Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith (born December 18, 1941) is an American trumpeter and music writer who works mainly in a special kind of music called creative music. He was one of three people considered for the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for Music for his work Ten Freedom Summers, which came out on May 22, 2012.

Biography

Smith was born in Leland, Mississippi, United States. He began by playing drums, mellophone, and French horn. Later, he chose to focus on the trumpet. He played in various R&B groups and, by 1967, became a member of the AACM. He also co-founded the Creative Construction Company, a trio with Leroy Jenkins and Anthony Braxton. In 1971, Smith created his own label called Kabell. He formed another band, the New Dalta Ahkri, with members such as Henry Threadgill, Anthony Davis, and Oliver Lake.

In the 1970s, Smith studied ethnomusicology at Wesleyan University. He played again with Anthony Braxton and recorded with Derek Bailey's Company. In the mid-1980s, Smith became Rastafarian and began using the name Wadada. In 1993, he started teaching at Cal Arts, a position he held until 2014. In addition to trumpet and flugelhorn, Smith plays several world music instruments, including the koto, kalimba, and atenteben (a Ghanaian bamboo flute). He has also taught courses in instrument making. His compositions often use a graphic notation system he calls "Ankhrasmation," which he developed in 1970.

In 1998, Smith and guitarist Henry Kaiser released Yo, Miles!, a tribute to Miles Davis's then-lesser-known 1970s electric period. On this album, Smith, Kaiser, and a large group of musicians recorded cover versions and original compositions inspired by Miles's electric music. The follow-up albums Sky Garden (released by Cuneiform in 2004) and Upriver (released in 2005) were recorded with a different group of musicians. Both groups included Michael Manring on bass.

Smith's Golden Quartet (with which he has released several albums) originally included Jack DeJohnette on drums, Anthony Davis on keyboards, and Malachi Favors on bass. After several changes, the Golden Quartet now includes Pheeroan akLaff on drums, John Lindberg on bass, and Davis on piano.

During the 2000s, Smith recorded albums for John Zorn's label Tzadik and Pi Recordings. In 2008, he and his Golden Quartet released a DVD titled Freedom Now.

Smith has lived in New Haven, Connecticut, for many years. He helped create a prominent culture for creative music in this city.

Discography

• Kabell Years: 1971–1979 (Tzadik, 2004) – includes Creative Music 1, Reflectativity, Song of Humanity, Solo Music: Ahkreanvention, and other material

With Muhal Richard Abrams

• Young at Heart/Wise in Time (Delmark, 1974)
• Geechee Recollections (Impulse!, 1973)
• 3 Compositions of New Jazz (Delmark, 1968)
• Silence (Freedom, 1969 [1975]) with Leroy Jenkins
• Anthony Braxton (BYG Actuel, 1969)
• This Time… (BYG Actuel, 1970)
• Trio and Duet (Sackville, 1974)
• Creative Orchestra Music 1976 (Arista, 1976)
• Creative Orchestra (Köln) 1978 (hatART, 1978 [1995])

With Creative Construction Company

• Creative Construction Company (Muse, 1970 [1975])
• Creative Construction Company Vol. II (Muse, 1970 [1976])

• Lebroba (ECM, 2018)
• For Players Only (JCOA Records, 1975)
• Yo, Miles! (Shanachie, 1998)
• Sky Garden (Cuneiform, 2004)
• Upriver (Cuneiform, 2004)
• The stone (2014)
• The Flam (Black Saint, 1975)

With Maurice McIntyre

• Humility in the Light of the Creator (Delmark, 1969)
• Sketches from Bamboo (Moers Music, 1979)
• New Orbit (Thirsty Ear, 2001)

With Spring Heel Jack

• The Sweetness of the Water (Thirsty Ear, 2004)
• Hackney Road (Treader, 2018) with Pat Thomas and Steve Noble

• 50th Birthday Celebration Volume 8 (Tzadik, 2003)
• The Unknown Masada (Tzadik, 2003)