whether he’s playing tenor or soprano sax

Whether he’s playing tenor or soprano sax, shows off a sweet, sinuous tone; when he reinterprets Reinhardt’s classic Nuages with a bass sax, the muscular sound is distancing at first, but then it wraps itself around the listener like an anaconda. -Christopher John...

Carter’s ease with swing

Carter’s ease with swing, bop and avant-garde styles also gave notice that a staggeringly inclusive figure—the apotheosis of the postmodern jazzman—was now among us.-Steve Futterman, THE WASHINGTON POST

Belgian guitar legend Django Reinhard

Reinhardt’s spirit started talking to Carter when he was just 14, listening to a jazz radio program in his Detroit home…. Sixteen years later, the spirit of Reinhardt rose again…-James Hale, THE OTTAWA CITIZEN

Think of James Carter as the Lon Chaney of jazz

There were passages in the program, especially during pieces such as Joe Henderson’s “Recorda Me,” in which Carter played with a surprisingly soft and tender sound, his improvisations filled with subtle melodic paraphrases. At other times, he added...

James Carter has cemented his reputation

James Carter has cemented his reputation as one of the most adventurous, visionary young reed players on the cusp of this new millennium…. Not as an outsider, but as one of the most exciting young virtuosos in contemporary music….- Chip Stern, JAZZ...

The music, commissioned by the DSO and written for Carter

The music, commissioned by the DSO and written for Carter, shows off his brilliant technical command of the tenor and soprano saxes and carves out space for improvisation in which his ideas burst like fireworks.- Mark Stryker, DETROIT FREE PRESS