Kirk MacDonald (musician)

Last updated
Kirk MacDonald
Kirk Macdonald.png
Kirk MacDonald
Background information
Born (1959-10-02) October 2, 1959 (age 65)
New Waterford, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, Canada
GenresJazz
Occupation(s)Musician, Composer, Educator
InstrumentSaxophone
Website https://kirkmacdonald.com

Kirk MacDonald (born 1959) is a Canadian jazz musician and composer. He has been nominated for four Juno Awards, with his album The Atlantic Sessions winning the 1999 Juno Award for Best Mainstream Jazz Album.

Contents

He has performed on over forty albums as leader and sideman and has participated in national broadcast recordings for CBC Radio. In addition to performing extensively throughout Canada, he has performed in the U.S., France, Spain, Italy, Holland, Monaco, Australia, Korea, Bermuda, and the Bahamas.

He has worked with Walter Bishop Jr., John Clayton, Rosemary Clooney, Brian Dickinson, Glenn Ferris, Sonny Greenwich, Eddie Henderson, Pat LaBarbera, Lorne Lofsky, Harold Mabern, Ron McClure, Jim McNeely, Vince Mendoza, James Moody, Bob Mover, Phil Nimmons, Sam Noto, Chris Potter, Bernie Senensky, Mike Stern, John Taylor, Kenny Wheeler, André White, and the Humber College Faculty Ensemble.

As a composer, he has recorded over fifty of his own compositions. His compositions have been arranged for large ensembles by Canadian and American arrangers. He has been active as an educator for almost 25 years at the college and university levels.

Awards and nominations

As leader or soloist

With other artists

Educational Awards

Discography

As leader

As sideman

AlbumArtistLabelRelease date
World CreativityBarry Romberg's Random AccessRomhog2011
Code WhiteAndre White and Joe SullivanChance2011
DiversityMichelle Gregoire2010
Was, Shall, Why, BecauseBarry Romberg's Random AccessRomhog2009
Existential DetectiveBarry Romberg's Random AccessRomhog2008
More Today Than YesterdayKingsley Ettienne QuartetEttienne Music2008
Big Giant HeadBarry Romberg's Random Access QuartetRomhog2007
2 AmBrian Chahley Quartet2005
When She DreamsNancy Walker QuartetJustin Time2004
ReachingMichelle GregoireBoathouse Records2004
Group of Seven SuiteTony QuarringtonCBC Records2003
LevitationNancy Walker QuartetUnity/Paige Records2003
SignalAndre White QuartetCornerstone Records2001
ShapeshiftKieran OversUnity/Paige Records1999
Sterling Silver Ken Skinner Village Jazz1995
Steppin' OutKingsley EttienneS-J Records1989
No AttachmentsGene Smith Quartet
Past Present FutureCharlie GraySaluki Music
SpectrumChris Mitchell QuintetJustin Time
New HorizonsBernie Senesky QuintetTimeless Records
This Is How Men CryMarc Jordan
Now Hear ThisSam Noto QuintetSupermono
The Witches of Red BeardChris MitchellKOCH
Now and Now AgainMaritime Jazz OrchestraJustin Time
Siren's SongMaritime Jazz OrchestraJustin Time
Moment's NoticeBill King and the Jazz Report All StarsRadioland
Live In SessionLiberty SilverRadioland
One Bright MorningTony Quarrington
Out on a LimbDave HutchinsonDavrio Productions
La Zona BlancaPat BeliveauPABCO Music
MantecaMantecaReady Records
Second DebutJoe CoughlinInnovation Records
Sunflowers Light the RoomHoward Gladstone

Compositions

Original compositions recorded

As leader

SONGBOOK VOL. I (ADDO Jazz Recordings) New Piece Manhattan Getaway Moulage Calendula By Invitation Only Fleeting Goodbye Glenn

FAMILY SUITE (Romhog Records) Movement I Movement II Movement III Movement IV Movement V Movement VI Movement VII Movement VIII Movement IX Movement X Movement XI

PURE AND SIMPLE (Justin Time) New Piece Alicante Opal Essence Five By Five

NEW BEGINNINGS (Radioland) On The Sierra Nevada Starlight Lament For A Better Tomorrow Sideways Kirk's Blues Calendula New Beginnings

THE ATLANTIC SESSIONS (KOCH Jazz) The Mill Dam Kirk's Blues Monkie's Uncle 1000 West Two Night Stand

REMINISCENCE (Counterpoint) Reminiscence Advance Notice Moulage Deep Shadows Manhattan Getaway For Melvin Moon In Pisces Portrait Of Lucie

THE REVELLERS (Unity-Page) 224 Blues Forward Motion The Revellers Carnival

THE POWER OF BEAUTY (A Tribute To Stan Getz) (Various Artists) (Radioland) 517

Original compositions recorded by other artists

SIGNAL Andre White (Cornerstone) By Invitation Only Goodbye Glen

SHAPESHIFT Keiran Overs (Unity-Page) Moon In Pisces

THE WITCHES OF RED BEARD Chris Mitchell (KOCH-Jazz) The Buddy System You See But You Don't Hear

SPECTRUM Chris Mitchell (Justin Time) Vanda Justina Fleeting The Torch Bearers

LA DOLCE VITA New Berlin Chamber Ensemble (NBCE) Moulage

SECOND DEBUT Joe Coughlin (Innovation) Spring Lyric Waltz For A Libra Lady Seascape

UNDER A TREE Toronto Jazz Orchestra (TJO Records) Alicante (arranged by Mike Smith)

AWAKENING University of Toronto 10 O'Clock Jazz Orchestra (UTJ) Calendula (arranged by Terry Promane)

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rob McConnell</span> Canadian jazz trombonist, composer, and arranger

Robert Murray Gordon McConnell was a Canadian jazz trombonist, composer, and arranger. McConnell is best known for establishing and leading the big band The Boss Brass, which he directed from 1967 to 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pat LaBarbera</span> American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, and flautist

Pat LaBarbera is an American-born Canadian jazz tenor, alto and soprano saxophonist, clarinetist, and flautist born in Mt. Morris, New York, most notable for his work as a soloist in Buddy Rich bands from 1967 to 1973.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ed Bickert</span> Canadian jazz guitarist (1932–2019)

Edward Isaac Bickert, was a Canadian guitarist who played mainstream jazz and swing music. Bickert worked professionally from the mid-1950s to 2000, mainly in the Toronto area. His international reputation grew steadily from the mid-1970s onward as he recorded albums both as a bandleader and as a backing musician for Paul Desmond, Rosemary Clooney, and other artists, with whom he toured in North America, Europe and Japan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Don Thompson (musician)</span> Canadian jazz musician

Donald Winston Thompson, OC is a Canadian jazz musician who plays double bass, piano, and vibes. Thompson's career as a performer, recording artist, producer, session musician, and music educator has lasted for more than 50 years.

The Neufeld-Occhipinti Jazz Orchestra (NOJO) is a Canadian jazz musical group based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In 2016, it had sixteen members. The group performs mainly music created and arranged by its members. Their present label is True North Records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Renee Rosnes</span> Canadian jazz pianist, composer, and arranger

Irene Louise Rosnes, known professionally as Renee Rosnes, is a Canadian jazz pianist, composer, and arranger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian blues</span>

Canadian blues is the blues and blues-related music performed by blues bands and performers in Canada. Canadian blues artists include singers, players of the main blues instruments: guitar, harmonica, keyboards, bass and drums, songwriters and music producers. In many cases, blues artists take on multiple roles. For example, the Canadian blues artist Steve Marriner is a singer, harmonica player, guitarist, songwriter and record producer.

Metalwood is a Canadian jazz band from Toronto, Ontario. the band was active in the late 1990s and early 2000s, and reunited in 2016. The members are saxophonist Mike Murley, pianist/trumpeter Brad Turner, bassist Chris Tarry and drummer Ian Froman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emilie-Claire Barlow</span> Canadian singer and voice actress

Emilie-Claire Barlow is a Canadian singer, arranger, record producer, and voice actress. She has released several albums on her label, Empress Music Group, and has voiced characters for animated television series. She performs in English, French, and Portuguese.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lorne Lofsky</span> Canadian jazz guitarist (born 1954)

Lorne Lofsky is a Canadian jazz guitarist. Considered a virtuoso guitarist, Lofsky is known for his collaborations with Oscar Peterson, Ed Bickert, and Kirk MacDonald.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phil Dwyer (musician)</span> Musical artist

Phil Dwyer is a Canadian jazz saxophonist, pianist, composer, producer and educator. In 2017 he graduated from the University of New Brunswick (UNB) Faculty of Law in Fredericton, New Brunswick and was called to the bar of British Columbia in 2018. Dwyer is Member of the Order of Canada, having been invested in 2013 "For his contributions to jazz as a performer, composer and producer, and for increasing access to music education in his community." Dwyer has been nominated for Juno Awards six times and won Best Mainstream Jazz Album in 1994 with Dave Young for Fables and Dreams and Contemporary Jazz Album of the Year in 2012 for the recording Changing Seasons. Dwyer has also appeared on Juno Award winning recordings with Hugh Fraser (1988), Joe Sealy (1997), Natalie MacMaster (2000), Guido Basso (2004), Don Thompson (2006), Molly Johnson (2009), Terry Clarke (2010), and Diana Panton (2015). He is an alumnus and Honorary Fellow of The Royal Conservatory of Music.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yvette Tollar</span> Canadian musician

Yvette Tollar is a Canadian jazz vocalist born in Toronto, Ontario. She has released two full-length CDs, Cactus Flowers (2001) and Ima (2008). Ima was a nominee for Vocal Jazz Album of the Year at the 2009 Juno Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sultans of String</span>

Sultans of String are an instrumental music group based in Toronto, Ontario, combining elements of Spanish flamenco, Arabic folk, Cuban rhythms, and French Manouche Django-jazz. The group's leader is producer and Canadian musician Chris McKhool.

Chris McKhool is a Canadian violinist, producer, guitarist, composer, and singer-songwriter. He has received numerous awards for his work, including four JUNO Award nominations and four Canadian Folk Music Awards for his various recordings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neil Swainson</span> Canadian jazz bassist

Neil James Sinclair Swainson is a Canadian jazz bassist. Swainson started his career in Victoria, British Columbia, when he supported visiting American musicians such as Herb Ellis, Barney Kessell, and Sonny Stitt. In 1976 he moved to Vancouver after playing with the Paul Horn Quintet and leading a band for two years. He moved to Toronto in 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pat Carey (musician)</span> Musical artist

Patrick Leonard Carey is a Canadian baritone and tenor saxophonist, clarinetist, vocalist and is best known for his longstanding association with the Downchild Blues Band.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Downes</span> Musical artist

Mike Downes is a Canadian jazz musician, composer, arranger and educator who specializes on the upright bass, composition and arranging. Downes has appeared on JUNO award-winning and nominated recordings, including his own Ripple Effect, which won a 2014 JUNO Award for Traditional Jazz Album of the Year, and "Root Structure", which won the 2018 JUNO Award for Jazz Album of the Year:Solo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eli Bennett</span> Canadian saxophonist and composer

Eli Bennett is a Canadian Juno Award-nominated jazz saxophonist and Leo Award-winning film composer. He has composed more than twenty film scores and in 2018 received his first Leo Award for Best Musical Score in a Feature Length Documentary for the film Believe: The True Story of Real Bearded Santas. He was also awarded the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Medal from the Premier of BC for his contribution to the arts in Canada. He is married to violinist and vocalist Rosemary Siemens with whom he records and performs with their instrumental duo SaxAndViolin and in 2019 they performed together at The Vatican.

Allison Au is a Canadian jazz saxophonist. She has been nominated three times for the Juno Award for Best Jazz Album, her second album Forest Grove won the Juno for best group jazz album in 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Larnell Lewis</span> Canadian musician

Larnell Lewis is a Canadian drummer, composer, producer, and educator. He is best known for playing drums with the Brooklyn-based jazz fusion band Snarky Puppy.

References

  1. "SOCAN Music Awards". International Musician. June 30, 2015.
  2. Rayner, Ben (March 15, 2015). "Juno Awards 2015: List of Saturday's winners". Toronto Star.
  3. "Archive 2015". East Coast Music Awards.
  4. "Kirk MacDonald – 2015 Lifetime Achievement Award". Toronto Musicians' Association. 3 July 2015.
  5. "LIST | 2012 Juno Award nominees". CBC News Entertainment. February 7, 2012.
  6. "JUNO Category of Contemporary Jazz Album of the Year, 2010". Wreck House Jazz & Blues. March 5, 2010.
  7. Bowers, Jack (December 6, 2019). "Pat LaBarbera Kirk MacDonald Quintet: Trane Of Thought, Live At The Rex". All About Jazz.