Getting Out From Under Burden of Being Labeled : NEW DIRECTIONS

Musicians hate to be labeled and the practice can have serious repercussions in jazz. Certain tags are virtual stigmas that can limit the potential audience and chances to record or perform.

The term avant-garde is a prime example. The label was initially attached to artists whose music stretched beyond the boundaries of post-be-bop in the early ‘60s. But for many listeners, the tag still implies that an artist rejects the jazz tradition--even though these experimenting artists were nurtured and inspired by the creative impulse toward individual expression central to jazz.

Artists battling perceived labels are the subject of this edition of New Directions, a periodic column spotlighting the artists exploring fresh approaches in jazz today.

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DAVID MURRAY

“A Sanctuary Within”

Black Saint

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DEWEY REDMAN

“Choices”

Enja

Volcanic is one tag for the prolific Murray but playing with percussionist Kahil El’Zabar always brings out the hard-blowing tenor man’s meditative side. This quartet, also featuring drummer Sunny Murray and bassist Tony Overwater, has its fiery moments but the music is mostly in a spiritual, reflective vein where the process of improvising reigns supreme.

Redman remains both underrated and underrecorded; these days, when the family name is in the spotlight, the focus ironically is on Dewey’s Wunderkind son, Joshua. Joshua is featured on three of the five lengthy pieces here and he sounds right at home working in the limber, Ornette-flavored mode favored by his father. But he certainly doesn’t overshadow Dewey (who switches from his customary tenor to alto) in improvising over the swinging pulse provided by veteran bassist Cameron Brown and Young Turk drummer Leon Parker.

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NEW ORCHESTRA WORKSHOP

“Now You Hear It”

9 Winds

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JON JANG AND THE PAN-ASIAN ARKESTRA

“Self Defense!”

Soul Note

A West Coast home address can be the kiss of death for jazz credibility but the New Orchestra Workshop compilation should spark interest in what sounds like a stimulating Vancouver, Canada, scene. The electric guitar/tenor sax front line of “Lunar Adventures” provides accessibility and substance while the brilliant pianist Paul Plimley’s Cecil Taylor-esque duos with bassist Clyde Reed present great challenges.

Bay Area pianist-composer Jang’s goal of blending Asian traditions with jazz is well within reach on 1991’s “Self Defense!” This live recording, his first on a prominent jazz label, finds Jang using dynamics masterfully and his savvy arrangements exploit the potential for striking voicings in his nine-piece ensemble. The four-part “Concerto for Jazz Ensemble and Taiko” shows his skill in crafting ambitious compositions but poor sequencing deflates any momentum.

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CASSANDRA WILSON

“Dance to the Drums Again”

DIW/Sony

Jazz singer conjures images of old pop standards and scat but Cassandra Wilson is arguably the only jazz singer actively looking to bring the genre into the ‘90s. Here, the focus is on rhythm and Wilson’s dark, husky voice ranges through the skeletal arrangements to evoke moods more than tell stories.

Here Wilson takes “Amazing Grace” and turns a familiar institution inside out and stands it on its hoary head. That will strike some as pointless or disrespectful and others as a creative extension of the jazz-singing language--and that’s Cassandra Wilson’s challenge.