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Henry Threadgill

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Henry Threadgill is an American composer, saxophonist and flautist, born on 15 February 1944. He became known in the 1970s with groups that were rooted in jazz but used unusual line-ups and other genres. He studied piano, flute and composition at the American Conservatory of Music in Chicago. There he played in the Experimental Band, a forerunner of the AACM, led by Muhal Richard Abrams. In 1967 he joined the army and played in a rock band in Vietnam.

Music and breakthrough

After his return he formed a trio with bassist Fred Hopkins and drummer Steve McCall that grew into Air. In New York he founded X-75, a nonet with four reed players, four bassists and a singer. In the 1980s came his Sextet, actually a septet, with two drummers, double bass, cello, trumpet and trombone alongside his alto saxophone and flute. The album You Know the Number is regarded as one of his most accessible. Further groups included Very Very Circus, Make a Move and Zooid.

Influence

In 2016 he won the Pulitzer Prize for Music with In for a Penny, In for a Pound. In 2023 his autobiography Easily Slip into Another World, written with Brent Hayes Edwards, was published. Threadgill is regarded as one of the most important composers to have shifted the boundary between jazz and contemporary classical music.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to Easily Slip Into Another World. Notice the unusual combination of instruments and how you are never sure which instrument carries the melody.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

See also

Categories: Artists