Alan Braufman : Anthem for Peace
You’d be hard pressed to find a more feelgood comeback story to emerge from the pantheon of avant-garde jazz over the last decade than that of Alan Braufman. In 2018, the career of the composer, alto saxophonist and flutist was resurrected, due to the first-ever reissue of his 1975 curio and stone cold free jazz classic, Valley of Search. Long unavailable and out-of-print, this vital document of 70’s-era New York City loft-jazz was unearthed and finally thrust out into the world. The narrative behind Valley of Search, featuring Braufman, pianist Cooper-Moore, bassist Cecil McBee, drummer David Lee and percussionist Ralph Williams, was—and remains—as revelatory as the music itself. The seminal recording and its primal-meets-poetic-firebreathing pillars helped define the early spiritual-jazz template, a lineage that can be traced to the downtown NYC building at 501 Canal Street in SoHo where Braufman and cohorts built a creative foundation where they lived and breathed music day and night. The vibrant scene at that decrepit hub and Braufman’s journey is a potential book waiting to be written.
That brings us to the present day. Galvanized by Valley of Search, Braufman pushed forward with all-new sets The Fire Still Burns (2020) and Infinite Love Infinite Tears (2024) plus his jazz elder status has led to playing with the likes of luminaries such as Messthetics saxophonist James Brandon Lewis and vibraphonist Patricia Brennan, as well as renewed partnerships with pals from his loft-jazz days like Cooper-Moore.
Braufman couldn’t have assembled a better group to fulfill the utopian vision at the core of his new recording, the aptly titled Anthem for Peace. Returning from Infinite Love Infinite Tears is vibes star Brennan and drummer Chad Taylor (cofounder of the vast Chicago Underground umbrella) alongside new recruit, bassist Luke Stewart (Irreversible Entanglements). Braufman and his indefatigable quartet instantly home in on a form of perennially blissed-out melodicism that shimmers from the album’s seven compositions. A healthy–and much needed–dose of hope illuminate pieces like the opener “Angels.” The bright sheen of Braufman’s alto sax and Brennan’s vibes is a heaven-on-earth-level earful, providing a jolt of optimism that ostensibly would lift the spirits of those searching for any glimmer of hope in the current climate. “Angels” is a true tour de force of purely melodic phrases and improvisational paint peeling, beginning first as a waltz-like gallop then dramatically changing course into a screaming free-for-all before the spotlight is shone on Brennan who unleashes frenzied mallet-striking salvos.
Braufman’s affinity for mellifluous, sun-drenched hooks and melody, plus some earsplitting stretches full of saxophone squawks, only gets better from there. The rock-oriented “The Journey” showcases Taylor’s hard-hitting attack while Braufman and Brennan exchange infectious lines; the title track, led by the silky smooth and busy flute of Braufman, has hooks for days; “In Motion” a forward-momentum slice of bebop action, powered by Stewart’s roiling bass grooves and Taylor’s hectic beats, hearkens back to late night jams at 501 Canal.
Anthem for Peace offers a laudable balance of accessibility and the avant-garde, an outstanding band dialed in and the latest chapter in Braufman’s memoir-worthy journey, further cementing his ranks as an underground jazz legend.
Label: Valley of Search
Year: 2026
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