JOSHUA REDMAN QUARTET

Joshua Redman is one of the most acclaimed and charismatic jazz artists to have emerged in the decade of the 1990s. Born in Berkeley, California, he is the son of legendary saxophonist Dewey Redman and dancer Renee Shedroff. He was exposed at an early age to a variety of music (jazz, classical, rock, soul, Indian, Indonesian, Middle-Eastern, African). Also, a wide range of instruments (recorder, piano, guitar, gatham, gamelan). Then, Redman began playing clarinet at age nine before switching to the tenor saxophone one year later.

Redman’s early influences were John Coltrane, Ornette Coleman, Cannonball Adderley and his father, Dewey Redman. Also, The Beatles, Aretha Franklin, the Temptations, Earth, Wind and Fire, Prince, The Police and Led Zeppelin drew Joshua more deeply into music. Joshua loved playing saxophone and was a member of the award-winning Berkeley High School Jazz Ensemble and Combo from 1983-86. However, academics were always his first priority, and he never seriously considered becoming a professional musician.

In 1991 Redman graduated from Harvard College summa cum laude, with a B.A. in Social Studies. He had already been accepted by Yale Law School, but deferred entrance for what he believed was only going to be one year. Then, Redman was named the winner of the prestigious Thelonious Monk International Saxophone Competition. This occurred n November of that year, five months after moving to New York.

Over the past three decades, the saxophonist, composer, and bandleader has consistently demonstrated how to honor music’s verities while expanding its reach in contemporary settings. Redman’s latest, 2025’s Words Fall Short, is an organic next step. Thus, it is a collection of previously unheard originals brought to life by inspiring new collaborators.

Joshua Redman – tenor saxophone
Paul Cornish – piano
Philip Norris – bass
Nazir Ebo – drums