Preview
JOHN MACMURCHY
February 4 and 5
Beat Niq Jazz and Social Club
From the way many traditional jazz artists recycle jazz standards, you would think that most of them are stuck (at least a little bit) in the past. However, Canadian saxophone player John MacMurchy is embracing a fresh approach not only in what he plays, but also in how he creates his material.
"I write (music) everywhere – while I’m walking, in my car – yet I can’t ever write it fast enough to remember all that’s going on in my head," says MacMurchy. "I’m forever tearing up pages and having to rewrite."
In an effort to simplify the writing process, he took advantage of technology to write his latest album, Outside the Ministry of Truth. "It’s so great now that I’m just learning this software for composing," says MacMurchy who had spent the better part of his 10 years composing using simply a pen and paper. Switching to the computer has made a huge difference for him.
"Now when I have ideas I can put them down so easily and not have to leave papers everywhere every time I want to change something," he says. "Now with this new software my hands are going to have to work as fast as my brain."
Clearly there is no shortage of musical ideas. MacMurchy, a veteran of the Canadian jazz scene, has not only written his own material, but he has also played sideman to such greats as Henry Mancini, Cleo Lane and Guido Basso. Yet despite this history, MacMurchy had no interest in stepping into the past to make his second album.
"I’ve had the urge to record for a long time," says MacMurchy, "but what I didn’t want to record was yet another jazz album full of Cole Porter and Gershwin tunes." Instead, MacMurchy spent two years independently producing Outside The Ministry of Truth , which has gone on to receive radio airplay on more than 400 stations in seven different countries. And all that exposure comes despite the album’s unorthodox instrumentation.
"What I've done with this album is brought in two instruments that are extremely underrated in my opinion: the bassoon and the clarinet," he says. "I just love playing the clarinet and I don't know why more people don't include it." |
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