Florida State University Libraries Electronic Theses, Treatises and Dissertations The Graduate School 2011 The Life and Music of Canadian Jazz Clarinetist Phil Nimmons Daniel Hasznos Follow this and additional works at the FSU Digital Library. For more information, please contact [email protected] THE FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY COLLEGE OF MUSIC THE LIFE AND MUSIC OF CANADIAN JAZZ CLARINETIST PHIL NIMMONS By DANIEL HASZNOS A treatise submitted to the College of Music in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Music Degree Awarded: Fall Semester, 2011 Daniel Hasznos defended this treatise on November 3, 2011. The members of the supervisory committee were: Frank Kowalsky Professor Directing Treatise Richard Clary University Representative Deborah Bish Committee Member Eric Ohlsson Committee Member The Graduate School has verified and approved the above-named committee members, and certifies that the treatise has been approved in accordance with university requirements. ii I would like to dedicate this treatise to my family for the love and support they have provided me. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES......................................................................................................................vi ABSTRACT.................................................................................................................................vii INTRODUCTION .....................................................................................................................1 CHAPTER 1 BIOGRAPHICAL OVERVIEW........................................................................3 The Early Years .......................................................................................................................3 Vancouver and the University of British Columbia ..................................................................5 New York ................................................................................................................................6 Return to Canada .....................................................................................................................7 CHAPTER 2 THE CLARINETIST ....................................................................................... 10 Early Inspirations .................................................................................................................. 10 University of British Columbia Years .................................................................................... 13 The Juilliard School ............................................................................................................... 14 The Beginnings of Nimmons ‗N‘ Nine & Nimmons ‗N‘ Nine Plus Six .................................. 15 Recollection of Interesting Performances ............................................................................... 21 CHAPTER 3 RECORDINGS ................................................................................................. 23 First Recordings .................................................................................................................... 23 Recordings in the 1970s ......................................................................................................... 24 Late Recordings ..................................................................................................................... 26 CHAPTER 4 THE EDUCATOR ............................................................................................ 30 Teaching Philosophy ............................................................................................................. 30 iv Advanced School of Contemporary Music ............................................................................. 32 The Banff Centre for the Arts ................................................................................................ 33 Chamber Music and All That Jazz ......................................................................................... 35 Courtenay Summer Music Camp ........................................................................................... 36 University of Toronto ............................................................................................................ 37 Other Teaching Experiences .................................................................................................. 39 CHAPTER 5 THE COMPOSER............................................................................................ 41 Early Experiences in Composition ......................................................................................... 41 Formal Lessons in Composition ............................................................................................. 42 First Major Compositions ...................................................................................................... 43 The 1970s .............................................................................................................................. 46 The Late 1980s ...................................................................................................................... 49 Compositions in the Later Years ............................................................................................ 50 James Campbell and Works for Clarinet ................................................................................ 52 Music for the Cinema ............................................................................................................ 55 Compositional Approach ....................................................................................................... 55 CONCLUSION ....................................................................................................................... 57 APPENDIX A PUBLISHED COMPOSITIONS......................................................................58 APPENDIX B DISCOGRAPHY................................................................................................62 REFERENCES............................................................................................................................63 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH .................................................................................................. 66 v LIST OF FIGURES 1. Phil Nimmons on the far left with his neighborhood band in 1938. .........................................4 2. The original Nimmons ‗N‘ Nine with a few extra musicians in the mid-1960s before their tour to Cypress ............................................................................................................................. 17 3. Nimmons ‗N‘ Nine Plus Six at the Toronto Downtown Jazz Festival in 2003. ...................... 20 4. Oscar Peterson and Phil Nimmons in 1974. ........................................................................... 34 5. Phil Nimmons performing at Humber College in Toronto in the late 1990s. ......................... 57 *PHOTOS PROVIDED BY PHIL NIMMONS vi ABSTRACT This treatise will focus on the life and music of Canadian jazz clarinetist Phil Nimmons. It will introduce Canadian and non-Canadian musicians to Phil Nimmons‘ accomplishments as a jazz performer, composer, and pedagogue. Phil Nimmons has been an active member of the Canadian music scene since the late 1930s. He has contributed to the evolution of the Canadian jazz scene, is recognized as being one of Canada‘s great composers, and a pedagogue who helped to develop jazz education in Canada. As a composer, Nimmons has written over 400 classical and jazz compositions for stage, television, radio, theater and film, in addition to hundreds of jazz orchestrations. As a performer, Nimmons has been credited for his significant contribution to the cultural life of Canada for being largely responsible for bringing jazz into the mainstream through radio performances, concerts, workshops and the classroom. As an educator, Nimmons was a founding member of the Advanced School of Contemporary Music (ASCM). He was the first Artistic Director of the jazz program at the Banff Centre for the Arts, and influential in the inauguration of the Jazz program at the University of Toronto, of which he is Director Emeritus and has taught at the Faculty of Music for over 30 years. vii INTRODUCTION Phil Nimmons has been labelled the ―Dean of Canadian Jazz.‖1 He has been cited for his significant contribution to the cultural life of Canada by bringing jazz into the mainstream of Canadian music through radio performances, concerts, workshops and the classroom. Little has been written about Phil Nimmons aside from newspaper and journal articles, or short biographical sketches found in media releases. This treatise, based almost entirely on personal interviews, will provide a resource for Canadian and American clarinetists to learn more about this important musician. Nimmons has been an active member of the Canadian music scene since the late 1930s, and has also been a major contributor to the evolution of the Canadian jazz scene. Nimmons is acknowledged as being one of Canada‘s notable composers, and for contributing to the development of jazz education in Canada. A pioneer in the field of jazz education in Canada, Phil Nimmons in partnership with Canadian jazz pianist Oscar Peterson, founded the Advanced School of Contemporary Music which led to the founding of the Banff Centre for the Arts Jazz Program. Nimmons went on to create the jazz program at the University of Toronto which