Tim Clarkson's High 5

Historical article recovered from a Wayback capture dated 2018-02-24.

High 5

Tim Clarkson began playing jazz at age 15 in rural Queensland. Since moving to Sydney in 1998, he has appeared with a diverse array of world-class performers in Australia, the USA and Canada. He has appeared with George Benson and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, blues legends Russell Jackson, Chris Kleeman and Bob Stannard (B.B. King), Montreal’s legendary Vic Vogel (Maynard Fergusson), Randy Waldman (George Benson, Barbra Streisand) and hip-hop outfit Side-C (Montreal). In Australia he leads his own projects and performs with multi-ARIA award winning ‘MARA!’, James Morrison, Lily Dior, Dahlia Dior, Dan Barnett Big Band, Matt Baker, FreeFlow and The Brad Child Orchestra. Tim recently followed up his Masters Degree research at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music on saxophonist Mark Turner by studying with him for 3 months in New York.

The Tim Clarkson Trio has performed together and individually at the 55 Bar in New York City, The Sydney Opera House, Jazzgroove, the Basement, 505, Bohemian Grove and Taylor Galleries throughout Sydney for the last three years, growing in versatility and intuitive understanding of the rhythm and complexity of contemporary jazz. All three members continue their education playing with the current masters of their instruments in New York and globally. Tim recently recorded his second album with ex-pat Barney McAll, and New York musicians Dan Weiss (David Binney) and Hans Glawischnig (Chick Corea) due for release in the coming months.

“Clarkson is constantly engaging and driving on alto and tenor saxophones…”

JOHN CLARE

1. FLY TRIO – The Jazz Standard, NYC January 2010

Mark Turner has been my strongest influence and mentor of the last few years, and his trio, ‘Fly’, with Larry Grenadier and Jeff Ballard is a formative influence for my own trio. While studying with Mark over Christmas 2009-2010 I saw 9 out of the 10 sets they played over four nights at the Jazz Standard. Their intense musical focus, measured approach and development of musical ideas over an entire tune or over a night or a series of nights was amazing to watch. The final set of the four nights saw the usually reserved Mr Turner let fly, no pun intended, with everything he had in his substantial arsenal, as all the threads of music, emotion and intellect finally joined in what was one of the best sets of music of my life. Larry Grenadier was at once supportive and open to the leading of other’s ideas, and taking phenomenal risks with his own directions, totally absorbed in the moment. Jeff Ballard has an amazing ability to gather intell listening to a soloist and accompanying, readying himself for the moment when he will create beautiful musical havoc through the most intense of dancing cross rhythms and cheeky nuances. Oh, and the Kansas City ribs were to die for.

2. BARNEY MCALL “FLASHBACKS” FEATURING KURT ROSENWINKEL – The Basement, Sydney, 1 November 2007.

This was a direction-altering gig from a number of perspectives. It secured Barney Mcall as one of my favourite composers of all time, and lead me to record with him in 2010. It enabled me to see Mark Turner’s other musical half, Kurt Rosenwinkel, up close and personal and talk to him after the gig about my masters research on Mark, with whom I had not yet been in touch. It was a coming together of all the music I had been exploring, listening to, trying to understand, feeling so keenly emotionally, and wondering about, in one amazing moment, right in front of my eyes. Achingly beautiful, ferociously adventurous, stunningly virtuosic and with such passion and commitment that it was overwhelming. It was also my introduction to the amazing musicality of fellow Australians Shannon Barnett (trombone) and Sam Lipman (tenor sax), who is residing now in Austin, Texas.

3. JOEL FRAHM TRIO with Joe Martin (bass) – Bar Next Door, NYC Dec 2009,

It’s no surprise that more than one of my favourite live gigs (or series of gigs) took place during 2.5 months in New York. Sitting in the intimate, and I mean intimate Bar Next Door, on Tuesday after Tuesday night within arms length of Joel’s bell was a hefty musical education. Joel is one of those rare and gifted human beings who is able to blow into one end of a tube with a reed on the end and raw emotional musicality pours out. For an amazing demonstration, check out his live playing posted on Facebook or YouTube with singer Cyrille-Aimée. Daudel. He has an encyclopedic knowledge of music on immediate hand, with which he phrases virtuosically and in the most heartfelt way, stretching phrases or compressing them. It’s like watching a master pizza chef spinning and rolling dough, getting exactly the right elasticity and spring, to be able to mould into scrumptious treats.

4. JOHN SCOFIELD AND JOE LOVANO QUARTET WITH MATT WILSON AND MATT PENMAN – Wangaratta Jazz Festival November 2009.

What I remember about this gig is that no prisoners were taken from the first to the last note. Joe Lovano’s solo introduction to the first tune was an articulate exposition of the history of the tenor saxophone. He and Scofield have been musical friends and associates for a long time, and every ounce of that connection was apparent in their often cheeky sparring. I remember each part of the music building through the most furious of climaxes, always riveting, that had band members laughing, cat-calling, and sweating. Like any good jazz concert should be. And the icing on the cake was an astounding guest spot by singer Katie Noonan, who was in top form.

5. DAVID BINNEY QUARTET with special guest Chris Potter – 55 Bar, NYC, February 2010.

David Binney is one of the most original musical minds I have encountered; highly intellectual, but soulful and passionate in his own way. His albums are very focussed, orchestrated and arranged, but his live explorations of those projects hover between the compositions and free jazz of an extraordinary level. Drummer Dan Weiss is the engine, with his heavy study of Indian tabla informing everything he plays in a jazz context. Binney’s main goal in a live setting seems to be creating the most heightened climax possible through the build up of the most excruciating levels of tension. This had already vapourised the minds of several people in the room one particular night, when Chris Potter (who appears on several of Binney’s albums and regularly joins the band after his own gigs) strolls in the back of the room from a minus 11 degree blizzard. He is immediately called up to play an unfamiliar tune, which he sight-reads and plays a mind-mangling virtuosic solo, ranging intensely through four octaves and sparring with Dan Weiss like their lives depend on it. This was the type of gig that reminds you why you work so hard and what’s out there to be had at the highest levels of music.