Gato Barbieri
Encyclopedia
Leandro Barbieri better known as Gato Barbieri (Spanish
for "Barbieri the Cat"), is an Argentinean jazz
tenor saxophonist and composer
who rose to fame during the free jazz
movement in the 1960s and from his latin jazz
recordings in the 1970s.
's "Now's the Time." He played the clarinet
, then the alto saxophone
while performing with the Argentinean pianist
Lalo Schifrin
in the late 1950s. By the early 1960s, while playing in Rome
, he also worked with the trumpeter Don Cherry
. By now influenced by John Coltrane
's late recordings, as well as those from other free jazz
saxophonists such as Albert Ayler
and Pharoah Sanders
, the warm and gritty tone, which would become his trademark sound, began to develop. In the late 1960s, he was fusing music from South America
into his playing and contributed to multi-artist projects like Charlie Haden
's Liberation Music Orchestra
and Carla Bley
's Escalator Over The Hill
. His score for Bernardo Bertolucci
's film Last Tango in Paris
earned him a Grammy Award
and led to a record deal with Impulse! Records
.
By the mid-70s, he was recording for A&M Records
and moved his music towards soul-jazz and jazz-pop with albums like Caliente! in 1976 (including his best known song, Carlos Santana
's Europa) and the 1977 follow-up, Ruby Ruby, both produced by fellow musician and label co-founder, Herb Alpert.
Although he continued to record and perform well into the 1980s, the death of his wife Michelle led him to withdraw from the public arena. He returned to recording and performing in the late 1990s with the soundtrack for the film Seven Servants
by Daryush Shokof
(1996) and the album Qué Pasa (1997), playing music that would fall more into the arena of smooth jazz
.
He received the UNICEF Award at the Argentinian Consulate in November 2009.
and Paul Haines
With Dollar Brand
With Gary Burton
With Don Cherry
With Charlie Haden
With the Jazz Composer's Orchestra
With Alan Shorter
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
for "Barbieri the Cat"), is an Argentinean jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
tenor saxophonist and composer
Composer
A composer is a person who creates music, either by musical notation or oral tradition, for interpretation and performance, or through direct manipulation of sonic material through electronic media...
who rose to fame during the free jazz
Free jazz
Free jazz is an approach to jazz music that was first developed in the 1950s and 1960s. Though the music produced by free jazz pioneers varied widely, the common feature was a dissatisfaction with the limitations of bebop, hard bop, and modal jazz, which had developed in the 1940s and 1950s...
movement in the 1960s and from his latin jazz
Latin jazz
Latin jazz is the general term given to jazz with Latin American rhythms.The three main categories of Latin Jazz are Brazilian, Cuban and Puerto Rican:# Brazilian Latin Jazz includes bossa nova...
recordings in the 1970s.
Biography
Born to a family of musicians, Barbieri began playing music after hearing Charlie ParkerCharlie Parker
Charles Parker, Jr. , famously called Bird or Yardbird, was an American jazz saxophonist and composer....
's "Now's the Time." He played the clarinet
Clarinet
The clarinet is a musical instrument of woodwind type. The name derives from adding the suffix -et to the Italian word clarino , as the first clarinets had a strident tone similar to that of a trumpet. The instrument has an approximately cylindrical bore, and uses a single reed...
, then the alto saxophone
Alto saxophone
The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments invented by Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in 1841. It is smaller than the tenor but larger than the soprano, and is the type most used in classical compositions...
while performing with the Argentinean pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
Lalo Schifrin
Lalo Schifrin
Lalo Schifrin is an Argentine composer, pianist and conductor. He is best known for his film and TV scores, such as the "Theme from Mission: Impossible". He has received four Grammy Awards and six Oscar nominations...
in the late 1950s. By the early 1960s, while playing in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, he also worked with the trumpeter Don Cherry
Don Cherry (jazz)
Donald Eugene Cherry was an innovative African-American jazz cornetist whose career began with a long association with saxophonist Ornette Coleman. He went on to live in many parts of the world and work with a wide variety of musicians.-Biography:Cherry was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and...
. By now influenced by John Coltrane
John Coltrane
John William Coltrane was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Working in the bebop and hard bop idioms early in his career, Coltrane helped pioneer the use of modes in jazz and later was at the forefront of free jazz...
's late recordings, as well as those from other free jazz
Free jazz
Free jazz is an approach to jazz music that was first developed in the 1950s and 1960s. Though the music produced by free jazz pioneers varied widely, the common feature was a dissatisfaction with the limitations of bebop, hard bop, and modal jazz, which had developed in the 1940s and 1950s...
saxophonists such as Albert Ayler
Albert Ayler
Albert Ayler was an American avant-garde jazz saxophonist, singer and composer.Ayler was among the most primal of the free jazz musicians of the 1960s; critic John Litweiler wrote that "never before or since has there been such naked aggression in jazz" He possessed a deep blistering tone—achieved...
and Pharoah Sanders
Pharoah Sanders
Pharoah Sanders is a Grammy Award–winning American jazz saxophonist.Saxophonist Ornette Coleman once described him as "probably the best tenor player in the world." Emerging from John Coltrane's groups of the mid-60s Sanders is known for his overblowing, harmonic, and multiphonic techniques on...
, the warm and gritty tone, which would become his trademark sound, began to develop. In the late 1960s, he was fusing music from South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
into his playing and contributed to multi-artist projects like Charlie Haden
Charlie Haden
Charles Edward Haden is an American jazz musician. He is a double bassist, probably best known for his long association with saxophonist Ornette Coleman...
's Liberation Music Orchestra
Liberation Music Orchestra
Liberation Music Orchestra is a jazz album by Charlie Haden, released in 1969 . It was Haden's first album as leader.The inspiration for the album came when Haden heard songs from the Spanish Civil War...
and Carla Bley
Carla Bley
Carla Bley, née Borg, is an American jazz composer, pianist, organist and band leader. An important figure in the Free Jazz movement of the 1960s, she is perhaps best known for her jazz opera Escalator Over The Hill , as well as a book of compositions that have been performed by many other...
's Escalator Over The Hill
Escalator over the Hill
Escalator over the Hill is mostly referred to as a jazz opera, but it was released as a "chronotransduction" with "words by Paul Haines, adaptation and music by Carla Bley, production and coordination by Michael Mantler", performed by the Jazz Composer's Orchestra.-History:Escalator over the Hill...
. His score for Bernardo Bertolucci
Bernardo Bertolucci
Bernardo Bertolucci is an Italian film director and screenwriter, whose films include The Conformist, Last Tango in Paris, 1900, The Last Emperor and The Dreamers...
's film Last Tango in Paris
Last Tango in Paris
Last Tango in Paris is a 1972 Italian romantic drama film directed by Bernardo Bertolucci which portrays a recent American widower who takes up an anonymous sexual relationship with a young, soon-to-be-married Parisian woman...
earned him a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
and led to a record deal with Impulse! Records
Impulse! Records
Impulse! Records was an American jazz record label, originally established in 1960 by producer Creed Taylor as a subsidiary of ABC-Paramount Records, based in New York City...
.
By the mid-70s, he was recording for A&M Records
A&M Records
A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that operates under the mantle of its Interscope-Geffen-A&M division.-Beginnings:...
and moved his music towards soul-jazz and jazz-pop with albums like Caliente! in 1976 (including his best known song, Carlos Santana
Carlos Santana
Carlos Augusto Alves Santana is a Mexican rock guitarist. Santana became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered rock, salsa and jazz fusion...
's Europa) and the 1977 follow-up, Ruby Ruby, both produced by fellow musician and label co-founder, Herb Alpert.
Although he continued to record and perform well into the 1980s, the death of his wife Michelle led him to withdraw from the public arena. He returned to recording and performing in the late 1990s with the soundtrack for the film Seven Servants
Seven Servants
Seven Servants is a USA - Germany co-production 1996 German drama -comedy film made by Daryush Shokof. The movie is about a man who wants to unite and "connect" the races until his last breath.-Plot:...
by Daryush Shokof
Daryush Shokof
Daryush Shokof is an Iranian artist, film director, philosopher, writer, art director, and film producer, and singer...
(1996) and the album Qué Pasa (1997), playing music that would fall more into the arena of smooth jazz
Smooth jazz
Smooth jazz is a genre of music that grew out of jazz fusion and is influenced by R&B, funk, rock, and pop music styles ....
.
He received the UNICEF Award at the Argentinian Consulate in November 2009.
As leader
- Menorama (private pressing, 1960)
- In Search of the Mystery (1967)
- Obsession (rec. 1967, not released until later)
- Under fire (1969)
- The Third World (1969)
- El Pampero (1971)
- Fenix (1971)
- Last Tango in Paris (1972)
- Bolivia (1973)
- Under Fire (1973)
- Chapter One: Latin AmericaChapter One: Latin AmericaChapter One: Latin America is a 1973 album by Gato Barbieri. It was recorded and issued in 1973 on Impulse! Records as AS-9248. The album was re-released in 1997 as part of Latino America, a double CD that also included the album Chapter Two: Hasta Siempre along with unreleased tracks.-Track...
(1973) - Chapter Two: Hasta siempre (1973)
- Chapter Three: Viva Emiliano Zapata (1974)
- Yesterdays (1974)
- The Third World Revisited (1974)
- Chapter Four: Alive in New York (1975)
- Confluence (1975)
- El Gato (1975)
- Caliente! (1976)
- I Grandi del Jazz (1976)
- Ruby Ruby (1977)
- Tropico (1978)
- Euphoria (1979)
- Bahia (1982)
- Apasionado (1983)
- Para Los Amigos (1984)
- Passion And Fire (1984)
- Qué Pasa (1997)
- Che Corazón (1999)
- The Shadow of The Cat (2002)
- New York Meeting (2010)
As sideman
With Carla BleyCarla Bley
Carla Bley, née Borg, is an American jazz composer, pianist, organist and band leader. An important figure in the Free Jazz movement of the 1960s, she is perhaps best known for her jazz opera Escalator Over The Hill , as well as a book of compositions that have been performed by many other...
and Paul Haines
Paul Haines (poet)
Paul Haines was a poet and jazz lyricist. Born in Vassar, Michigan, Haines eventually settled in Canada, after spending time in Europe, India, New York City, as well as a long stint as a French Teacher at Fenelon Falls Secondary School, in Ontario, Canada.Haines's best-known work is Escalator over...
- Escalator Over The HillEscalator over the HillEscalator over the Hill is mostly referred to as a jazz opera, but it was released as a "chronotransduction" with "words by Paul Haines, adaptation and music by Carla Bley, production and coordination by Michael Mantler", performed by the Jazz Composer's Orchestra.-History:Escalator over the Hill...
(1971)
With Dollar Brand
- Hamba Khale (aka Confluence)(1968)
With Gary Burton
Gary Burton
Gary Burton is an American jazz vibraphonist.A true original on the vibraphone, Burton developed a pianistic style of four-mallet technique as an alternative to the usual two-mallets. This approach caused Burton to be heralded as an innovator and his sound and technique are widely imitated...
- A Genuine Tong FuneralA Genuine Tong FuneralA Genuine Tong Funeral is an album by vibraphonist Gary Burton featuring compositions by Carla Bley recorded in 1967 and released on the RCA label.-Reception:...
(RCA, 1967)
With Don Cherry
Don Cherry (jazz)
Donald Eugene Cherry was an innovative African-American jazz cornetist whose career began with a long association with saxophonist Ornette Coleman. He went on to live in many parts of the world and work with a wide variety of musicians.-Biography:Cherry was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and...
- Togetherness (1965)
- Complete CommunionComplete CommunionComplete Communion is a 1966 album by American jazz composer Don Cherry, his first release on Blue Note Records.Each side of the original LP were suites, side-long compositions working with several themes...
(Blue Note, 1966) - Live at Jazzhus Montmartre 1966 (1966)
- Symphony for ImprovisersSymphony for ImprovisersSymphony for Improvisers is an album by Don Cherry featuring Gato Barbieri, Henry Grimes, Ed Blackwell, Karl Berger, Jean-François Jenny-Clark, and Pharoah Sanders recorded in 1966 and released on the Blue Note label...
(Blue Note, 1966)
With Charlie Haden
Charlie Haden
Charles Edward Haden is an American jazz musician. He is a double bassist, probably best known for his long association with saxophonist Ornette Coleman...
- Liberation Music Orchestra (Impulse!, 1969)
With the Jazz Composer's Orchestra
Jazz Composer's Orchestra
Jazz Composer's Orchestra was an American jazz group founded in 1965, to further avant-garde jazz in New York. Carla Bley and Michael Mantler were important in its organization and style....
- The Jazz Composer's Orchestra (1968)
With Alan Shorter
Alan Shorter
Alan Shorter was a free jazz trumpet and flugelhorn player, and the older brother of composer and saxophone player Wayne Shorter.-Biography:...
- Orgasm (1968)