Soundcheck

Battle of the Saxes

Thursday, December 16, 2004

There’s a time-honored tradition in jazz known as the cutting contest—or “battle”—where two musicians will get up, and go head to head and see who could do better. Today on Soundcheck, we’re joined by two members of Jazz at Lincoln Center: alto saxophonist Wess "Warmdaddy" Anderson and tenor saxophonist J.D. Allen—who will stage a battle for us in the friendly but musically intense confines of WNYC performance studio. Tune in to see who wins! Also: In the midst of enjoying her fifteenth anniversary as artistic director for the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Judith Jamison takes the afternoon off to come by the studio. Jamison will discuss the influence of Alvin Ailey on the connections between dance and music. She’ll also touch on some of the season’s highlights, including the premiere of one of Jamison’s own works and the revival of several of the masterpieces of Alvin Ailey himself.

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