Sirone

Sirone stood out as a masterful technician and underappreciated composer whose contributions placed him squarely inside the Revolutionary Ensemble trio throughout the 1970s, while his résumé also encompassed associations with numerous additional leaders and ensembles in the free tradition. His commanding sonority and incisive articulation integrated seamlessly with the approaches of Leroy Jenkins and Jerome Cooper across the group’s studio sessions and live appearances. During the late 1950s and early 1960s he performed in Atlanta alongside the ensemble known as the Group, whose roster included George Adams. After relocating to New York in the mid-1960s, Sirone co-established the Untraditional Jazz Improvisational Team together with Dave Burrell. Late-decade recording dates paired him with Marion Brown, Gato Barbieri, Pharoah Sanders, Noah Howard, and Sonny Sharrock, and he further appeared alongside Sunny Murray, Albert Ayler, Archie Shepp, Sun Ra, and assorted peers. Six years of activity with the Revolutionary Ensemble followed; he had originated the unit with Jenkins and Frank Clayton, the latter subsequently succeeded by Cooper. Additional 1970s and early-1980s sessions documented his work with Clifford Thornton, Roswell Rudd, Dewey Redman, Cecil Taylor, and Walt Dickerson. The trio encounter uniting Sirone, Dickerson, and Andrew Cyrille has been reissued on compact disc, as have several earlier dates that feature his participation with Taylor, Redman, and other colleagues.