ACSMInterview

Australian' ClarinetandSaxophone Volume10,Number2 }une2007 Print PostApprovedPP 424022/00165 . . , ff , f J I , \ , , - Intervie~~ith I metMarkTaylorwhenHughJackman'sBoyFromOZtourtravelledtoBrisbanein2006andI had thegoodfortuneofbeinginthereedsectionwithhim.Aswithallthemusiciansinvitedtoperform theseason,I wasalsoinitiallystruckbyhisamazingsoundonallhisinstruments- altosaxophone, fluteandpiccolo,thenfurtherawedbythefacthedidnotmakea mistake anywhere!- notnotes, tone,pitchorevenstyle. UponchattingI realisedhehadlivedquiteavariedlifeof musicandtravel,performingand recordingwithsomestarinternationalentertainersandshows.I seizedtheopportunityin askingif hewouldminddoingtheinterviewforthemagazineandpossessingtheincrediblyunassumingand easygoingnaturethathedoes,hegraciouslygavehistime,memoriesandadvice.HisCD 'Shakedown' canbepurchasedsecurelyfromhisinformativepersonalwebsitewww.taylormademusic.com.au - DianaTolmie Whatwasyourearliestmusicalexpe- rienceorimpressionofmusic? Myearliestmusicalexperiences wouldhavebeenathomeasachild inBathurstwithmymotherplaying thepianoandthefamilystanding arounddoingasing-alongkindof thing songsfromDisneyshows and other Broadwaytype musi- cals.Ienjoyedthesesituationsalot. Mymotherhasalwaysbeenvery passionateaboutsingingandplaying manyof thegreatpopularsongs fromtheGreatAmericanSongbook. Hearingmanyofthosegreatcompo- sitionsbytheColePorters,Gershwins, IrvingBerlin,RodgersandHartetal atayoungagehasmostcertainly remainedwithme.Myfatherisalso anavidlistenerof classicalmusic andhadasizableLPcollectionthat heplayedregularly.Throughthese experiencesIfeelthatfromanearly ageIwasexposedtofinemusicby wonderfulcomposers.Therewas alwaysagreatappreciationofmusic inourhouseholdwhichhasnodoubt hadaverybigimpactonme. Whatwasyourmusiceducationin Bathurstlikewhenyouweregrowing up?Didyouhaveanyparticularrole modelsorvisitingartiststhatinspired youtodevelopyourskillsfurther? Musiceducationandin partic- ularperformingopportunitiesasI wasgrowingupin Bathurstwere extremelystrongand positive. Initiallyataroundtheageof 9or 10I tookpianolessonsfromalocal teacherbut I wasn'treallymoti- vatedto learnthepiano.I wasfar moreinterestedin playingsoccer andcricket.However,mymumwas alwaysveryinfluentialandinsisted thatmyolderbrotherandI learnto playsomething.Mybrotherstayed withpianoandbecameveryprofi- cient , lateraddingdrumsand trumpet.(He'saprofessionaldrummer now).I settledwith theclarinet, startinglessonsattheCentralWest branchoftheNSWConservatorium ofMusicinBathurst.Thebranchwas - set up around1980and I started lessonstherein 1981atage11with a verygood teachernamedGeoff Simmwhohadrecentlyretiredfrom theRAAFbandinSydneytoteach woodwindandto alsoconductthe Bathurstand RSLConcertBands.I laterjoined the concertbandand performedregularlyin eisteddfods, concertsandnumerousotherevents. My localhighschoolalsohadsome excellentmusicteachersandavery goodmusicprogramwithstageand concertbands.BythetimeI picked upsaxophonein1982inhighschool to. ""II,.. -.. -....... June 2007 3 I foundI was regularlyplayingin schoolandcommunityensembles. Mymumwasalwayskeentoseethat we haddecentinstrumentsandas weprogressedshewouldn'thesitate in helpinguspurchasebettergear. Bathursthasanexcellentamateur musicalsocietyandfromaboutthe ageof141wasplayingintheorches- trasfor their annualproductions. Therewasalsoaverygoodtownbig bandthatGeoffSimmledthatI later joinedandreallylovedperforming with.Ishouldsayalsothatmybrother John hadconsiderableinfluenceon meandhehadagreatloveofmusic with a growing recordcollection also.Heintroducedmetoalbumsof GroverWashingtonJr,DukeEllington, AI Jarreau,GlennMiller,BuddyRich, BobBarnard verydiversebutvery inspiringforayoungplayer.Musica VivainSchoolsalsosent"TheSydney Jazz Quintet"to myhigh schoolin about 1983and I rememberthat workshopbeing verymemorable andinspiring.Theturningpointfor methoughwasprobably1984when I attendedthe PanPacificJazzand Big BandCamp in Sydney.James andJohn Morrisonwerethe main teachers,along with membersof their big bandat the time.I think it was probablythe experienceof beingaroundthesemusiciansand their musicthat mademedecide that I wouldbecomea proplayer.I thenstartedcomingtoSydneyonce amonthinmylasttwoyearsofhigh schooI...1986/87...tohavelessons withthegreatsaxophoneplayerand teacherColLoughnan. DonBurrowsishailedbymanyto be aconsummatemusicianandahighly respectedgentleman-arethereany particular memoriesof your study with him thatyou felt left a lasting impressiononyourmusicaljourney? I loved my time studying with Don.Amongstotherthingshereally encouragedandinspiredmetoplay the flute well. I'dhad a verysolid saxophonetechnicalgroundingwith ColLoughnanandthetransitionto seriousflutestudywithDonwasthe logicalstep.Wespentalotoftimeon tone,techniqueandbreathingand applyingitto bothclassicalandjazz situations.I haveno doubtthathis influenceandinspirationhasenabled meto moveintoprofessionalsitua- tionssuchasBroadwaytypeshows andstudioworkwithabsoluteconfi- 4 dencewhenplayingtheflute.Healso gavemetheopportunityandconfi- dencetogrowanddevelopasalead altosaxplayerinbigbands.Oh he isalsoaclassicstoryandjoketeller so I'malwayssmilingwhenI reflect on the few yearswith Don.He'sa wonderfulmusicianwithgreatspirit, passionand humour.Thosequali- tieshavecertainlyinspiredandinflu- encedmeovertheyears. Describeyourfirstpaid'gig'? Firstpaidgigwasatage13at':Julie's Steakhouse"inBathurst.Mybrother John playedpianoandI playedalto sax.John had written some little arrangementsfor usof somesongs from"TheReadersDigestBookof PopularSongs"andwe serenaded thediners.I remembergettingpaid $20.00anda greatsteakdinnerfor threehourswork.Atage131hadbeen making$5.00forthreehoursonmy paperdeliveryroute thechoice to startdoing gigswasn'tdifficult. Fromaroundtheageof16Iwasregu- larlyplayingin localpopandrock'n rollbandsinpubsandclubsaround BathurstandOrangeandbeingpaid well atthetime.Somepub gigs in Sydneystill paythe sameamount I I Inow twenty years ater.. Youwereobviouslydoingextremely wellatyourcareerinAustraliaasone of the highlightswasasa finalist in the1993and1994AustralianNational Jazz Awards at the Wangarratta Festivalof Jazz inVictoria.Thenyou wentoverseasto NewYorkto study with manyamazingUSjazz legends includingBobMintzer,RalphMoore, BarryHarris,GaryDialandGaryFoster. Whatmadeyouwantto gooverseas when you were obviously carving quiteasolidcareerpathinAustralia, and what was your impression of NewYorkincomparisonto Australia-particularly in relationto the jazz sceneandthegeneralmusicalwork environment? Thechoiceto travelto NewYork to studyandliveseemednaturalto me.Eventhoughgigswereplentiful in AustraliaandI wasdoingpretty well, I understoodthat NewYork wasreallythecuttingedgewhenit cametojazzandjazzsaxophone.To growanddevelopmoreIfeltIwould needto be surroundedby all that NewYorkoffersintheseareas.I had visitedthereforatwoweeksin1992 butIdecidedthatto reallybenefitas a musician,I wouldhaveto stayfor AustralianClarinetandSaxophone severalmonths.My girlfriendandI foundasubletapartmentandhadan unforgettabletimetherein1994.Itis stillprobablythesinglemostinfluen- tialexperiencein mymusicaldevel- opmentthusfar.I learntsomegreat thingsfrombeingoneon onewith themusiciansyoulisted,butoverall I feel that what impactsone the mostaboutNewYorkis itsenergy, itsintensityanditsartisticdiversity. This is what hasstayedwith me.I did loadsof jammingandbusking with bands on the street and in the subwaywhichwasa blastand provedparticularlygreatforstamina andchops.And thereareof course the obviousthingslikebeingable to walkoutyourdooratanygiven momentand be able to hearthe world'sbestperformersdowhatthey doonanynightoftheweek expe- riencesthatwedon'tgetto absorb asfrequentlyandinasshortatime framehereinAustralia.However,asa musicianwhoplaysjazzandisinflu- encedheavilybyjazzmusicIguess what I really gained from being in NewYorkCitywasa far deeper understandingandgreaterrespect towardsthejazztraditionandtothe artformthat isjazz.Stylisticallyfor methatwould be representedby the post-bebopandpost-Coltrane periodsof jazz. I shouldalso add thoughthathavingspentthattime inNewYorkandlaterinLondonIdo feelthatfromaworkingprofessional musician'spointofview,wedohave aworldclassstandardofperformers andperformanceshereinAustralia, beitinjazz,classical,musicaltheatre or commercialand creativemusic scenes.I'mveryappreciativeof this andproudto beinvolvedinit. Uponyourreturndidyoufindithard assimilatingbackintotheAustralian lifestyle? Notsomuch,althoughthatbeing said, I moved back to inner city Sydney(Darlinghurst/KingsCross) whichisaboutascloseasyouwould reallygetanywhereinAustraliatothe I pace and diversityof New York City, albeit on a smallerscale.Ialso fortu- , natelycamebackandslottedstraight backintoplayingandgigginga lot andwritingmaterialthatI recorded onmyCD"Shakedown"whichisvery evocativeof mytimein NewYork.I havebeenbackto NewYorka few timessinceandcontinueto loveit, thoughI now live by the beach in Sydneyand I do lovethe lifestylehere. You have performed for acolossal amount of high profile international artists in shows, musicals, touring and recording sessions.Do you have any particularly memorable eventsor stories to tell? Yes...certainlysomeverymemorableeventsand tours.The RoyalAlbert Hallseasonin London asa soloistalongsideSirCliffRichardis high on the list. Another great highlight recentlywas performing with The Sydney All Star Big Band with one of my heroes ...the great UStenor sax player and composer/arrangerBobMintzer.Earlyinmycareer I did somegreatconcertswith the wonderful US jazz vocalistLou Rawlsthat hasalwaysbeen very memorable. Ialwayslovesharingthe bandstandwith James Morrison.That occusquite frequentlyfor me and it's always loads of fun and very exciting being next to him, hearing him play so amazinglyand swinging as hardashe does. In20021performedinTorontoCanadawithTom Burlinson'sshow"Frank-ALife in Song"with a big band madeup of Canada'stop jazz players.From this Iwasaskedto travelto Moscow to performin the orchestrafor a US touring production of the Broadwayshow'42ndStreet:ItwasthefirstEnglish speakingmusicaleverperformedin Russia.More significant perhaps was the timing whilst we wereperformingthereanothertheatreacoupleof milesaway in Moscow was attackedby Chechen Rebelterroristsand the audienceand casttaken hostagefor three days.It madeworldwide news and the incident of course drastically impacted our show and our mentalstate...!Actually,several of the RussianmusiciansI was playing with had closeacquaintanceskilled in those attacks.It was an extremelytestingtime for all . Therangeofstylesrequiredofyouinyouremploy- mentseemsincrediblybroad,andyourschedule mustbeveryfull to haveachievedall you have thusfar -do you havea techniqueor methodto getyourmind'ingear'for thedemandsof your music? Yes.Often,dependingonthestyleI'llbeplaying, I mightput on a CD beforethe gig duringmy warm-upor in thecarto listento someonewho playsin the wayI mightbe havingto playon the upcomingperformance.egoIf it'san R& B or pop gig,I mightstickon someMikeBrecker, KirkWhalumor DavidSanbornandgetintotheir headspace.This is particularlyhelpfulpriorto a recordingsessionwhereI mighthaveto put downasolo.If it'sajazzblowinggig perhapsa CannonballAdderleyrecordingor HankMobley, SonnyRollinsetc.Ifindthatextremelyhelpful.It's notaboutcopyingthem,butmoreaboutconcept. I loveto checkoutbigbandrecordingsbeforea bigbandgigandlistentoagreatleadaltoplayer likeDanHigginsfromLAor anolderrecording withMarshallRoyalfromtheCountBasieBand.I tryandgetintothatheadspace.Woodwind-wiseI mightstickonaMozartClarinetorFluteConcerto - recordingto getthetonalconceptstrongin myhead,or listento EddieDanielsdohisthingonclarinet.It'sreallyhelpful.Iamalsovery awareoftheimportanceofbreathandrelaxationwhenitcomesto playingtheinstruments,soI findpracticingmeditation/yogaand doingphysicalexerciselikeswimmingandwalkingto beof great benefit,to bodyandmind,particularlywhenI haveafullweekof performances. Youhaveplayedasafeaturedsaxophonesoloistforamongstother things-SirCliffRichardforhis40thAnniversaryConcertsintheUK, John Farnham,andTheBoyFromOzAustralianTourthusyouareno strangerto largeandcriticalaudiences.Doyougetnervousbeing insuchahighprofileposition?If so-howdoyoucombatthis? Interestingly,Ifindthebigarenashowsnottoobadfornerves.It's othercircumstanceslikebeingthrownintoadeputyorsubbingsitu- ationinapitforashowthatcanbereallychallenging whenyou havetoslotinandsoundstrongwhentherestoftheplayersarewell- rehearsedandcomfortablewithallthematerialanddirection.Live TVcanbearealtestalso,butthemoreI'vedoneovertheyears,the morecomfortableandconfidentI'vebecome.Iguesssomeexperi- encecertainlyhelps.Onceagain,beingingoodshapeandunder- standinghowto keeprelaxedisverybeneficial.Funnilyenough,I sometimesfindthepresenceof mymusicalpeersandmentorsto bethecatalystforanynervesratherthana largeaudience.Iguess that'snormaltosomeextent. Youalsoplayavarietyof instruments-doyouhaveapreferredsaxo- phone,apreferredinstrumentto double? My preferreddoublewould betheflute.As far assaxophone goes,itdependsonthestyleandmusicI'mgoingto beplaying.I feelequallyathomeontenorandalto.Ihavecertainpreferencesin I Cl~rkW FobesI Clarinet &Saxophone Mouthpieces Clark W Fobesmouthpiecesare superiorcraftsmanship,pure sound, precisearticulationandexcellent intonation!. Availablenowfor trialat: BrisbaneBrass& Woodwind07- ))678776 GoldCoastBrass& Woodwinds07- 5561177) MelbourneBrass& Woodwind0) -9578)677 Adelaide:PrestoMusic08-81771++7 June2007 5 given situations.Bigbandandshow workit'salto.Smallgroupjazz,..... tenor.Onapopgig alto.R&B/funk hornsection tenor.IfIhadtotake oneonadesertisland probably thetenor. Foraspiringdoublersoutthere-do youhaveanyparticularfoolproof techniquesto sharethatmakethe changesfrominstrumentto instru- mentany'safer~anymethodsforprac- tice,embouchurehints? Tonalconceptisprobablythemost importantelementwhenswitching between instrumentsquickly. Hearinginyourheadhowyouwant theinstrumentto soundisa large partofgettingintherightzone.It's funny,thebrainisableto subcon- sciouslymakeallthethroatmuscles, embouchureandairstreametc.do thecorrectthingif it hasastrong referencein thiscase,howyou thinkandpre-hearthewayyouwant theinstrumenttosound.Thisalso tiesinwiththestylisticconceptthat Imentionedearlierwhenitcomesto certainplayersthatonemaywantto emulate.Ifyouhavetheirstyleand soundembeddedinyourmind,it's onlynaturalthattheirapproachwill comethroughinyourplaying.Of course,havingacomfortablesetup andgoodreedsareimportant.IfI'm playingasmallamountofclarinet amongsttheotherhorns,Imightput onasofterreed,whereasifthereis goingtobeloadsofclarinettoplay, I preferto havemoreresistance.A littlebuzzingofthelipsandcheeks priortoplayingthefluteaftera lot ofsaxorclarinetcanhelpinafew barsrestbeforeplaying.Longtones andovertonepracticeon all the instrumentsisanessentialpartof mywarm-upandthisisveryhelpful. Keepinganopenandrelaxedoral cavityonallthehornsishighlyeffec- tiveasisofcoursekeepingthebody freeoftensionandalwaysbreathing correctly.I thinkJamesMorrsionis abletodowhathedoessowell becausehehasanextremelyclear ideaofhowallhisinstrumentswill soundandhe'sgenerallyalways relaxedwhendoingwhathedoes. (Andofcoursehe'safreak ). Whatisyoursetup? SopranoSaxophone Yamaha YSS-62R SelmerSuperSession"J" Hard RubberMouthpiece 6 "Olegature"Ligature RicoStrength3Reeds Alto Saxophone Selmer Mark VI, 1961.(Serial No. 96XXX) Meyer Hard Rubber MouthpieceRefaced(betweenMed 7&8)"Olegature"LigatureVandoren V16Strength3Reeds TenorSaxophone SelmerMarkVI 1957.(SerialNo 70XXX)metalOttoLink8*tenorsax mouthpiece,customisedby Mark Spencer.It'sa silverplated piece, withabaffle.VandorenV16#3Reeds.) "Olegature"Ligature,Vandoren BaritoneSaxophone John Lehner"DonBurrows"Model. Low A Berg LarsenHard Rubber Mouthpiece105/2Refaced"Olegature" LigatureRicoJazzSelectStrength3S Reeds Piccolo JeffWeissmanModelWoodenwith CustomMadeHeadjoint Flute MuramatsuOSHandmadeSolid SilverOpenHole,Low B,OffsetG AltoFlute Armstrong BbClarinet BuffetR13VandorenB45.or Leblanc"EddieDaniels"Mouthpiece (refaced)VandorenV12Strength3.5 or4Reeds BassClarinet LeblancEsprit-LowEb Selmer C85/120MouthpieceVandoren 'Traditional'Strength2.5Reeds Doyouhaveanyrecordingprojects comingup? Yes,thisyearIplanto do anotherCD ofmyown it'swelloverdue.Itwill likelybeajazzprojectmadeoforig- inalsandstandards,someacoustic tracksandperhapswithsomeelec- tricbassororgan.Also,thereare alwaystheregularrecordingdates forotherartiststhatcomeupduring theyear. Whatareyourfuturegoalsinyour musiccareerand/orlife? ,alwayswanttoplaythat'sagiven, thoughI'mbecomingmoreselec- tiveinthechoiceofsituationsthatI playin.I'dliketocomposemoreand releasemoreof myownmusic.I'd liketo perhapswriteforfilmeven- tuallysomeday.I'maavidlistenerof filmsoundtracksandlovethework of peoplelikeTerenceBlanchard andhowheutilisesjazzstylesinto AustralianClarinetandSaxophone motionpicture.I don'thavekidsyet butthatwill change...I do planto havea family.Oh,andtravelwise, anotherextendedNewYorkvisit,as wellasperhapsaEuropeantourwith agroupor artist.I'veneverbeento SouthAmerica I'dlovetovisitand playinBrazil,Peru,Chileetcandalso Cuba.Thatwillhappentoo I'msure. Do you haveany advicefor under- gradstudentslooking forwardto a careerinsaxophone? Frommyexperience,beingversa- tile and adaptableto manysitua- tionsand stylesis essential.I hear manygreatyoungjazz improvisers or wonderfulclassicalsaxophonists whodon'tplayoutsideacertainstyle. Thatmaybe bychoice,howeverif you are looking to a careerand generatingsomesortof living,itcan belimiting....(unlessyouareableto createalucrativesolorecordingand concerttourcareer).Thejob oppor- tunities are much smallerwhen locked into one or two stylesof musicor playing.If youareagreat sightreaderbutdon'timprovise,I'd suggestdevelopingthatskillinorder to increaseperformingopportunities, andviceversa,ifyoucanimprovisea greatjazzorpopsolobutdon'tsight readwell,workonthatarea.There's plentytogain.Also,mostimportantly, listento asmanygreatsaxophone playersin awidevarietyof stylesas possible.Somuchisavailablenowa- daysvia the web- downloadsetc and the ability to buy CDsworld- wideandsharefilesattheclickofa button.Understandingandlearning the wide vocabularyof the instru- ment is probablythe mostimpor- tantthing,andformeitisextremely enjoyable. Didyoudabbleinclassicalmusic? Certainlywhenstudyingtheflute. I alsoliketo workthroughclassical etudesandexercisesonalltheinstru- mentswhenI practice.I'moftenin situationsthatdefinitelyrequirea classicalapproachanddiscipline,be itacommercia'orchestralrecording sessionor performanceandalsoin severalof theBroadway-stylescores thatI'veplayed. - Interview by Diona Toimie --