Sometimes ago when I reminisced about the great Charlie Parker, I wondered whether the saxophone was, perhaps, better suited to Jazz. There was just something so delicate about those artful improvisations with the sound, especially with the faster tempos, and there was the Saxophone sitting as the salt of the genre. Years later, when I started bingeing on the wonderful world of Christian gospel music, I discovered yet another home where this beautiful instrument thrived in relish.
One contemporary maestro whose work stood out for me was Adedoyin Oseni, a young Nigerian saxophonist presently in the United Kingdom. His rendition of “Seun Rere”, a popular 70s bop by Christy Essien Igbokwe, stole the show at the Independence Day Festival at Hudderstion, last October. The tone balance and control throughout the performance reflected Oseni’s performance prowess, as the live-streamed nostalgia-driven display left mouths in awe.
Another conscious effort by Oseni to shape his legacy is in his outstanding discography. Usually, Nigerian Christian Gospel musicians have a knack for creating music with the Saxophone, but a lack of sonic cohesion with a lot of these records has led to a cacophony of mediocrity. Oseni’s 2022 composition titled, ‘Incense’, featuring Theophilus Ogaga, rebels the norm with its creative flip on Simisola Agbede’s record, ‘Yeshua’.
Agbede’s song, which is still going viral on TikTok, is a household tune, but sitting with a stronger and unique fusion of Ambient melodies in ‘Incense’. The song also layers two other indigenous Christian worship songs, ‘You are here’, and ‘Olorun to to bi’, all of which are seamlessly arranged in Oseni’s composition.
Oseni’s flow completely elevates the prowess of his Saxophone horns, measuring his notes and phrases with adequate balance. The listener doesn’t get caught out of breath, and the synergy boosts the cohesiveness and replay value of the song. Onstage, he wields this same advantage, as he showcased in his recent performance at the YMR Global concert, in Manchester, last week. The mastery in his cadences left his audiences spellbound, as he performed a solo.
While Oseni’s virtuoso reigns supreme in his cadences and tone balance, his legacy will be remembered also for his melodic direction and witty improvisation. His earlier work including ‘Elu Agogo’, and other keynote performances across Nigerian concerts as well have elevated his image as a composer and performer per excellence.
