Dave Liebman

David Liebman (born September 4, 1946) is an American saxophonist, flautist, bandleader, composer, and jazz educator. Best known for his work on soprano saxophone, he toured and recorded with Miles Davis during the trumpeter's electric period, appearing on On The Corner. He has appeared on more than 500 recordings, including about 200 as a leader or co-leader, and was named a NEA Jazz Master in 2011. He founded and serves as artistic director of the International Association of Schools of Jazz (IASJ). Liebman was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1946 to a Jewish family. He contracted polio in 1949. He studied classical piano from age nine and saxophone from twelve. Hearing John Coltrane at New York clubs including Birdland, the Village Vanguard, and the Half Note was formative. He studied with Joe Allard, Lennie Tristano, and Charles Lloyd, and earned a degree in American history from New York University. In the early 1970s, after recording with Genya Ravan and Ten Wheel Drive, Liebman helped organize the musician-run collective Free Life Communication — a hub of New York's loft-jazz scene — with support from the New York State Council on the Arts.