Dominic Duval

During the '90s, Dominic Duval was one of the two most active bassists on New York's free jazz scene (the other being William Parker). Few musicians were more dedicated to the principles of free improvisation than Duval. While he read adequately and was capable of playing other jazz idioms, absolute freedom of expression was paramount in Duval's art. He had a prodigious technique; Duval played the bass like an elongated guitar, so fast were his lines and textures. He seldom played the traditional role of a bassist in an ensemble. Rather than provide a low-pitched harmonic/rhyt...