Review: ‘George Coleman with Strings’

There are no written rules for NEA Jazz Masters. Clearly, they have earned the right to undertake their long-dreamed-of projects. Or to buck the music establishment with something unexpected. Or to fulfill a “bucket list” item. George Coleman with Strings (High Note, 2025), unequivocally the most gorgeous album of the  tenor saxophonist’s storied career, meets at least two of those standards. Playing with symphonic strings has long been considered a rite of passage for many great jazz soloists ever since Charlie Parker With Strings (Mercury, 1950) set the bar over seven decades ago. Since Bird, a lengthy list of other artists have explored this ground, including Coleman Hawkins, Chet Baker, Clifford Brown, Bill Evans, Stan Getz, Art Pepper, Wes Montgomery, and Ben Webster. Or, more recently, Jim Snidero and Dave Stryker. At eighty-nine years young, Coleman is the oldest to have done so, but his full-toned, expressive rendering of standards is as strong as any of the others. Unlike with an athlete, age hasn’t taken its toll on Coleman’s playing. If anything, as evidenced by his performances with Emmet Cohen, One for All, Brandi Disterheft, and his own recordings, Coleman is still growing and inventively improvising.

With Strings finds Coleman with his longtime quartet of bassist John Webber, drummer Joe Farnsworth, and pianist David Hazeltine (replacing the late Harold Mabern).  Cafe Da Silva adds percussion to three tracks. Bill Dobbins conducts and arranges the thirteen-piece string ensemble of five first violins, four second violins, two violas, and two cellos. Credit also goes to producer Diane Armesto and Coleman’s longtime friend, saxophonist Eric Alexander, who devised the repertoire and set up the session at the renowned Rudy Van Gelder studio. As Michael West points out in the album’s liner notes, they “left it up to Coleman to just come in the studio and do what he does best: blow.”

At risk of hyperbole, Coleman blows his tenor saxophone as beautifully as the instrument has been heard on any record. You hear this immediately as Coleman takes the brief intro on Sammy Cahn’s “Dedicated to You” before he is joined by the cushioning ensemble of strings. He continues to state his case eloquently on Henry Mancini’s “Moment to Moment,” where the backing quartet and strings transform the piece into a Latin tang rhythm, imbued by the in-sync percussion tandem of Farnsworth and Da Silva. Coleman sits back and lets Hazeltine shape the melody, soon enhanced by the swelling strings. Coleman takes the first chorus with a fairly straightforward approach. But, for the second, his gifts for lyricism and imaginative lines come into focus. Perhaps the most lush string arrangement on the album can be found on “Stella By Starlight,” a tune Coleman truly approaches inventively. While a standard that countless others have covered, including John Coltrane, Coleman’s unique phrasing and a special navigation of the chord changes put his own stamp on it. Hazeltine’s crafty solo follows accordingly.

​Two pieces appear in both short and extended forms. The strings set the stage for “A Time for Love,” with Coleman and Hazeltine underscoring the dreamy, romantic melody, with hints of blues. Again, the percussion team of Farnsworth and Da Silva shines. The piece later gets a full orchestral introduction, brilliantly done by Dobbins and his musicians. Thelonious Monk’s “Ugly Beauty,” the lone waltz in the pianist’s canon, fits nicely with string accompaniment. There’s drama in this piece, unlike the others, steered capably by the incomparable Farnsworth, who consistently has an impeccable touch. Coleman is still the focus, staying attuned to the main melody but embellishing as only he can. To these ears, this is the standout track, showcasing Coleman’s refusal to be hemmed in by convention and instead exhibiting an intention to shape the material his way. On your first, of likely many, listens, be sure to focus solely on Coleman. But on the second, turn your attention to Dobbins’ string arrangements, which, filled with drama, tension, and emotion, offer much more than just “pretty” background music.

George Coleman has only appeared on studio albums three times as a leader in the past twenty-five ears. As strong as the other two – A Master Speaks (2016, Smoke Sessions), and The Quartet (2019, Smoke Sessions) – were, George Coleman with Strings is destined to be the most memorable. It is a masterpiece.

‘George Coleman with Strings’ is out now on High Note Records.