A special tribute to jazz bassist (and cellist!) Oscar Pettiford.

When you are an improvising cellist, there is not so much history to look back upon and contemplate. Unlike saxophone players or guitar players who have a long line of titans to measure themselves against, jazz cello players are more or less on their own. However, there is Oscar Pettiford. Pettiford tuned the cello like a bass so he’d be instantly familiar with where the notes lay, and he was passionate about the instrument, using it often in crucial sessions under his name--if it was an Oscar Pettiford recording the cello was often there in a central role. Joining the Broken Arm Trio is special guest Michael Blake on tenor, performing Pettiford works like Tamalpais and Night at Falcon’s Lair, as well as Friedlander originals.

Erik Friedlander, cello; Michael Blake, saxophone; Chris Tordini, bass; Michael Sarin, drums.