For Alto

by Anthony Braxton

For Alto cover art
  • Type: Album
  • Released: 1969
  • Label: Delmark
  • Country: United States
  • Length: 41:35
  • Community rating: 4.67/5 from 6 ratings

Album Notes & Community Reviews

A landmark of the avant-garde, 'For Alto' was the first full-length album of unaccompanied saxophone music ever recorded. On this album, Anthony Braxton deconstructs conventional melody, rhythm, and timbre, using the alto saxophone to create a soundscape of clicks, overtones, multiphonics, and fragmented lines. The album is a rigorous and intellectual exploration of pure sound, fundamentally expanding the vocabulary of the saxophone and influencing generations of improvisers.

Genres

Descriptors: minimal, avant-garde, saxophone, groundbreaking, classic

Tracklist

  1. Dedicated to Composer John Cage
  2. Dedicated to Cecil Taylor
  3. Dedicated to Ann and Peter Allen (12:54)
  4. Dedicated to Susan Axelrod and Nickie Braxton
  5. Dedicated to Multi-Instrumentalist Leroy Jenkins (19:47)
  6. Dedicated to Warren L. Marsh

Credits

  • Anthony Braxton - primary artist, alto saxophone, recorded by, supervised by
  • Zbigniew Jastrzebski - design [cover]
  • Peter Blue - photography by [cover]
  • Terry Martin - photography by [liner photo]
  • Robert G. Koester - producer [album]

More from Anthony Braxton: full discography