Background
Izenzon was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Izenzon was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
He graduated from the Carnegie Institute of Technology and later received a master"s degree from the Manhattan School of Music.
Izenzon began playing double bass at the age of twenty-four. He played in his hometown before moving to New York City in 1961. There he played with Paul Bley, Archie Shepp, Sonny Rollins, and Bill Dixon, but he is best known for his association with Ornette Coleman, which began in October 1961.
He played in Coleman"s Town Hall, 1962 concert and played with him frequently from 1965 to 1968, often in a trio format with Charles Moffett.
During this time Izenzon also recorded with Harold McNair and Yoko Ono. In 1973 Izenzon received a Doctor of Philosophy in psychotherapy from Northwestern University.
From 1977 Izenzon worked again with Coleman and Motian, up until his death in 1979. Izenzon had a heart attack and was dead on arrival at Bellevue Hospital in New York City.
Bassist John Lindberg dedicated his 1997 album Offers for Luminosity to Izenzon.