Described as one of the transforming figures of early 21st century jazz, by The Guardian (UK) and as a “dazzling saxophonist, by The New York Times, Steve Lehman (b. New York City, (1978) is a composer, performer, educator, and scholar who works across a broad spectrum of experimental musical idioms. Lehman's pieces for large orchestra and chamber ensembles have been performed by the International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), So Percussion, Kammerensemble Neue Musik Berlin, the JACK Quartet, and the Talea Ensemble. His recent recording, Travail, Transformation & Flow, was chosen as the #1 Jazz Album of the year by The New York Times.
A recipient of the prestigious Doris Duke Artist Award in 2014, Lehman is an alto saxophonist who has performed and recorded nationally and internationally with his own ensembles and with those led by Anthony Braxton, Vijay Iyer, Jason Moran, Meshell Ndegeocello, and High Priest of Anti-Pop Consortium, among others. His recent electro-acoustic music has focused on the development of computer-driven models for improvisation, based in the Max/MSP programming environment. Lehman's work has been favorably reviewed in Artforum, Downbeat Magazine, The New York Times, Newsweek, and The Wire, and on National Public Radio, the BBC, and SWR.
As a Fulbright scholar in France during the 2002-2003 academic year, Lehman began
researching the reception of African-American experimental composers working in France
during the 1970s. His article in the journal Critical Studies in Improvisation—I Love You with an Asterisk: African-American Experimental Composers and the French Jazz Press, 1970-1980—is based on his Fulbright research. More recently, Lehman has published writings and presented lectures on a wide range of topics, including jazz pedagogy, rhythm cognition, and European notions of American experimentalism. His current scholarship, including a contribution to Arcana VI (Hips Road/Tzadik) and his recent doctoral dissertation, examines the overlapping histories of spectral music and jazz improvisation.
researching the reception of African-American experimental composers working in France
during the 1970s. His article in the journal Critical Studies in Improvisation—I Love You with an Asterisk: African-American Experimental Composers and the French Jazz Press, 1970-1980—is based on his Fulbright research. More recently, Lehman has published writings and presented lectures on a wide range of topics, including jazz pedagogy, rhythm cognition, and European notions of American experimentalism. His current scholarship, including a contribution to Arcana VI (Hips Road/Tzadik) and his recent doctoral dissertation, examines the overlapping histories of spectral music and jazz improvisation.