Editing Henry Threadgill (section)

==Career==
Threadgill performed as a percussionist in his high-school marching band before taking up baritone saxophone, alto saxophone, and flute. He studied at the [[American Conservatory of Music]] in Chicago, majoring in piano, flute, and composition. He studied piano with Gail Quillman and composition with Stella Roberts.<ref name="Chinen" /> He was an original member of the Experimental Band, a precursor to the [[Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians]] (AACM) in his hometown of Chicago, and worked under the guidance of [[Muhal Richard Abrams]], before leaving to tour with a [[Gospel music|gospel]] band.<ref name="LarkinJazz"/> In 1967, he enlisted in the U.S. Army, playing with a rock band in Vietnam during the [[Vietnam War]] in 1967 and 1968. He was discharged in 1969.

After returning to Chicago, Threadgill joined AACM members bassist [[Fred Hopkins]] and drummer [[Steve McCall (drummer)|Steve McCall]] in a trio which would eventually become the group [[Air (jazz group)|Air]].<ref name="LarkinJazz"/> He moved to New York City, where he formed his first group, X-75, a nonet consisting of four reed players, four bass players, and a vocalist.<ref name="LarkinJazz"/>

In the early 1980s, Threadgill created his first critically acclaimed ensemble as a leader, the Henry Threadgill Sextet (actually a septet; he counted the two drummers as a single percussion unit),<ref>Giddins, Gary and Scott DeVeaux (2009). ''Jazz''. New York: W. W. Norton & Co, {{ISBN|978-0-393-06861-0}}</ref> which released three albums on About Time Records. After a hiatus, he formed New Air with [[Pheeroan akLaff]], replacing Steve McCall on drums, and reformed the Henry Threadgill<!-- Please do not modify this spelling. --> Sextett<!-- Please do not modify this spelling. --> (with two t's at the end). The six albums the group recorded feature some of his most accessible work, notably on the album ''[[You Know the Number]]''.<ref name="LarkinJazz"/> The group's unorthodox instrumentation included two drummers, double bass, cello, trumpet, and trombone, in addition to Threadgill's alto saxophone and flute.<ref name="LarkinJazz"/> Among the players were drummers akLaff, [[John Betsch]], Reggie Nicholson and Newman Baker; bassist [[Fred Hopkins]]; cellist [[Diedre Murray]]; trumpeters Rasul Siddik and Ted Daniels; [[cornet]]ist [[Olu Dara]]; and trombonists [[Ray Anderson (musician)|Ray Anderson]], [[Frank Lacy]], Bill Lowe, and [[Craig S. Harris (trombonist)|Craig Harris]].

During the 1990s, Threadgill pushed the musical boundaries even further with his ensemble Very Very Circus.<ref name="LarkinJazz"/> The group consisted of two tubas, two electric guitars, a trombone or French horn, and drums. With this group he explored more complex and highly structured forms of composition, augmenting the group with Latin percussion, French horn, violin, accordion, vocalists, and exotic instruments. He composed and recorded with other unusual instruments, such as a flute quartet (Flute Force Four, a one-time project from 1990); and combinations of four cellos and four acoustic guitars (on ''Makin' a Move'').

He was signed by [[Columbia Records]] for three albums. Since the dissolution of Very Very Circus, Threadgill has continued in his iconoclastic ways with ensembles such as Make a Move and Zooid. Zooid, currently a sextet with tuba (Jose Davila), acoustic guitar ([[Liberty Ellman]]), cello (Christopher Hoffman), drums (Elliot Kavee) and bass guitar ([[Stomu Takeishi]]), has been the primary vehicle for Threadgill's compositions in the 2000s.

In 2018, Threadgill composed the string quartet "Sixfivetwo" for the [[Kronos Quartet]], which they recorded as part of their "Fifty for the Future" project.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.50ftf.kronosquartet.org/composers/henry-threadgill |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200209043555/http://50ftf.kronosquartet.org/composers/henry-threadgill |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 9, 2020 |title=Henry Threadgill: Sixfivetwo |website=Kronosquartet.com |access-date=February 1, 2021 }}</ref>