Quintet for a Day by What We Live (CD, and similar items

WHAT WE LIVE / QUINTET FOR A DAY Lisle Ellis, Bass and Circuitry / Donald Robinson, Drums / Larry Ochs, Sopranino and Tenor Saxophones What We Live is a San Francisco based jazz/improvised music group formed by bassist/composer Lisle Ellis in 1994. The three regular members are Lisle Ellis: acoustic bass; Lawrence Ochs, tenor and sopranino saxophones; Don Robinson, drums and percussion. The ensemble's formation was inspired by and a direct result of Ellis' work with Ochs and Robinson within the context of The Glenn Spearman Double Trio, which performed and recorded from 1991 until the leader's death in 1998. Ellis' initial vision was to bring together a small group of musicians to investigate concepts central to the tradition of jazz-based improvisation: swing, song form, modalities, etc - in a less explicit manner than the mainstream but in a more emphatically traditional way than offered by the practice of free jazz. Over a period of time the concept of the trio evolved more towards a collective situation rather than being solely the vision of an individual musician. A group voice or sound has emerged that is immediately recognizable. Compositions by Ellis and Ochs as well as group compositions make up the music.