CONFESSIONS (Part One)

Dirty Thoughts From a Clean Mind

So sue me. I detest the soprano saxophone. Yes, that nasty yet ubiquitous instrument that saxophonists of all stripes have felt obliged to also play since 1961, the year John Coltrane had a hit with his soprano-driven rendition of “My Favorite Things.” The nasal toned, high pitched whine of the horn drives me nuts. It should be banned from all recording studios and performance stages henceforth.

Okay, I exaggerate for effect. But I do rue the day that Coltrane turned to the mosquito-voiced instrument in lieu of his majestic tenor saxophone. If he felt the compulsion to switch up horns for variety, why not the bass clarinet, or the clarinet, or even his original horn, the alto, each of which would have given him more bottom range?

Did the great man make beautiful recordings with the horn of doom? Of course. But for every compact soprano statement there are far too many marathon excursions that seemingly drone on for days, the tone of the instrument only getting shriller as each minute passes.

Wayne Shorter can also share plenty of the blame. Too often laying down his tenor, on which he produced some of the most compelling work of the Sixties, the influential Shorter focused on the straight horn — his improvisations getting less and less linear— during his later work with Miles Davis, followed by the fusion ensemble Weather Report, his encounters with Milton Nascimento and others, and into his final era of solo work. Emboldened by Coltrane and Shorter, it became de rigueur by the early Seventies to add the soprano to a saxophonist’s arsenal. The results have been ruinous. Well, at least to me. (Note: I will provide my attorney’s number to all who want to proceed with litigation.)

It’s been suggested that perhaps I dislike the extended modal improvisations that Coltrane made a blueprint for soprano excursions, as well as Shorter’s blip-and-blap non-solos, rather than the instrument itself. Possibly. Indeed, my dislike for extended improvisation has only grown more acute as time goes by. (Future Confessions to follow.)

A handful of others have tamed the beast. Steve Lacy, a clear minded stylist who doggedly stuck to the soprano exclusively for the majority of his career, while basically rejecting Coltrane’s dominant influence, made gripping recordings. His work with the brilliant arranger Gil Evans in particular highlight his waste free style. If I had a second lifetime I’m sure I’d discover even more wondrous music on the thousands of recordings he seemed to have released weekly. And then, of course, there was – spoiler alert – the magisterial Sidney Bechet…

Personal taste is funny. True, I’ve never come across anyone else who dislikes the sound of the horn as vehemently as I do. But I can’t make myself endure what I can’t endure. To paraphrase a Brooklyn-bred film maker whose name shall go unmentioned: “The ear wants what the ear wants.”