Biography
7 November 1932, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, d. 6 May 2007, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA. Batiste played jazz clarinet with Ed Blackwell in high school, which led to a long association with Ornette Coleman, with whom he jammed in Los Angeles in the mid-50s. After a spell freelancing in New Orleans, Batiste toured with the Ray Charles band in 1958. From the late 60s to the mid-80s Batiste devoted much of his time to teaching at Southern University in Baton Rouge, although he did record with Cannonball Adderley on the saxophonist’s last album in 1975. In 1981, he joined John Carter, David Murray and Jimmy Hamilton in the group Clarinet Summit, and in 1984 released his first album as leader, Musique D’Afrique Nouvelle Orléans, which comprised a suite celebrating Crescent City Culture (originally written for the New Orleans Philharmonic Orchestra) plus two pieces that revealed Batiste’s deep interest in mysticism: in the sleeve-notes he also...
Read the Full Biography of Alvin Batiste
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