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01. Ken Vandermark - Azaleas/Tenor
02. Ken Vandermark - Baby's Breath/Bb Clarinet
03. Ken Vandermark - Gardenias/Bass Clarinet
04. Ken Vandermark - Dusty Miller/Tenor
05. Ken Vandermark - Ruscus/Baritone
06. Ken Vandermark - Dandelions/Bb Clarinet
07. Ken Vandermark - Violets/Baritone
08. Ken Vandermark - Sunflowers/Tenor 5:50)
09. Ken Vandermark - Queen Anne's Lace/Bass Clarinet
10. Ken Vandermark - Marigolds/Bb Clarinet
11. Ken Vandermark - Eucalyptus/Tenor
ARTIST
TITLE
October Flowers for Joe McPhee
FORMAT
CD

LABEL
CATALOG #
CVSD 125CD CVSD 125CD
GENRE
RELEASE DATE
11/14/2025

It's not a stretch to say that saxophonist and clarinetist Ken Vandermark's path into creative music was paved by Joe McPhee. In particular, McPhee's landmark 1976 LP Tenor -- recorded casually in a Swiss chalet and featuring four new compositions that effortlessly combined experimentation and lyricism -- was Vandermark's ear-opener. The two musicians would go on to begin a fruitful working relationship in 1996, a partnership that continues today, and now Vandermark has paid homage to his friend and mentor with a suite of compositions and improvisations. These solo works, performed on an array of horns (clarinet, bass clarinet, baritone and of course tenor saxophone), are as melodious and unapologetically beautiful as anything in Vandermark's oeuvre, interweaving tremendous swells of emotion and ingenious linear inventions. Vandermark played the six pieces in the suite in front of an invited audience at Corbett vs. Dempsey, the gallery's natural acoustic drawing out every nuance of his playing. He augmented the suite, each part of which is named for a flower with significance to McPhee or Vandermark, with several powerful free improvisations, all titled after "filler flowers," making the entire program a bouquet for Mr. McPhee. Exquisitely documented by Alex Inglizian, with cover art by Arch Connelly and liner notes by Vandermark.