Chris Speed

Chris Speed

Speed at Moers Festival in 2008
Background information
Born 1967
Origin Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Genres Avant-garde jazz
Free jazz
Free improvisation
Occupation(s) Bandleader
Composer
Instruments Saxophone
Clarinet
Labels Skirl
Associated acts Orange Then Blue
Website http://www.chrisspeed.com/
Chris Speed: Performing in Aarhus, Denmark.
Photo Hreinn Gudlaugsson

Chris Speed (b. Seattle, Washington, 1967) is an American saxophonist, clarinetist, and composer.[1]

He studied classical piano from the age of five, and began clarinet at eleven. In high school he took up the tenor saxophone and began studying jazz. He later attended the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston.

Speed has lived in New York City since 1992.[1]

He leads or co-leads the groups Pachora (with Jim Black, Skúli Sverrisson, and Brad Shepik); Human Feel (with Andrew D'Angelo, Black, and Kurt Rosenwinkel); yeah NO (with Black, Sverrisson, and Cuong Vu); and Trio Iffy (with Ben Perowsky and Jamie Saft). The latter two groups predominantly feature Speed's compositions.

Well-known avant-jazz groups Speed has performed with are Tim Berne's Bloodcount (with Berne, Jim Black, Michael Formanek, and sometimes Marc Ducret); The Claudia Quintet (with John Hollenbeck, Matt Moran, Ted Reichman and Drew Gress); Jim Black's Alasnoaxis (with Black, Sverrisson, and Hilmar Jensson); and The Clarinets (with Oscar Noriega and Anthony Burr).

Discography

As a leader:

with Pachora:

with Human Feel:

With Tim Berne's Bloodcount

With Jim Black's AlasNoAxis

With Uri Caine

With Erik Friedlander

With Jamie Saft

Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Chris Speed at All About Jazz

External links