Album Notes

Alt Tal is a passionate Jazz trio based in San Francisco, led by saxophonist and composer David Alt.

We perform in town and hope you enjoy our music both in person and on this CD, Open the Gates!.

Here is what friends and colleagues are saying about Open the Gates! Enjoy!


Keep doing what you're doing! I especially liked:
The Nymph (7), Frivolity (8) and Elaine (11).

-- Michael Marcus


The music is amazing! The rhythms are surprising and new ones seem to lurk around the corner. It's defintely fresh. The only thing that confused me was there were written lyrics inside, but there is no singing.

Oh yeah, one more thing. PLEASE bring ELAINE with you when ever you perform!

-- Daveen DiGiacomo


It has never happened that I put on your CD, and nobody comes up and asks, "who is that"?

-- Patricia Kack


I remembered the time it rained and you and I and someone else were hopping up and down in a puddle of mud...

we decided that hiding from the rain was futile so we stepped right into it, and were soaking wet within minutes, and it seemed the rain would never end...

It is a really nice memory, thank you.

-- Valerie Goldburt, about Force of Nature (3)


"You're monsters!"
[we got this comment from three separate people]

"I kept looking up to see if it was really a trio--
how could so much music be coming from three people?"

"As good as any Jazz you'll hear in the world."

--From January 2008's audience at Cafe Van Kleef


Your Seven O'Clock Tune is very nicely done--the Indian music influnece is there but quite subtle, mainly hearing it in some of the shenai like phrasing.

I think your bass player also plays sarod also.

It's great work.

--Mustafa Stefan Dill


"You made my night"
"Thanks for making my night"
[we got this comment from two distinct people]

"I hear all the bands that play here, and of all the
music in this style, yours is the best."
[from a bartender]

--From March 2008's audience at Cafe Van Kleef


You play the saxophone like nobody else!!!! It is a pleasure listen to you! Musical kisses from Spain, man!

--Azucena Alonso


Got the CD. I love the lyric concept.

--Thomas "Tommy D" Doggett