Wycliffe Gordon: What the Music Has To Say

Trombonist Wycliffe Gordon appears to have a huge following. This was evident by the wall-to-wall fans packing Dizzy's Club Coca Cola, the jazz venue housed on the 5th floor of Jazz at Lincoln Center. Gordon who also heads his own band, the Wycliffe Gordon Quartet, performed on stage with musicians Herlin Riley on drums, Reginald Veal on bass and Johnny O'Neal on piano. The talented trombonist, who formerly played with the Wynton Marsalis Septet has managed to establish a recording career of his own. He has forged a thriving solo vocation, and he can boast of being a conductor, composer, arranger, performer, educator and someone who has received universal acclaim by fans and jazz critics alike. While on stage, not only did Gordon regale his audience with the warm, smooth resonance of his trombone but he also treated them to a unique instrument created by the Aboriginal people of Australia called the didgeridoo.

Born into a musical family on May 29, 1967, in Waynesboro, Georgia, Wycliffe's father, Lucius Gordon, a classical pianist, exposed Wycliffe to music at an early age. Gordon took up the trombone when he was 12 years old and the rest is history. "My father was a musician in church so I heard music constantly whether at home or in church," claims the accomplished musician. "Since my father was a classical pianist he started teaching us piano early. However, at that time, I had no interest in it; although, I do play piano. I used to follow in my older brother's, footsteps, and since he was playing the trombone, I had to play it, too. My brother and me, always liked the same things, so whenever he would get anything, I wanted it too. I really wanted to play drums but that wasn't about to happen in my mother's house according to her," laughed Wycliffe reflecting back.

As head of his own Quartet, Gordon has headlined in many venues across the country. "I met the musicians that performed with me tonight, Herlin Riley and Reginald Veal, when I played with the Wynton Marsalis Septet. Johnny O'Neal, the pianist, I just met within the past couple of years. A year ago, I had the pleasure of performing with him on a cruise. He was a very good entertainer. Although, I am a solo artist, I also have a Quartet and Quintet that I work with and I travel around doing master classes and workshops. I also do clinics and children's concerts and lectures. I don't feel that I have to have a steady working Quartet because I teach. So sometimes I will use the Drummer's Almanac, some of my students at Juilliard or I will use Oscar Perez, Winard Harper on drums and various musicians," explained Gordon who is prominent in a recording produced by George Avakian, featuring unrecorded songs by Louis Armstrong.

Wycliffe Gordon has a large volume of work with nearly 80 CDs to his credit. In 2002, he released "United Soul Experience." He scored the 1925 Paul Robeson influenced silent film "Body and Soul" which premiered during The Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra's 2000-01 Season Opening Night Performance at Avery Fisher Hall. "We are trying to make A DVD of the music from the film. We are in the process of looking for funding to complete that project. Much of the music in that came from many different sources: life experiences, church, bar scenes and home," stated Gordon. Wycliffe appeared with the Wynton Marsalis Septet in the feature film, "Tune In Tomorrow" which starred Keanu Reeves, Barbara Hershey and Peter Falk. Gordon's compositions have also been showcased in programs at Carnegie Hall, PBS's Marsalis on Music Series, and The Gershwin Festival in Switzerland. The 2000-01 Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra's Concert Series, brought premieres and compositions by Mr. Gordon for a variety of ensembles, including jazz bands, symphonic bands, gospel choirs and concerts performed in New York, at the University of Scranton and in Russia. He has appeared on the 1999 Grammy Awards, in the PBS Special documentary entitled "Swingin' with the Duke." Wycliffe has participated in the TV shows - Live from Lincoln Center - Uptown Blues, Ellington at 100 and Big Train. He also appeared in Ken Burns' documentary series, Jazz. Gordon appeared in A Carnegie Hall Christmas Concert and Live from Lincoln Center.

A former veteran member of the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra and the Gully Low Jazz Band, Gordon is a consummate artist who has performed in gigs with such greats as Dizzy Gillespie, Joe Henderson, Al Grey, Clark Terry, Branford Marsalis, Shirley Scott, Lionel Hampton, Nat Adderley and Shirley Horn.

Mr. Gordon previously taught at Michigan State. "I taught at Michigan State for two years but I am no longer at Michigan State and I now teach at The Juilliard School. However whenever I get a chance to perform I enjoy it. I especially like Dizzy's Club Coca Cola because it is acoustically sound and ecstatically beautiful. A lot of times you go into a jazz club and you may have obstructions blocking your view. You don't have that at Dizzy's and also there isn't a bad seat in the house," points out the busy musician. "I feel I have been lucky to play with some talented musicians. It is something that is pretty much beyond words, it is hard to explain how fortunate I feel to have had the chance to interact and be on the same stage as performers like Nat Adderley and Dizzy Gillespie. When I was with the Wynton Marsalis Septet there were times we were on the road close to 300 days out of the years but that is how you come to produce the sounds you do. When you work with others musicians that much you begin to know the ends and outs of their style and you can truly create some great music with them. I have been fortunate enough to travel all over Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Asia, but not yet Africa. I play a lot of Ellington music because Duke covered the span of jazz from the early 20s until his death. Duke was always writing, composing, creating so it is impossible to play jazz and not play Duke Ellington."

A father of 3, Gordon may be hearing wedding bells in his near future. "The lady in my life is a lovely woman who is a musician herself. It helps to have someone who understands the lifestyle of musicians and she does," remarks Gordon. With 12 CDs presently out, Gordon's latest CD is entitled, "In the Cross" which is his homage to gospel music. "People can check out my music if they like by going to my website www.wycliffegordon.com to get info on my music and my life.

Wycliffe Gordon is not only a religious man he is a spiritual person. "While I am living I am going to enjoy life to the fullest and not wait for greatness to come in the end or afterlife. For me, it is about what the music can tell me. It's about what the music has to say.

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