Teaneck Saxophonist Releases Two CDs

Paul Cohen wears many hats.

When the prominent classical saxophonist isn’t performing, he’s teaching at six colleges and universities, recording albums, and publishing music.

Even his home serves multiple purposes. Besides offering different spaces for Cohen to practice and publish, his home also includes a miniature museum. This room, which spills out into an adjoining entryway, features more than 150 saxophones, vintage photos and posters, documents, and a collection of Cohen’s writings and CDs.

A product of Teaneck public schools, along with his two older brothers, Cohen said his musical interests began in his home but blossomed in the school system. Upon graduating from , Cohen attended Baldwin-Wallace College in Ohio and then the Manhattan School of Music, where he received both his master’s and doctorate degrees.

Cohen is currently on the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music, Rutgers University, Montclair State University, New York University, Queens College and Brooklyn College.

STANDING OUT FROM THE CROWD

While in the fourth grade at , Cohen picked up a saxophone as part of the school’s music program.

“I chose the saxophone only because nobody else had chosen it,” he said. “I didn’t want to play what everyone else was playing.”

Up through high school, Cohen would continue to receive saxophone lessons during school time.

“When I was younger, playing the saxophone was just something to do to be in the band. The music was interesting and challenging,” Cohen said. “In the beginning I was having fun; only in high school did it become more important. Going into the 10th grade I started taking private lessons.”

Cohen said that Teaneck was a great place to grow up, especially if you had musical abilities.

“In the schools we had a very fine music program,” he said. “Whatever talent I had was encouraged and cultivated.”

GUEST PERFORMANCES AND COLUMNS

On July 27, Cohen performed as guest artist with the Imani Winds as part of the Imani Winds Chamber Music Festival in New York City, which runs through Aug. 6. Imani Winds is a Grammy-nominated wind quintet.

On Sunday, Cohen premiered a new work written for him for soprano saxophone and classical accordion at the Tenri Cultural Institute in New York City. Next week he appears as principal saxophonist with the Garden State Symphonic Band in a Sunday concert in Perth Amboy.

On the local front, in past years Cohen said he was a frequent guest artist with the Teaneck Community Band.

“For many years I was a regular soloist with the band," he said. "I would love to do that again."

Cohen has been featured on numerous CDs, but he put out his first album about 14 years ago.

"It is a rather eclectic CD called Vintage Saxophones Revisited," Cohen said. "For years I wrote a recurring column in the Saxophone Journal called 'Vintage Saxophones Revisited' where I would discuss all aspects of the history of the instrument. Over the years I wrote about 100 columns.”

He said that because of the enthusiasm that surrounded the column, he created a CD with the same name.

“I narrate the CD; I play a lot of very rare recordings from the 19th century and very early 20th century of some of the pioneer saxophone players,” Cohen said. “And I demonstrate a lot of my very unusual instruments, including the contrabass, slide saxophone, sopranino, connosax and the Grafton plastic alto saxophone.”

PREMIERE RECORDINGS AND NEW WORK

Cohen recently released two albums, one in June titled Quiet City and the other in early July called Breathing Lessons. He describes these albums as being more traditional.

"Quiet City is a CD of chamber music by American composers,” he said. “Recorded in collaboration with fellow saxophonist Chris Brellochs, the CD offers a distinctive collection of premiere recordings where you can hear the saxophone playing with many different instruments, from clarinet to trumpet to viola. The title track, 'Quiet City,' is a musical milestone in that a lost piece of Aaron Copland was discovered, prepared and now recorded for the first time. This original version of 'Quiet City' is written for clarinet, trumpet, saxophone and piano.”

Breathing Lessons, which is on the Naxos label, comes from the New Hudson Saxophone Quartet for which Cohen is a founder and director.

"The music features American composers, including New Jersey composer David Sampson in an exciting new work called 'Breathing Lessons,' which is based on the Pulitzer Prize winning 1988 novel by American author Anne Tyler,” Cohen said. “Also included is a remarkable work for a tuba and saxophone quartet, as well quartets influenced by jazz, rock and folk music.”

While Cohen’s more recent CDs can be found at various music retailers, Vintage Saxophone Revisited can be purchased from Cohen’s own publishing company, To the Fore Publishers.

Cohen’s future plans include another CD of works written for the New Hudson Saxophone Quartet, as well as a solo CD called American Images, which features works for alto and soprano saxophone and piano. He also will perform at a memorial concert in South Jersey on the 10th anniversary of 9/11 in what Cohen describes as "gripping work" by Bernard Hoffer for tenor saxophone and brass band.

For budding artists of any age who take up the saxophone, Cohen had some advice.

“The saxophone is an easy instrument to play at first, but it’s very hard to play well,” he said. “Listen to good musicians and good playing as a guide to what you can expect from your instrument. Don’t let the instrument play you.”