John Surman

John Surman

born on 30/8/1944 in Tavistock, England, United Kingdom

John Surman

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

John Douglas Surman (born 30 August 1944) is an English jazz saxophone, bass clarinet, and synthesizer player, and composer of free jazz and modal jazz, often using themes from folk music. He has composed and performed music for dance performances and film soundtracks.[1]

Life and career

Surman was born in Tavistock, Devon. He initially gained recognition playing baritone saxophone in the Mike Westbrook Band in the mid-1960s, and was soon heard regularly playing soprano saxophone and bass clarinet as well.[1] His first playing issued on a record was with the Peter Lemer Quintet in 1966. After further recordings and performances with jazz bandleaders Mike Westbrook and Graham Collier and blues-rock musician Alexis Korner,[2] he made the first record under his own name in 1968.

In 1969 he founded the well-regarded and influential group The Trio along with two expatriate American musicians, bassist Barre Phillips and drummer Stu Martin.[3] In the mid-1970s he founded one of the earliest all-saxophone jazz groups, S.O.S., along with alto saxophonist Mike Osborne and tenor saxophonist Alan Skidmore. During this early period he also recorded with (among others) saxophonist Ronnie Scott, guitarist John McLaughlin, bandleader Michael Gibbs, trombonist Albert Mangelsdorff, and pianist Chris McGregor's Brotherhood of Breath.

By 1972 he had begun experimenting with synthesizers. That year he recorded Westering Home, the first of several solo projects on which he played all parts himself via overdubbing. He recorded his final album with Mike Westbrook, Citadel/Room 315 in 1975.[1]

Many of the musical relationships he established during the 1970s have continued to the present. These include a quartet with pianist John Taylor, bassist Chris Laurence, and drummer John Marshall; duets and other projects with Norwegian singer Karin Krog; and duets and other projects with American drummer/pianist Jack DeJohnette.[1]

His relationship with ECM Records has also been continuous from the late 1970s to the present, as Surman has recorded prolifically for the label playing bass clarinet, recorders, soprano and baritone saxophones and using synthesisers, both solo with a wide range of other musicians.

In recent years he has composed several suites of music that feature his playing in unusual contexts, including with church organ and chorus (Proverbs and Songs, 1996); with a classical string quintet (Coruscating); and with the London Brass and Jack DeJohnette (Free and Equal, 2001). He has also played in a unique trio with Tunisian oud-player Anouar Brahem and bassist Dave Holland (Thimar, 1997); has performed the songs of John Dowland with singer John Potter formerly of the Hilliard Ensemble; and made contributions to the drum and bass album Disappeared by Spring Heel Jack.

Other musicians he has worked with include bassist Miroslav Vitous, bandleader Gil Evans, pianist Paul Bley and Vigleik Storaas, saxophonist (and composer) John Warren, guitarists Terje Rypdal and John Abercrombie and trumpeter Tomasz Stańko.

Awards and honors

  • 1999: Spellemannprisen in the category Jazz, with Karin Krog for the album Bluesand
  • 2013: Spellemannprisen in the category Jazz, with Karin Krog for the album Songs About This and That

Discography

As leader

  • John Surman (Deram, 1968)
  • Flashpoint: NDR Jazz Workshop (1969) (released 2011) with Alan Skidmore, Kenny Wheeler, Malcolm Griffiths
  • Way Back When (1969) (released 2005) with John Taylor, John Marshall, Mike Osborne
  • How Many Clouds Can You See? (Deram, 1970)
  • Live in Altena (1970)
  • Room 1220 (Trio, 1970) with Albert Mangelsdorff
  • The Trio (Dawn, 1970) with Barre Phillips and Stu Martin
  • Conflagration (Dawn, 1970)
  • Tales of the Algonquin (Deram, 1971) with John Warren and Alan Skidmore
  • By Contact (Ogun, 1971)
  • Westering Home (Island, 1972)
  • Morning Glory (Island, 1973), with Terje Rypdal
  • Bass Is (Enja, 1974)
  • Live at Moers Festival (Moers, 1975)
  • Live at Woodstock Town Hall (Dawn, 1976)
  • Upon Reflection (ECM, 1979)
  • The Amazing Adventures of Simon Simon (ECM, 1981) with Jack DeJohnette
  • Such Winters of Memory (ECM, 1982)
  • Withholding Pattern (ECM, 1985)
  • Private City (ECM, 1987)
  • Road to Saint Ives (ECM, 1990)
  • Adventure Playground (ECM, 1992) with Paul Bley, Gary Peacock, and Tony Oxley
  • The Brass Project (ECM, 1993) with John Warren
  • Stranger than Fiction (ECM, 1994) with John Taylor, Chris Laurence, and John Marshall
  • Nordic Quartet (ECM, 1994) with Karin Krog, Terje Rypdal and Vigleik Storaas
  • A Biography of the Rev. Absalom Dawe (ECM, 1995)
  • Proverbs and Songs (ECM, 1997)
  • Coruscating (ECM, 1999)
  • Invisible Nature (ECM, 2002)
  • Free and Equal (ECM, 2003)
  • The Spaces in Between (ECM, 2007)
  • The Rainbow Band Sessions (Losen, 2011)
  • Rain on the Window (ECM, 2008) with Howard Moody
  • Brewster's Rooster (ECM, 2009) with Jack DeJohnette, John Abercrombie, and Drew Gress
  • Saltash Bells (ECM, 2012)
  • Songs About This and That (Meantime, 2013), feat. Karin Krog
  • Another Sky with the Bergen Big Band (2014)
  • Invisible Threads (ECM, 2018) with Nelson Ayres & Rob Waring

As sideman

With Paul Bley

  • 1986 Fragments (ECM)
  • 1987 The Paul Bley Quartet (ECM)
  • 1991 In the Evenings Out There (ECM)

With Graham Collier

  • 2005 Workpoints
  • 2007 Hoarded Dreams

With Christine Collister

  • 1998 The Dark Gift of Time
  • 2000 Songbird
  • 2002 An Equal Love

With Alexis Korner

  • 1970 Both Sides
  • 1980 The Party LP
  • 1982 Alexis Korner and Friends

With Karin Krog

  • 1978 Cloud Line Blue
  • 1986 Freestyle
  • 1999 Bluesand
  • 2002 Raindrops, Raindrops

With Chris McGregor

  • 1969 Chris McGregor Sptet/Up to Earth (Fledg'ling 2008)
  • 1970 Chris McGregor's Brotherhood of Breath

With John McLaughlin

  • 1969 Extrapolation
  • 1970 Where Fortune Smiles

With Mike Osborne and Alan Skidmore

  • 1972 Shapes
  • 1974 Looking for the Next One
  • 1975 SOS

With Barre Phillips

  • 1976 Mountainscapes (ECM)
  • 1979 Journal Violone II (ECM)
  • 1980 Music by... (ECM)

With John Potter

  • 1999 In Darkness Let Me Dwell
  • 2003 Care-Charming Sleep (ECM)
  • 2006 Romaria
  • 2013 Night Sessions

With Miroslav Vitous

  • 1980 First Meeting (ECM)
  • 1981 Miroslav Vitous Group
  • 1983 Journey's End (ECM)

With Mike Westbrook

  • 1967 Celebration
  • 1968 Release
  • 1969 Marching Song
  • 1975 Citadel/Room 315

With others

References

  1. ^ a b c d "John Surman Biography". Musicolog.com.
  2. ^ Conrad, Thomas (6 September 2005). "John Surman:Listen and Trustl". All About Jazz. Retrieved 2010-07-20.
This page was last modified 02.04.2019 10:20:35

This article uses material from the article John Surman from the free encyclopedia Wikipedia and it is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License.