Bluebird by Max Seigel Quartet

We like low notes. We like Johnny Cash, Louis Armstrong, Nat King Cole, those voluptuous baritones that rattled our hi-fi sets, those vibrations of somewhere between 40 to 200 per second, not too low and not too high, the ones you can feel in your chest and in your toes, that's the sweet spot. Curious, then, that in jazz we've got so many crooners sitting in this section of the frequency spectrum but, save our illustrious baritone saxophonists and bassists, so few instrumentalists willing to step out into the spotlight.

Although the bass trombone is largely unknown to the general public, it can be found in nearly every symphony orchestra, every movie soundtrack, and every big band. It's been around for centuries in different shapes and sizes but achieved its modern form after World War II: the same basic length as the tenor trombone, with a larger bore and two added valves which allow it to descend chromatically all the way down to the bottom of the piano. In the 50s and 60s, 1st call studio ace George Roberts made some of the only jazz LPs to feature the instrument in a starring role.

Which brings us to Max Seigel, handling the 6lbs and 16 feet of brass tubing with ease, 4 octaves of buzz, boldly presenting the bass trombone as a seriously bad ass bebop machine. Not content to sit in the fabulous trombone sections of big bands as varied as Roy Hargrove, the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, and Michael Bublé, on Bluebird, Max puts his big low horn front and center. No need to turn up the bass, he's got that covered, and use headphones if you like, but prepare yourself to luxuriate in the glorious register of his swinging bass trombone. - Jacob Garchik (5/7/2020)

Originally from Owenton, KY, Bass trombonist Max Seigel has lived and worked in New York City since 2000. Max is a member of the Roy Hargrove Big Band, the Michael Bublé Orchestra, the Andy Farber Jazz Orchestra, the Fat Cat Big Band, and the Delphian Jazz Orchestra. He also performs regularly with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra and the Mingus Band.