Rick Margitza

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Rick Margitza at Pori Jazz festival in 2012.

Rick Margitza (born October 24, 1961 in Dearborn, Michigan) is an American jazz tenor saxophonist.

Margitza's paternal grandfather, a Hungarian Gypsy violinist, taught him to play the violin at the age of four. His father also played violin with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. Following this he played piano and oboe, and settled on tenor sax while in Fordson high school. He attended several colleges: Wayne State University, Berklee College of Music, University of Miami and Loyola University New Orleans. He toured with Maynard Ferguson and Flora Purim in the 1980s, and moved to New York City in 1988, where he played with Miles Davis.

Between 1989 and 1991, Margitza released three sessions for Blue Note Records, and has recorded copiously thereafter, including with Eddie Gómez, Tony Williams, Bobby Hutcherson, Maria Schneider, McCoy Tyner and Chick Corea. He has also composed a saxophone concerto and two symphonies for orchestra.

Since moving to Paris in 2003, he has performed with Martial Solal, François Moutin, Louis Moutin, Ari Hoenig, Franck Amsallem, Jean-Michel Pilc and Manuel Rocheman.

Discography

• Color (Blue Note Records, 1989) U.S. Jazz #9
• Hope (Blue Note, 1990) U.S. Jazz #11
• This is New (Blue Note, 1991) U.S. Jazz #19
• Standard New (EMI, 1991)
• Hands of Time (Challenge Records, 1994)
• Work It (SteepleChase Records, 1995)
• Game of Chance (Challenge, 1997)
• Heart of Hearts (Palmetto Records, 2000)
• Memento (Palmetto, 2001)
• Bohemia (Nocturne Jazz, 2005)
• Second Home (2006)

As sideman

With Stanley Cowell

• Setup (SteepleChase, 1994)

With Steve Masakowski

• What It Was (Blue Note, 1993)

With Andy LaVerne

• Serenade To Silver (SteepleChase, 1996)

With Ivan Paduart

• Ivan Paduart 3 & Rick Margitza - Still (Challenge, 2001)