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Evan Parker

Evan Parker was born in Bristol in 1944 and began to play the saxophone at the age of 14. Initially he played alto and was an admirer of Paul Desmond; by 1960 he had switched to tenor and soprano, following the example of John Coltrane, a major influence who, he would later say, determined "my choice of everything". In 1962 he went to Birmingham University to study botany but a trip to New York, where he heard the Cecil Taylor trio (with Jimmy Lyons and Sunny Murray), prompted a change of mind. What he heard was "music of a strength and intensity to mark me for life ... l came back with my academic ambitions in tatters and a desperate dream of a life playing that kind of music - 'free jazz' they called it then."

Parker stayed in Birmingham for a time, often playing with pianist Howard Riley. In 1966 he moved to London, became a frequent visitor to the Little Theatre Club, centre of the city's emerging free jazz scene, and was soon invited by drummer John Stevens to join the innovative Spontaneous Music Ensemble which was experimenting with new kinds of group improvisation. Parker's first issued recording was SME's 1968 Karyobin, with a line-up of Parker, Stevens, Derek Bailey, Dave Holland and Kenny Wheeler. Parker remained in SME through various fluctuating line-ups - at one point it comprised a duo of Stevens and himself - but the late 1960s also saw him involved in a number of other fruitful associations.

He began a long-standing partnership with guitarist Bailey, with whom he formed the Music Improvisation Company and, in 1970, co-founded Incus Records. (Tony Oxley, in whose sextet Parker was then playing, was a third co- founder; Parker left Incus in the mid-1980s.) Another important connection was with the bassist Peter Kowald who introduced Parker to the German free jazz scene. This led to him playing on Peter Brötzmann's 1968 Machine Gun, Manfred Schoof's 1969 European Echoes and, in 1970, joining pianist Alex von Schlippenbach and percussionist Paul Lovens in the former's trio, of which he is still a member: their recordings include Pakistani Pomade, Three Nails Left, Detto Fra Di Noi, Elf Bagatellen and Physics.

Parker pursued other European links, too, playing in the Pierre Favre Quartet (with Kowald and Swiss pianist Irene Schweizer) and in the Dutch Instant Composers Pool of Misha Mengelberg and Han Bennink. The different approaches to free jazz he encountered proved both a challenging and a rewarding experience. He later recalled that the German musicians favoured a "robust, energy-based thing, not to do with delicacy or detailed listening but to do with a kind of spirit-raising, a shamanistic intensity. And l had to find a way of surviving in the heat of that atmosphere ... But after a while those contexts became more interchangeable and more people were involved in the interactions, so all kinds of hybrid musics came out, all kinds of combinations of styles."

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In Pictures

Evan Parker 80th Birthday Celebration

Read "Evan Parker 80th Birthday Celebration" reviewed by John Sharpe


On 6 April, the day after his 80th birthday, North London's Cafe Oto hosted a virtually sold out two-day celebration in honor of groundbreaking saxophone icon Evan Parker, bringing together a host of colleagues from across his career. Contingents from North America and Europe swelled the ranks of local well-wishers and were rewarded by some marvelous music reflecting different aspects of his artistry. Starting off proceedings on the Saturday evening, the saxophonist revisited one of his most ...

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Album Review

Evan Parker - Barry Guy: So It Goes

Read "So It Goes" reviewed by John Sharpe


Two masters who have invented a (the?) lexicon for their instruments meet on So It Goes. British saxophonist Evan Parker and his compatriot bassist Barry Guy should need no introduction to anyone interested in European free improvisation. Both active since the 1970s, they remain vital forces even with as they both move into their eighth decade. Their association was formalized in 1980 with the inception of the long running trio completed by drummer Paul Lytton. But they have also appeared ...

2
Album Review

Sergio Armaroli & Evan Parker: Dialog

Read "Dialog" reviewed by John Eyles


In 2022, Italian-born vibraphonist Sergio Armaroli and British-born saxophonist Evan Parker were scheduled to tour Italy together, and go into a recording studio together to record a set of freely improvised music in real time. However, the plan fell apart because Parker became unable to leave Britain (maybe for Covid-related reasons?) Although Parker cancelled the tour and the recording session, Armaroli was keen to consider alternatives. At the time, technology did not allow musicians in distant locations to record together ...

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Liner Notes

Sergio Armaroli & Evan Parker: Dialog

Read "Sergio Armaroli & Evan Parker: Dialog" reviewed by Chris May


Sergio Armaroli and Evan Parker's collaboration on Dialog was made possible by state-of-the-art 2022 digital technology, on which it was wholly reliant. But the structure of the music itself--call and response a.k.a. antiphony--predates the digital era by an unknown number of millennia. Located in different studios hundreds of miles apart, on different days, the two players used file-sharing to engage in what is, if not the oldest form of music making, then almost certainly the second oldest. One day in ...

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Album Review

Trance Map+: Etching the Ether

Read "Etching the Ether" reviewed by Glenn Astarita


"Trance Map+" is a collaborative project involving some incredibly talented musicians exploring the realms of avant-garde jazz and experimental sounds. Etching the Ether features three extended pieces, treated with Matthew Wright's live electronics and sound design. It is a production that embarks on a sonic journey, pushing the boundaries of improvisation and musical exploration.The album delves into intricate soundscapes, where each track is an evolving entity. The musicians known for their prowess in improvisation, create an enticing tapestry ...

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Album Review

Evan Parker / Matthew Wright, Trance Map+ with Peter Evans and Mark Nauseef: Etching the Ether

Read "Etching the Ether" reviewed by Mark Corroto


Humans have seemingly always feared new technologies. We're not even talking about AI and ChatGPT. When the first electric light bulb was invented, folks worried it would end civilization as they knew it. Artificial light certainly changed how late one stayed up at night. On the other hand, it also allowed people to find their keys after the sun had set. Any new technology can be either a master or a servant, a tool or a tyrant. The programmable drum ...

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Album Review

Joe McPhee & Evan Parker: Sweet Nothings For Milford Graves

Read "Sweet Nothings For Milford Graves" reviewed by John Sharpe


Two soprano saxophones loosely harmonize. They finish each other's lines, languidly intertwine, pause for air at the same moment. And simultaneously end on a dime. Musical twins. In the wrong hands such empathy might become soporific; but with two of the planet's foremost improvisers on hand in the persons of Evan Parker and Joe McPhee, instead they unlock deep wells of emotionally charged feeling. Captured at Chicago's 7th Empty Bottle Festival in 2003, this archive recording amply ...

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Music Industry

Jazz this week: Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Evan Parker & Peter Evans, Ronnie Burrage's RoBu Big Band, and more

Jazz this week: Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Evan Parker & Peter Evans, Ronnie Burrage's RoBu Big Band, and more

Source: St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman

This week's schedule of jazz and creative music in St. Louis is jam-packed, with three notable big band performances, two shows benefiting an ailing elder statesman of the local jazz scene, an evening of free-form music from two intriguing improvisors, and much, much more. Let's go to the highlights... Wednesday, September 30 The eclectic acoustic ensemble The 442s perform for the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro, and pianist Greg Mills plays free improv and contemporary compositions ...

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Video / DVD

StLJN Saturday Video Showcase: Evan Parker and Peter Evans

StLJN Saturday Video Showcase: Evan Parker and Peter Evans

Source: St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman

Today, let's spend a few minutes with saxophonist Evan Parker and trumpeter Peter Evans, who will give a duo performance to kick off New Music Circle's 2015-16 season next Friday, October 2 at Joe's Cafe. (Both men also will take part in a free workshop/Q&A at 11 a.m. the next day (Saturday, October 3) at Foam.) Parker is a 71-year-old Englishman who began his career in the 1960s, at first briefly emulating the cool stylings of Paul Desmond and Lee ...

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Event

Free Improv Pioneer Evan Parker To Give Master Class At NEC

Free Improv Pioneer Evan Parker To Give Master Class At NEC

Source: Braithwaite & Katz Communications

Thursday, September 18 at 3 p.m. As Part of Nearly 100 Free Events for 2014-2015 NEC Season A pioneer of free improvisation, Evan Parker is considered one of the most influential saxophonists in the post-Coltrane era. Since the late 1960s he has remained a dynamic and innovative voice who has expanded the range of his instrument and the expressive possibilities of improvised music. Parker comes to New England Conservatory at 3 p.m. on Thursday, September 18 to give a workshop ...

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Recording

New John Escreet Featuring Evan Parker On Sunnyside (5/13)!

New John Escreet Featuring Evan Parker On Sunnyside (5/13)!

Source: Sunnyside Records

Jazz and contemporary improvised music have had numerous iconoclasts, who questioned and reshaped forms that they inherited, and, as an aural tradition, the music develops as these boundary pushers collaborate and share their knowledge, so the future generations of musicians can push ahead. Pianist/composer John Escreet knew that he wanted to perform with just such a musician - the legendary saxophonist Evan Parker - for a long while. He was finally able to find the opportunity to partner Parker with ...

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Event

Improvisation Day at Kingston University, London

Improvisation Day at Kingston University, London

Source: Diana Salazar

The Improvised Space: Techniques, Traditions and Technologies A Research Day on Improvised Music Kingston University, London Wednesday 6th April 2011 10:30am-6:00pm, Concert 6:30pm The Department of Music at Kingston University presents a research day on improvised music, with special guests Evan Parker and Bennett Hogg. The programme includes presentations, demonstrations and workshops by researchers and practitioners in a range of fields, from jazz to free improvisation, acoustic performance to laptop music and live electronics, ...

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Obituary

Steve Lacy and Evan Parker - Chirps (FMP, 1991, 2010)

Steve Lacy and Evan Parker - Chirps (FMP, 1991, 2010)

Source: Music and More by Tim Niland

Records and compact discs (or downloads for that matter) by the German FMP label have been somewhat scarce (in the USA at least) so Destination Out's agreement with the label to set up a downloading storefront is a big break for fans of progressive jazz. This album features a live meeting between soprano saxophone masters Steve Lacy and Evan Parker, in an unaccompanied duet that is complex and abstract, but continually exciting and accessible. The title of the album references ...

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Recording

Evan Parker - Whitstable Solo (Psi)

Evan Parker - Whitstable Solo (Psi)

Source: Master of a Small House

Nearly four decades deep into the Evan Parker solo performance precedence and despite what some critics might contend the saxophonist is still finding fresh things to say on both straight horn and curved. A confluence of new recording space (St. Peter's Church, Whitstable), trusted engineer (Adam Skeaping) and extra-disciplinary collaborators (artist Polly Read and film-maker Neil Henderson) help make this set recorded in the summer of 2008 special. Parker states a preference for the pristine acoustics of the space in ...

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Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Evan Parker

Jazz Musician of the Day: Evan Parker

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Evan Parker's birthday today!

JAZZ MUSICIAN OF THE DAY Evan Parker

Born Bristol, 5 April 1944; Tenor and soprano saxophones. The sources for these notes have come from various places, but in particular from Martin Davidson\'s notes to recent Emanem releases and Evan Parker\'s notes to 50th birthday concert... more

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236

Performance / Tour

Evan Parker with Susan Alcorn and Michael Formanek at The WindUp Space in Bailtimore on April 18th

Evan Parker with Susan Alcorn and Michael Formanek at The WindUp Space in Bailtimore on April 18th

Source: Michael Ricci

CREATIVE DIFFERENCES presents EVAN PARKER - solo saxophone plus SUSAN ALCORN - pedal steel guitar MICHAEL FORMANEK - double bass EVAN PARKER - saxophones SUNDAY APRIL 18 AT 6PM @ The WindUp Space 12 W.North Ave Baltimore MD thewindupspace.com 410 244 8855 THIS CONCERT WILL BEGIN AT 6PM. DOORS OPEN AT 5PM Admission is $10 on the door Evan Parker is widely regarding as ...

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Recording

New Red Toucan Release: "Relevance" by Dave Liebman and Evan Parker

New Red Toucan Release: "Relevance" by Dave Liebman and Evan Parker

Source: Michael Ricci

A historic recording of the first ever meeting of two sax giants!

Relevance (RT 9338)

Dave Liebman soprano & tenor sax, indian bamboo flute

Evan Parker soprano & tenor sax

Tony Bianco drums

“After decades of playing with musicians from the famous to the esoteric to relatively unknown, there still exists for me a wish list of those who for one reason or another I haven't performed or recorded with. Near the top of ...

Phil Hargreaves
saxophone, tenor
Bret Sexton
saxophone, alto
David Borgo
saxophone
Mark Hanslip
saxophone, tenor
Tumi Árnason
saxophone
Juan Saiz
flute
Lyndon Owen
saxophone, tenor
Érick d'Orion
electronics
Benjy Sandler
saxophone, alto

Photos

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Etching the Ether

Intakt Records
2024

buy

Etching the Ether

Intakt Records
2023

buy

Dialog

Ezz-thetics
2023

buy

Raise Four

Trio Records
2022

buy

Sweet Nothings For...

Corbett Vs. Dempsey
2022

buy

Videos

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