet, 2013)

With Fred Hersch

  • Leaves of Grass (2005, Palmetto)
  • Live from the Jazz Standard/ Fred Hersch Pocket Orchestra (2009, Palmetto)
  • Trio plus 2 (Palmetto)
  • Songs Without Words (2009, Nonesuch)

With Jason Moran

With Enrico Pieranunzi

  • Proximity (2015, CamJazz)

With Lonnie Plaxico

  • With All My Heart (1994, Muse)
  • Emergence (2000, Savoy)

With Sam Rivers

With Yelena Eckemoff

  • Better Than Gold and Silver (2018, L&H)
  • I Am a Stranger in This World (2022, L&H)

With Others

  • Peter Epstein, Polarities (2014)
  • Tomas Fujiwara Trio, Variable Bets (Relative Pitch, 2014)[19]
  • Florian Weber, Lucent Waters (ECM, 2018)[20]

References

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  1. ^ a b Chinen, Nate (8 March 2007). "Ralph Alessi's This Against That: In Spartan Space, Jazz in a Communal Mode". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  2. ^ "Ralph Alessi". All About Jazz. 5 March 1963. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  3. ^ Fordham, John (29 July 2010). "Jim Hart/Ralph Alessi". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  4. ^ Chinen, Nate (15 August 2010). "Ralph Alessi in a Quartet at the Jazz Standard". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  5. ^ a b Fitzell, Sean (February 2014). "Baida: Ralph Alessi (ECM)" (PDF). The New York City Jazz Record. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  6. ^ a b Shanley, Mike (25 April 2019). "Ralph Alessi: Imaginary Friends (ECM)". JazzTimes. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  7. ^ a b Ouellette, Dan (29 April 2019). "Ralph Alessi Reconvenes Ensemble for 'Imaginary Friends'". DownBeat.
  8. ^ Fitzell, Sean Patrick (10 April 2007). "Ralph Alessi & This Against That: Look". All About Jazz. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  9. ^ a b Layman, Will (13 May 2016). "Ralph Alessi: A Trumpet King for 2016". PopMatters.
  10. ^ Collar, Matt. "Ralph Alessi | Biography & History | AllMusic". AllMusic. Retrieved 4 December 2016.
  11. ^ Chinen, Nate (19 June 2019). "The Gig: Brass Class". JazzTimes. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  12. ^ "Ralph Alessi, Brian Levy join NEC jazz faculty". New England Conservatory. 15 October 2013. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  13. ^ "Joseph and Ralph Alessi with the UNR Trombone Choir". University of Nevada, Reno. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  14. ^ Laskey, Kevin (February 2020). "A Provocative Blend: Ralph Alessi Speaks". Jazz Speaks. The Jazz Gallery. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  15. ^ a b Collar, Matt. "Ralph Alessi: Biography". Blue Note. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  16. ^ a b Currie, Barbara Jöstlein (January 2015). "Q&A With Joseph Alessi". The Juilliard Journal. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  17. ^ "Listen: Ralph Alessi – "Near Cry"". Jazz Speaks. The Jazz Gallery. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  18. ^ Pellegrinelli, Lara (1 October 2013). "Ravi Coltrane's Favorite 'Ice Cream' Flavor". NPR. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  19. ^ "AMN Reviews: Tomas Fujiwara Trio – Variable Bets (2014; Relative Pitch Records)". Avant Music News. 24 October 2014. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  20. ^ de Barros, Paul (February 2019). "Florian Weber: Lucent Waters". DownBeat. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
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