The Gig

Ornette Coleman may well be the James Joyce of jazz; while his genius is incontestable and his influence nearly universal, few understand his contribution in concrete terms. The saxophonist’s harmolodic theory remains enigmatic 30 years after its introduction. Basically, harmolodics (a conflation of harmony, melody and movement) engenders a system by which notated intervals can be transposed (or superimposed) to any number of key signatures, resulting in a more or less improvised harmonic terrain. Simple enough. But any avid Coleman fan will hasten to add that the system is also a sound, irreducible and inexact. To distill it to bare essence is to strip it of character and life.

Skies of America, the Coleman symphony which inspired the term, debuted on the 1972 Newport Jazz Festival in New York; it has recently been revisited in person (with Kurt Masur and the New York Philharmonic) and on disc (via an excellent Columbia/Legacy reissue last year) with both life and character intact. The saxophonist’s small-group work since ’72 has employed harmolodic theory as well; the electric/acoustic ensemble Prime Time carried Coleman’s torch well into the ’90s. And as gurus tend to do, Coleman has imparted his unorthodox vision to a number of acolytes: among them, guitarist James Blood Ulmer, bassist Jamaaladeen Tacuma and drummers Ronald Shannon Jackson and G. Calvin Weston.

Weston, whose fluid groove has propelled not only Prime Time but also Tricky, the Lounge Lizards and James Carter, can be seen this week at the helm of his own band. A sextet featuring guitarist Jeff Monjack and multireedist Elliott Levin, Weston’s Big Tree bears pan-African fruits — while ne’er forsaking its harmolodic roots. Sat., Nov. 10, Tritone, 1510 South St., 215-545-0475.

Another proponent of harmolodic theory is Philly’s own Bobby Zankel, an alto saxophonist and composer who has apprenticed with jazz’s other living free-jazz prophet, Cecil Taylor. Zankel’s new CD Transcend & Triumph (CIMP), featuring drummer Craig McIver and guitarist Rick Iannacone, rarely evokes the Ornette Coleman sound. But as Zankel puts it: "Ornette’s conception is playing lines, melodies, that don’t resolve. And what that does then is put you in an area where you’re telling a story that keeps going." His trio music, he suggests, fulfills this goal by "continually evolving phrase by phrase." This is admittedly less true of Warriors of the Wonderful Sound, the 12-piece ensemble that Zankel has been leading since midsummer. But the little big band’s clearer evocation of the jazz mainstream (Ellington, Mingus) should complement the trio’s harmolodic abstractions when the two groups perform side by side this week. Mon., Nov. 12, 8 p.m., Houston Hall, 3417 Spruce St., free, 215-898-6533.

To report a gig — or any other jazz-related news — e-mail Nate Chinen at n_chinen@citypaper.net.