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Cipher Syntax

1989 studio album by Strata Institute

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Source updated May 28, 2026

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Cipher Syntax is an album by Strata Institute, an M-Base group led by saxophonists Greg Osby and Steve Coleman, recorded in 1988 and released on the JMT label.

01Reception

The AllMusic review by Michael G. Nastos states, "An acquired taste, but still excellent".

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic

02Track listing

All compositions by Steve Coleman except as indicated

"Slang" - 9:18
"Bed Stuy" - 7:08
"Turn of Events" (Greg Osby) - 3:23
"Decrepidus" (Osby) - 3:49
"Ihgnat Down" (Strata Institute) - 2:23
"Micro-Move" - 4:17
"Wild" - 3:04
"Humantic" (Osby) - 7:19
"Abacus" - 7:28
"Ihgnat" (Strata Institute) - 3:27

03Personnel

Steve Coleman - alto saxophone
Greg Osby - alto saxophone, soprano saxophone
David Gilmore - electric guitar (tracks 1-3, 5 & 8-10)
Bob Hurst - acoustic bass (tracks 1-5 & 7-10)
Marvin "Smitty" Smith (tracks 1-3, 5 & 7-10), Tani Tabbal (tracks 1, 4, 8 & 9) - drums

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Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Cipher Syntax”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

Images, from Wikimedia Commons:

Cipher Syntax.jpg by Unknown author, Fair use

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