Anthony Coleman

by Joslyn Layne
Accomplished keys player and composer Anthony Coleman has gained recognition as an inspired player and talented standout of the avant-garde and klezmer-oriented jazz coming out of N.Y.C.s downtown throughout the 80s and 90s. Coleman has performed and recorded with just about every musician involved in this downtown scene, including John Zorn, guitarist Elliott Sharp, David Moss, renowned trumpeter Dave Douglas, premier accordion player Guy Klucevsek, David Shea, former Captain Beefheart bandmember Gary Lucas, classical and klezmer clarinetist David Krakauer, guitarist Marc Ribot, and many more. Coleman has performed and recorded all over the world, with his groups Sephardic Tinge — theyve toured Europe three times, and released two CDs — and the Selfhaters, all releases on the Tzadik label. Found on the related Avant label is Colemans Disco by Night, a recording inspired by his experiences in ex-Yugoslavia. Through most of the 90s, Coleman and saxophonist Roy Nathanson have co-led projects, performing all over the U.S. and Europe together. The duo has also recorded several albums, including Lobster and Friend. Coleman has received commissions for his compositions from various ensembles including Bang on a Can, Concert Artists Guild, and the Crosstown Ensemble. His compositions can also be heard on harpist Carol Emanuels Koch release Tops of Trees and Guy Klucevseks accordion extravaganza Manhattan Cascade, among others. In 2006, Coleman released two albums, Shmutsige Magnaten, in which he played the songs of Yiddish folk composer Mordechai Geburtig, who died during the Holocaust, and Pushy Blueness.