The Tiptons Sax Quartet plays at the Jazz Station in Eugene
- Amy Denio alto sax, clarinet, voice
- Jessica Lurie soprano, alto, tenor sax, voice
- Sue Orfield tenor sax, voice
- Tina Richerson baritone sax, voice
- Rick Wabbies drums and percussion
The Tiptons Saxophone Quartet & Drums is an all-female ensemble that has been captivating audiences for over 30 years with their internationally acclaimed, genre-defying sound. From the vibrant energy of Micro-Big Band and the soulful rhythms of Gospel to the lively energy of Bluegrass and the bold beats of Balkan music, their eclectic style blends whimsical chamber jazz, nocturnal funk, and free jazz improvisation. With saxophones, clarinet, voices, drums, and percussion, The Tiptons create a truly unique ‘world soul’ experience that pushes the boundaries of musical exploration.
Amy Denio is a founding member of the Tiptons. and was inducted into the Seattle Jazz Hall of Fame in 2015. She is a composer, singer, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, and international collaborator. She started her own label, Spoot Music, in 1986. Her main instruments are voice, accordion, saxophones, clarinet, electric guitar, and bass, and she makes field recordings. She has collaborated with musicians and artists on 5 continents, and has produced 45 CDs. She has played concerts in N. America, Brazil, Argentina, Bolivia, Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, India and throughout Europe, Turkey and Russia. She composes sound tracks for theater, film and dance, and works with choreographers such as Pat Graney, Li Chiao-Ping, and Victoria Marks. In 1997 she received a Bessie Award for her work with David Dorfman. Her music has been performed at the Venice Biennale in Italy, at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, Carnegie Hall in New York, and at the New Year’s Eve celebration in Napoli in 2006, accompanying a French aerial circus.
Jessica Lurie is a multi-instrumentalist performer, composer, producer, teaching and recording artist, based in Brooklyn, NY and Seattle,WA. She has been a member and co-leader of the Tiptons Sax Quartet since 1993. She leads her own band, and co-leads the Tiptons Sax Quartet & Drums, the Living Daylights trio, Sephardic group Sofie Salonika, Ethiopian-inspired jazz group Freethiopiques and the improvising Slingshot duo. She is a Sundance Composers’ Fellow, regularly nominated in Downbeat’s “Rising Star for Alto Sax” poll, most recently in 2016-18 and 2021. Despite pandemic restrictions on touring, Jessica has been hard at work creating new music performances and collaborations, including “Shofar Meditations” (Brooklyn, NY, Oct. 2020), “Mujer O Bruja” with the Tiptons Sax Quartet (Seattle, WA, Oct. 2021), and being a core performer in Taylor Mac’s “The Hang” (Jan.-March 2022). She is known as a composer and performer for her love of exploring a wide range of musical influences, including folk, funk, rhythmic Eastern European folk music and improvisation-heavy jazz with a dose of free-wheeling avant-groove-meets-grind. As a composer she has received support from Jazz Roads; Brooklyn Jews; NEA; BRIC; Meet The Composer; Artslink; Earshot Jazz; 4Culture; MidAtlantic Foundation, including commissions from the Percussia Ensemble, Sound Symposium Festival (Nova Scotia), Circus Amok and Great Small Works. Jessica has released eight solo albums with her Jessica Lurie Ensemble, fourteen albums with The Tiptons and five albums with Living Daylights as a member & lead composer, receiving critical acclaim in Billboard, Downbeat, NYTimes, Jazz Times, LA Weekly, national and international radio. Recent performances and/or recordings include international artists such as John Zorn, Devotchka, Taylor Mac, Sleater Kinney, Helen Gillet, Fred Frith, Bill Frisell, Henry Butler, Indigo Girls, Mark Ribot, Frank London, Allison Miller, and Nels Cline of Wilco among others.
Sue Orfield plays the tenor saxophone with the whimsy of Sonny Rollins, the passion of Kurt Cobain, the soul of Bill Withers, and the joy of Ella Fitzgerald. Along with a compelling mastery of her instrument, Sue brings to the stage a powerful presence and joy of all things musical. Sue has played with many musical greats over the years, including Bo Diddley, Bobby McFerrin, The Indigo Girls, Ann Wilson (Heart), Dizzy Gillespie, Ivan Neville, Jo Dee Messina, and more! She tours internationally with several groups, including The Tiptons Sax Quartet (Seattle/NYC), and Ellen Whyte (Portland). Sue was voted “Best Horn” by the Washington Blues Society for the years 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004. Her own group, The Sue Orfield Band (SOB), highlights Orfield’s talents as a composer as well as a player. SOB was voted Best Jazz Band in Volume One’s “Best Of The Chippewa Valley 2009” reader poll. (Eau Claire, WI) Sue makes her home in the Chippewa Valley of Wisconsin, and plays locally with bands from all over Wisconsin and Minnesota, including The Chippewa Valley Jazz Orchestra, Catya’s Trio, Willie Walker And The Butanes, Deep Water Reunion, Combo Flambe, and many more. Sue has also recorded with artists all over the united states, on at least 40 albums nationwide.
Tina Richardson has been a member of the Tiptons since 2004. She is a composer and arranger for her self titled Jazz Quintet, and works as a music teacher and free lance musician in Brooklyn, New York. She is the Overall Instrumental Soloist Winner from the 1997 Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival at the University of Idaho, where she attained her Bachelor’s of Music. Tina attained her Master of Music from the University of Washington in Seattle, where she met up with the Tiptons. Ms. Richerson was the first female to perform and record live with the Seattle Jazz Repertory Orchestra.
Rick Wabbies is an internationally acclaimed drummer and percussionist who has worked with artist such as k3, dreamhunter, Wodd Air Quartett, Ranajit Sengupta, Mulo Francel, and Lisa Wahlandt. His style oscillates between jazz, club beats, trance, noise and drum and bass, and free improvisation.
