Lee Konitz
Alto Sax Solo on
Alone Together

About

Lee Konitz's three-chorus alto saxophone solo opens the improvisation on this live trio performance of the Arthur Schwartz standard, recorded at Birdland in 1996. Over the 36-bar AABA form at 152 BPM in D minor, Konitz displays his signature approach to improvisation: long, flowing lines built from a deep internalization of the harmony, delivered with the cool, penetrating tone he had cultivated since his pioneering work with Lennie Tristano in the late 1940s. As the first of three solos, his three choruses set a standard of melodic invention for this intergenerational meeting of three distinct jazz sensibilities.

Lee Konitz was 68 to 69 years old at the time.