Nick Brignola - "I'll Remember April"

[@Jazzis4ever]

I'm from Albany, NY and saw Nick every chance I could. I can't listen to any other bari player for very long. He was and always will be the best. And, he was the only bari player that I looked forward to also hearing play the Alto, Soprano, or clarinet. There will never be another Nick.

[@ZaDouche]

Nick will always be a legend. As far as a "dying breed" not hardly, his playing and spirit is something i've been trying to emulate for as long as ive been playing bari. I one day hope to finally master this horn by fusing the styles of all the greats. The soul of Bruce Johnstone and Ronnie Cuber, The Dexterity and Sound of Nick Brignola and Pepper Adams, The Theory and Content of Gary Smulyan, and the Grace of Gerry Mulligan... trust me, Nick will never truly "die"

[@lawrencemuller8972]

This may be one of the best jazz solos ever, irrespective of the kind of instrument.

[@Modes9]

I'm from Troy,NY, so I heard him live MANY times and spoke to him at length a couple. We all miss him very much. Sadly, he's one of a dying breed.

[@chetnet]

Thanks, once again, for this excellent example of why Nick was so highly regarded --loved that he stayed in the Capital District and gave so much to the homies, teaching and giving the best kind of jazz to his native area!

[@michaelroach4219]

He was an excellent player.

[@dianeblanchette4919]

My hubby played with Nick way back when. What an expressive bari sound, and talk about chops! He could always bring something new and exciting to any tune..

[@Chester6234]

I had the opportunity to hear Nick Brignola live with the Youngstown State University Jazz Ensemble back in the 80's and he was great back then also! Boy can he improvise! Great memories and good times. Like they say in the Jazz idiom, "Bop till you Drop!" Take care.

[@TheApprentice91]

thats amazing, I wish people like this would come to my birthday

[@paulbelfrage1968]

Yeehawww!...Go Nick go! What a treat ..simply marvellous!!

[@sacredwhiner]

Great ensemble playing...cheers.

[@mikefarmer7238]

Ive never played baritone but if I did I^d want to play this. Totally awesome stuff.

[@brucebud]

Smokin clip! I've always dug Nick's take-no-prisoners approach on the bari. Smokin piano solo too.

[@barisozer4317]

Genius!

[@lastknowngood0]

Nick et al kicken it, awesome!

[@mxer6161]

Mr/ Brignola is no longer with us due to cancer. He was a great bari player no doubt one of the best their was.

[@iwrotesham]

Brig is the bomb. A better bari player has never lived.

[@DocSeanJohn]

....thought provoking...great improvisations !!!

[@cepinobel]

Congratulations, great baritone sax.

[@Barlo403]

these guys sound amazing

[@jiyujizai]

初めて聴く。どこかハｰモニｰが新しく感じるサックス🎷🎵

[@musician6831]

So SAD my Friend went so early! Briggie,RIP

[@frawhi65]

Totally Great Big Baritone Saxophone Jazz!

[@jazzuffe]

Fantastic, and like "medussax" one of the best ever. He and Lars Gullin is the Baritonesax!

[@sobranterich]

@gbournaz just listening to nick on pandora which said that he had been performing since the 70's. i saw him in the early to mid 60's at a little club on green street in Albany. he started my love for jazz.

[@treadman26]

Nick is the big dawg.

[@medicicard]

Blow Nick Blow......Great.....

[@RayParker]

I got to play with him and Tom Harrell a bunch in the late 80's and early 90's. Almost better than his playing was hanging out at Dunkin' Donuts until sunrise after the Lark gig!

[@katella12]

ray: do you have any recordings from the lark or other gigs you did with nick?

[@paxwallace8324]

Oh wow brother I wish I could pick your brain about those times! That's really something to me. So are you a bassist? Wish we could gig.

[@RayParker]

@@paxwallace8324 bass and some fiddle lately. The main takeaway was hanging out at the Dunkin donuts down the block after the gig where he'd hold court and talk shit until the sun came up.

[@paxwallace8324]

@@RayParker I truly admire Mr Brignola's improvisational abilities. I love his clarinet bop as well

[@RayParker]

@@paxwallace8324 when he picked up the horn to play it was 'no bullshit' time. Dead serious and engaged from before the first note after after the last one.

[@wesbrown3368]

Great soloing by Nick Brignola! Good to hear from Charlie Crummer, probably in Paris. Now, I use an old Brilhart Levelaire.

[@katella12]

Particularly enjoyable is the segment after the piano solo when Nick "trades fours" with the drummer.

[@kfdisawesome]

very nice... i like

[@decus69]

wow!

[@Steelhammerr]

great bari player

[@jazzuffe]

Herrejemanes så han spelar!!

[@lapps22]

MONSTER MAN😆

[@mxer6161]

He was the only bari that had anything for ronnie cuber. God Speed.

[@ZaDouche]

Wow... April in F instead of G... Sounds darker... But nobody can touch Nick's ii-V's in Ab (Bari's F) he's got such presence and authority in Ab man! I've already copped the first 4 bars of his 1st bridge over the ii-V in Ab (1:19)... classic Nick that i'm going to run through the keys.

[@MrCharlyAndy]

I get a tone like Nick's on a '61 Selmer 91,000 series bari and a Link mouthpiece that was touched by the magic of Wes Brown in LA. Nick's altissimo sound and control are from another planet as is his straight-ahead jazz.

[@jordanlerner8150]

does anyone know if nick played a mark vi?

[@grievous0598films]

Looks that way to me too, but no way to be sure unless someone knew prior to.

[@rmv2982]

+Jordan Lerner I remember Nick Brignola coming to my college back in 2000. He was playing a Black Nickel Keilwerth SX then with nice wooden inlays instead of mother of pearl.

[@jordanlerner8150]

Rachel Vives Thank you !!

[@francoiskloc276]

Rachel is right he was playing on a SX90 Keilwerth black nickel low Bb ( which is what he is playing on this video). I was lucky to travel with him many times and hang out with him after gigs. Amazing human being and musician. Funny as he'll as well, he was always mocking around but with a straight face and I never knew if the was kidding it not. I miss him a lot. He had such a great sound...

[@Shawn1007Shawn1007]

Does anyone know his setup?

[@williamarchibald4478]

Nick was using a Kielwerth with a Strathon mouthpiece up top. Model of horn, facing & reeds - you have me beat. I believe I'd read Nick was using synthetic reeds & may have said in an interview that he felt cane was a negative waste of time. That was a long time ago...

[@chadley_musings]

YES!! Fibercell reeds are the bomb for bari!! thats what I use! Wish i could find a Strathon m-piece. pretty difficult to come by nowadays. I use a Lawyon hard rubber on a "The Martin" bari, Pretty similar response and sound. My sound up high is nowhere near Nicks though. He's a beast on the high bari.