Igor Butman
Born in St Petersburg in 1961, Russian saxophonist Igor Butman studied clarinet at the Rimsky-Korsakov School of Music, where he switched to saxophone, partly as a result of hearing jazz on Voice of America. At 22, he joined The State Oleg Lundstrem Chamber Orchestra of Jazz Music which, despite the name, was the first great big band in Russia. The following year, he joined another top Russian jazz orchestra, Nick Levinovsky’s Allegro, which gave Butman his first exposure at European festivals.
Butman moved to USA in 1987 to study at Berklee. He was mentored by Grover Washington Jr, whose 1988 Columbia album Then & Now he is featured on. He also toured with Dave Brubeck, Chick Corea and Pat Metheny and the Lionel Hampton Orchestra. He released his debut album Falling Out in 1993 with a quartet made up of pianist Lyle Mays, bassist Eddie Gomez and drummer Marvin ‘Smitty’ Smith. The follow up, Partners In Time, added Gary Burton to the mix.
By the late 1990s, Butman was back in Russia, and used his connections to, in his words, act as “a jazz bridge between Moscow and New York”. This even resulted in him performing for Presidents Bill Clinton and Vladimir Putin at the Kremlin. In 1998, Butman was artistic director of Le Club in Moscow until its closure in 2006. His own big band held a Monday night residency, while he also offered a platform for touring American artists like Wynton Marsalis and Kenny Garrett. From 2006, he opened a new Moscow venue, the Igor Butman Jazz Club. He also runs the AquaJazz Festival in Sochi every July.
In 2006, Butman released his album Magic Land with Chick Corea, john Patitucci, Randy Brecker, Stefon Harris and Jack DeJohnette. He continues to perform internationally, including a US tour for his big band in 2009. His current Russian quartet, together since 1999, reunited Butman with pianist Nick Levinovsky. In 2011, he celebrated his 50th birthday at the Kremlin Palace with guest performances from Wynton Marsalis, Billy Cobham, Christian McBride and Natalie Cole.
Key Recordings:
‘Falling Out’ (Impromptu 1993)
