David Liebman
David Liebman’s career has spanned more than four decades, beginning with his "apprenticeship" period in the early 1970s, when he played with drummer Elvin Jones (Live at the Lighthouse) and Miles Davis (On the Corner). Since then, he has formed his own groups (Lookout Farm, Quest, the Dave Liebman Group) featuring musicians such as John Scofield, Richie Beirach, Billy Hart, Adam Nussbaum, Al Foster, John Abercrombie, and Vic Juris. Since 1973, Liebman has consistently placed among the top three in the DownBeat Critics Poll for soprano saxophone. In 2011, he won first place in both the DownBeat and Jazz Times critics polls. That same year, Liebman received the National Endowment for the Arts Masters of Jazz Award, the highest honor for jazz given by the United States government.
Liebman has been featured on nearly 350 recordings and has published several hundred original compositions. His repertoire is among the most eclectic of contemporary artists. In the field of education, Liebman is a renowned lecturer, producing several instructional DVDs and books, most notably Self Portrait of a Jazz Artist, A Chromatic Approach to Jazz Melody and Harmony, and Developing a Personal Saxophone Sound. Liebman has also published multiple chamber music pieces for a variety of instrumentations. He is the founder and artistic director of the International Association of Schools of Jazz.