Paul Furniss

Last updated

Paul Furniss
Birth namePaul Anthony Furniss
Born (1944-11-27) 27 November 1944 (age 77)
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
GenresJazz
Occupation(s)Musician
Instruments
Years active1968–present

Paul Anthony Furniss (born 27 November 1944) is an Australian jazz clarinetist and saxophonist. He has worked with Bob Learmonth, Geoff Bull, Graeme Bell and Tom Baker. He founded and led the Eclipse Alley Five and led the San Francisco Jazz Band after Tom Baker. He has played with many other musicians in the tradition jazz and swing idioms

Biography

Furniss was born in Sydney. When he was seven years old he took up flute and recorder and four years later added the clarinet - later the saxophones. He attended the [[Sydney Conservatorium of Music|New South Wales Conservatorium of Music] - later tutoring in the early years of the Jazz Course]. In April 1968 Furniss provided clarinet for Geoff Bull's Olympia Jazz Band alongside Bull on trumpet, Adrian Ford on piano, Peter Gallan on bass guitar, Dick Gillespie on drums, Geoff Holden on banjo and Chris Williams on trombone. [1]

In 1987 Furniss performed Concerto for Soprano Saxophone and Orchestra written for him by John Colborne - Veel - the concerto had passages left for improvisation.

Michael Foster of The Canberra Times reviewed Graeme Bell's album, Pop Goes Graeme Bell, in December 1973 and observed, "Apart from Bell's piano, which generally drives the band along, I liked breaks and interpolations by [Furniss] on alto, clarinet, soprano sax, flute and, an instrument which crops up rarely and takes some mastery for effective use, tin whistle." [2]

As a professional, he worked with Bob Learmonth, Bull, and Bell. He founded and led the Eclipse Valley Five and led the San Francisco Jazz Band after Tom Baker. He has played at jazz festivals in Australia and overseas]

Related Research Articles

Saxophone Single-reed woodwind instrument

The saxophone is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to produce a sound wave inside the instrument's body. The pitch is controlled by opening and closing holes in the body to change the effective length of the tube. The holes are closed by leather pads attached to keys operated by the player. Saxophones are made in various sizes and are almost always treated as transposing instruments. Saxophone players are called saxophonists.

Mark-Anthony Turnage CBE is an English composer of classical music.

Donald Vernon Burrows was an Australian jazz and swing musician who played clarinet, saxophone and flute.

James Morrison (jazz musician) Australian jazz musician

James Lloyd Morrison AM is an Australian jazz musician. Although his main instrument is trumpet, he has also performed on trombone, tuba, euphonium, flugelhorn, saxophone, clarinet, double bass, guitar, and piano. He is a composer, writing jazz charts for ensembles of various sizes and proficiency levels.

Nucleus were a British jazz-fusion band, which continued in different forms from 1969 to 1989. In 1970, the band won first prize at the Montreux Jazz Festival, released the album Elastic Rock, and performed both at the Newport Jazz Festival and the Village Gate jazz club.

Carl Edward Vine, is an Australian composer of contemporary classical music.

Graeme Emerson Bell, AO, MBE was an Australian Dixieland and classical jazz pianist, composer and band leader. According to The Age, his "band's music was hailed for its distinctive Australian edge, which he describes as 'nice larrikinism' and 'a happy Aussie outdoor feel'".

Ross Edwards (composer) Australian composer

Ross Edwards is an Australian composer of a wide variety of music including orchestral and chamber music, choral music, children's music, opera and film music. His distinctive sound world reflects his interest in deep ecology and his belief in the need to reconnect music with elemental forces, as well as restore its traditional association with ritual and dance. He also recognises the profound importance of music as an agent of healing. His music, universal in that it is concerned with age-old mysteries surrounding humanity, is at the same time connected to its roots in Australia, whose cultural diversity it celebrates, and from whose natural environment it draws inspiration, especially birdsong and the mysterious patterns and drones of insects. As a composer living and working on the Pacific Rim, he is aware of the exciting potential of this vast region.

Matthew John Hindson AM is an Australian composer.

Eric Gross AM was an Austrian-Australian pianist, composer and teacher.

Don Kay (composer) Australian classical composer (born 1933)

Donald Henry Kay AM is an Australian classical composer.

Howie Smith, is a saxophonist, composer, jazz musician and educator

John Carmichael OAM is an Australian pianist, composer and music therapist who has long been resident in the United Kingdom. One of his best known works is the Concierto folklorico for piano and string orchestra. His works for piano form much of his musical output, although he composes for many other instruments. His work is described as expressive and lyrical.

<i>13th House</i> 1981 studio album by McCoy Tyner

13th House is a 1981 album by jazz pianist McCoy Tyner released on the Milestone label. It was recorded in October 1980 and features performances by Tyner with a big band that includes alto saxophonist Joe Ford, flautist Hubert Laws, tenor saxophonist Ricky Ford, trombonist Slide Hampton, bassist Ron Carter and trumpeters Oscar Brashear and Charles Sullivan.

Trumpet repertoire Set of available musical works for trumpet

The trumpet repertoire consists of solo literature and orchestral or, more commonly, band parts written for the trumpet. Tracings its origins to 1500 BC, the trumpet is a musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family.

<i>Super Hits</i> (Miles Davis album) 2001 greatest hits album by Miles Davis

Super Hits is a greatest hits album from Miles Davis. Released in 2001, it reached #22 on Billboard's Jazz Albums chart.

<i>Dave Grusin Presents GRP All-Star Big Band Live!</i> 1993 live album by GRP All-Star Big Band

Dave Grusin Presents GRP All-Star Big Band Live! is a jazz album by the GRP All-Star Big Band.

Gordon Charles Watson AM was an Australian classical pianist and teacher. He taught at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music from 1964 to 1986, retiring as Head of the Keyboard Department.

Daniel Rojas is a Chilean-born Australian pianist and composer. Rojas' work as a composer and improviser draws upon indigenous, folk, popular and classical Latin American traditions.

Daly-Wilson Big Band was an Australian jazz group formed in 1968 by Warren Daly on drums and Ed Wilson on trombone. The business manager and silent partner was Don Raverty. The line-up, at times, was an eighteen-piece ensemble, that played popular jazz cover versions and originals. Lead singers that fronted the band include Kerrie Biddell, Marcia Hines and Ricky May. They released seven albums and toured Australia and internationally before disbanding in September 1983.

References

  1. ↑ "Line-Up of Jazz Talent". The Canberra Times . Vol. 42, no. 11, 979. 19 April 1968. p. 11. Retrieved 24 August 2018– via National Library of Australia.
  2. ↑ Foster, Michael (24 December 1973). "Turntable: Pop Goes Graeme Bell, the Graeme Bell All Stars, Harlequin (through Festival), stereo L 25079". The Canberra Times. p. 11. Retrieved 24 August 2018– via National Library of Australia.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.