Directing & Performing around the
world
‘His
work holds the promise of liberating the music and our
classrooms like nothing I have encountered in
print.’
‘The
problem is probably that those who could really benefit
from Collier's visions ... will be the last to be open to
conceptions such as creativity, new ways of thinking and
responsibility.’
Graham Collier has
lectured on jazz and jazz composition at various
conferences, has written six books, as well as articles and
reviews for leading jazz magazines, and for seven years was
co-editor of Jazz
Changes, the magazine of
the International
Association of Schools of Jazz.
As can be seen in his jazz compositions detailed elsewhere,
he has taken his influences and inspiration from literature
– particularly the work of Malcolm
Lowry and
William
Faulkner – and art,
where he has paid tribute to Barnett
Newman and
Mark
Rothko, and, in
two recent suites for saxophone
quartet,
Paul
Klee and
Jackson
Pollock. He has also
written music for radio, television, film and stage.
In all of these activities he has recognised the potential
of jazz – it’s ability to be different, while
still presenting the best of the individual and of the
collective space in which he or she operates.
The first quote
above, from a review of Interaction, Opening Up the Jazz
Ensemble by Lee Berk in
the Jazz
Educators’ Journal, has, not
surprisingly, failed to happen, proving in its own way
the truth behind the second comment from an article
about Graham’s work by Danish trombonist and
critic Erling Kroner.
‘Collier's methods included giving members of the band parameters within which to improvise behind soloists… Even the way the band was set up, with the tenor saxophones interspersed with some of the trumpets and trombones, seemed to aid flexibility and contribute to textural diversity. His compositions had an accommodating looseness to encourage adventurousness on the part of the players.’
- John Shand, Sydney Morning Herald.
‘Your piece made a very big contribution to changing the way that young bands play.’
John Cumming, Director of the 2007 London Jazz Festival.
Directing
Graham is available to present concerts of his music anywhere in the world. These can be given by his own specially organised groupings, by professional bands under his direction, or as part of an educational workshop in colleges and music schools. The programme can include a new composition commissioned for the occasion, or be drawn from his library of previously written work, which, because of the methods used, will sound different each time, dependent on the particular band’s performance in a particular concert.
‘My work in jazz is as a composer/director and as an educator, and these are inextricably linked together. In each case, I use the individual voices of the musicians as improvisers, and how those voices can be combined into textures, both written and improvised, to create music which is only fully realised in performance. The methods used are designed to release the players’ own creativity, enabling musicians to open up their performing skills through group performance by their interaction with others.
‘As such, they have been used by all levels of performer, from beginners’ workshops through mixed ability groupings to fully professional performances. Whatever the level involved, the musicians must be able to suspend their belief in a figure who has total control. The performance is the result of a continuous three-way process between the composer/director, the musicians and the given material.
‘The philosophy involved in these ideas - that it is the individual who is important, and that combining a set of individuals can provoke an interesting result - is behind all my work.’
More can be read about these methods and Graham’s philosophy in his books Interaction, Opening up the Jazz Ensemble and the jazz composer, moving music off the paper.
Performing
Programmes recently presented have included complete performances or selected movements from some of Graham Collier’s suites alongside well established shorter pieces.
Commissions to write new music are welcomed. From Acorns..., commissioned in 2007 by Derby Jazz for the East Midlands Youth Jazz Orchestra and Harry Beckett, elicited the comment from John Cummings cited above, and is illustrated below and on the home page.
Click the underlined blue titles which will take you to the individual Recordings pages where you will find further details of each composition including an extract from the written music - what the musicians are presented with as the starting point - and an audio sample of one particular performance of that music.
The Third Colour section below shows two performances of the same music.
Aberdeen Angus
Bread & Circuses (Panem et Circenses), written for a proposed DVD project to illustrate my educational methods.
The Hackney Five
The Miró Tile, from the Third Colour CD, first performed with the Big Band of the Music Hochschule, Bruckner Conservatorium, Linz, Austria.
Shapes, Colours, Energy, from the Third Colour CD, commissioned for first performance by The Banff Jazz Orchestra.
Three Simple Pieces, from the Third Colour CD, written as a celebration for my 60th birthday.
Winter Oranges, commissioned by the Danish Radio Jazz Orchestra.
Audio & MSS
Third Colour Groove played by The Jazz Ensemble
Third Colour Groove played by the big band of the Rhythmic Conservatory, Copenhagen.
Manuscript.
The Third Colour was commissioned by The London Jazz Festival for three performances by The Jazz Ensemble and was later performed in various conservatories. These audios show how the Groove section changed in two of these performances. More on the options given to the musicians will be found in the jazz composer, moving music off the paper.
Commenting
‘Collier’s ideas are opening up new experiences for players in big bands and for listeners too.’
Erik Moseholm, former Director of the Rhythmic Music Conservatory, Copenhagen, Denmark, which Graham visited annually for five years
‘His unique voice adds an important variety to current jazz ensemble music. Few will not be touched by his work.’
Ned Corman, The Commission Project, Rochester, New York
‘Your visit last year did much to inspire… some of the final arrangements from the students used a lot of your ideas.’
Jens ‘Chappe’ Jensen, Director of Jazz, Århus Conservatory, Denmark
‘Thank you very much for your inspirational workshop. It actually helped to fit the band together much better now, even for the ‘normal’ big band music like Basie or Thad Jones.’
Volker Deglmann, a student on a workshop in Mannheim, Germany
Publishing
Apart from the saxophone pieces published by Advance, Graham Collier’s Music is only available via this website. PDFs of some of the music can be found on the pages for individual records on this site, and can be used freely by any group, providing the proper credits are given. Performance notes, parts for other instruments, and more music from the longer compositions can be obtained in exchange for a small fee, or, possibly, only post and packing.
The up-and-coming British group Nostalgia 77 asked for the music of Down Another Road, one of Graham’s classic tunes. Their subsequent recording has been highly praised and received over 6000 plays on their MySpace page.