Kenneth Vincent John Wheeler (born 14th January 1930, Toronto, Canada) is a Canadian composer and trumpet and flugelhorn player, based in the U.K. since the 1950s. A composer is a person who writes music. ... The trumpet is the highest brass instrument in register, above the horn, trombone, baritone, euphonium and tuba. ... A standard 3-valved Bb flugelhorn. ...

Most of his output is rooted in jazz, but he has also been active in free improvisation and has occasionally contributed to rock music recordings. Highly respected among his peers for his beautiful tone and extensive range on the trumpet and flugelhorn, Wheeler has written over one hundred compositions and is a skilled arranger for small groups and larger ensembles. His compositions blend lyrical melodies with a distinctive and ever changing harmonic palette. Jazz is a musical art form that originated in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States around the start of the 20th century. ... Free improvisation or free music is improvised music without any rules beyond the taste of the musicians involved, and not in any particular style. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Rock and roll. ...

He has recorded some twenty albums as a leader, and has recorded or performed with Dave Holland, John Taylor and Norma Winstone (as Azimuth), Anthony Braxton, Lee Konitz, Keith Jarrett, Theo Jörgensmann Quartet, David Sylvian, Steve Coleman, Spiritualized and the Spontaneous Music Ensemble, among others. Dave Holland (born October 1, 1946) is a jazz bassist and composer. ... John Taylor (born 25th September 1942) is a British jazz pianist. ... Azimuth is the horizontal component of a direction (compass direction), measured around the horizon, usually from the north toward the east — i. ... Anthony Braxton (born June 4, 1945) is an American composer, multi-reedist and pianist. ... Lee Konitz (born 1927 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American jazz composer and saxophone player. ... Keith Jarrett (born May 8, 1945 in Allentown, Pennsylvania) is an American pianist and composer. ... Theo Jörgensmann Quartet is a free jazz ensemble. ... David Sylvian (born David Alan Batt, 23 February 1958, in Beckenham, Kent, UK) is an English singer, musician and composer who first gained attention as the lead vocalist and main songwriter in the band, Japan. ... Steve Coleman in Paris, July 2004 Steve Coleman (born 20 September 1956) is an American saxophone player, spontaneous composer, composer and band leader. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The SME playing in Islington, London, 1991. ...

Biography

Growing up in Toronto, Wheeler began playing cornet at age 12, and became interested in jazz in his mid-teens. Wheeler spent a year studying composition at the Royal Conservatory in Toronto in 1950. In 1952, Wheeler moved to Britain. He found his way into the London jazz scene of the time, playing in groups led by Tommy Whittle, Tubby Hayes and Ronnie Scott. Throughout the Sixties, he worked with John Dankworth, and also formed part of (Eric Burdon and) The Animals Big Band that made its one-and-only public appearance at the 5th Annual British Jazz & Blues Festival in Richmond (1965) with tenors Stan Robinson, Dick Morrissey and Al Gay, baritone sax Paul Carroll, and fellow trumpets Mike Carr and Greg Brown. In 1968, Wheeler appeared on guitarist Terry Smith's first solo album, Fall Out. Kenny Wheeler still lives in Britain today. Edward Tubby Hayes (1935-1973} was a British jazz tenor saxophone player. ... Ronnie Scott (left) with Tubby Hayes. ... Sir John Dankworth CBE Born in London, England, in 1927, was brought up in a musical environment amongst a family of musicians. ... Eric Victor Burdon (born 11 May 1941, in Walker, Newcastle upon Tyne) was the lead singer of The Animals and later of War. ... The US edition of The Animals self-titled debut album. ... The National Jazz and Blues Festival was the precursor to the Reading Rock Festival and was the brainchild of Harold Pendleton, the manager of the prestigious Marquee Club in Soho. ... Richard Edwin Morrissey (May 9, 1940, Horley, Surrey - November 8, 2000, Deal, Kent) was a British jazz musician and composer. ... Paul Carroll was an American poet and the founder of the Poetry Center of Chicago. ... Terry Smith (May 20, 1943, London) is a British jazz guitarist. ...

Writing for large ensembles

Kenny Wheeler has performed and recorded his own compositions with large jazz ensembles throughout his career, starting with his first album Windmill Tilter, (1969), recorded with the John Dankworth band. The Windmill Tilter LP today is a collector's item, since the original master tapes have been lost, though there are plans to reissue it on CD. The big band album Song for Someone fused Wheeler's characteristic orchestral writing with passages of free improvisation provided by musicians such as Evan Parker and Derek Bailey, and was also named Album of the Year by Melody Maker magazine in 1975. Sir John Dankworth CBE Born in London, England, in 1927, was brought up in a musical environment amongst a family of musicians. ... A big band is a type of musical ensemble associated with playing jazz music and which became popular during the Swing Era from 1935 until the late 1940s. ... Evan Shaw Parker (born 5 April 1944 in Bristol) is a British free-improvising saxophone player from the European free jazz scene. ... Derek Bailey pictured at the Vortex Club, Stoke Newington, 1991. ... Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was (until its closure) the worlds oldest weekly music newspaper. ...

Improvised music

In the mid-1960s, Wheeler became a close participant in the nascent free improvisation movement in London, playing with John Stevens, Evan Parker, the Spontaneous Music Ensemble and the Globe Unity Orchestra. His involvement in this genre continues to this day. Free improvisation or free music is improvised music without any rules beyond the taste of the musicians involved, and not in any particular style. ... John Stevens is the name of a number of prominent people: Sir John Stevens (b. ... Evan Shaw Parker (born 5 April 1944 in Bristol) is a British free-improvising saxophone player from the European free jazz scene. ... The SME playing in Islington, London, 1991. ... The Globe Unity Orchestra is a free jazz ensemble. ...

Small group jazz

Despite the above-noted accomplishments, much of Wheeler's reputation rests on his work with smaller jazz groups. Wheeler's first small group recordings to gain significant critical attention were Gnu High (1975) and Deer Wan (1977), both for the ECM label. Wheeler was also a member of chamber jazz group Azimuth (with John Taylor and Norma Winstone), and was the trumpet player in the Anthony Braxton Quartet from 1971 to 1976. John Taylor (born 25th September 1942) is a British jazz pianist. ... Anthony Braxton (born June 4, 1945) is an American composer, multi-reedist and pianist. ...

More recently, Wheeler received widespread critical praise for his 1997 album Angel Song, which featured an unusual "drummerless" quartet of Bill Frisell (guitar), Dave Holland (bass) and Lee Konitz (alto sax). William Richard Bill Frisell (born March 18, 1951) is an American jazz guitarist and composer. ... Dave Holland (born October 1, 1946) is a jazz bassist and composer. ... Lee Konitz (born 1927 in Chicago, Illinois) is an American jazz composer and saxophone player. ...

Critical reaction

"The Wheeler sound is one of the most distinctive in the history of the jazz trumpet. A thin, overblown note is followed by a florid flurry, the high squeal by a long low note he rolls around his mouth like a chewy mint. Although his phrases are bordered, like blotting paper in ink, with romanticism, the comforting phrase is superseded by the querulous, a moment of tenderness by a scream of panic. He has his trademark tics, but is incapable of producing a hackneyed phrase. Like words from a prophet, every note counts."

- Sholto Byrnes in The Independent, 20th August 2002 (quoted on guitarist John Parriccelli's website [1] For other uses, see The Independent (disambiguation). ...

Discography

• Windmill Tilter, 1968
• Song For Someone, 1973
• Gnu High, 1975
• 1976, 1976
• Deer Wan, 1978
• Around 6, 1980
• Double, Double You, 1984
• Flutter By, Butterfly, 1988
• Music For Large & Small Ensembles, 1990
• The Widow In The Window, 1990
• Kayak, 1992
• Touché (with Paul Bley), 1996
• All The More, 1997
• Angel Song, 1997
• Live at the Montreal Bistro (with Sonny Greenwich), 1998
• Siren's Song, 1998
• A Long Time Ago, 1999
• One More Time (with Norma Winstone and UMO Jazz Orchestra), 2000
• Moon (with John Taylor), 2001
• Ordesa (with Stan Sulzmann and John Parricelli), 2002
• Dream Sequence, 2003
• Island (with Bob Brookmeyer), 2003
• Where Do We Go From Here (with John Taylor), 2005
• What Now?, 2005
• It Takes Two!, 2006

Paul Bley is a free jazz pianist born in Montreal, Canada in 1932 and long-time resident in the USA. His music characteristically features strong senses both of melodic voicing and space. ... Sonny Greenwich is a Canadian jazz musician. ... John Taylor (born 25th September 1942) is a British jazz pianist. ... John Parricelli is a jazz guitarist, appearing and recording in the United Kingdom, mostly. ... Robert Brookmeyer (born December 19, 1929) is an American jazz valve trombonist, pianist, and arranger. ... John Taylor (born 25th September 1942) is a British jazz pianist. ...

External links

Kenny Wheeler entry in the Canadian Encyclopaedia [2]

Kenny Wheeler profile on the European Jazz Network [3]

2003 Interview with journalist John Eyles[4] - AllAboutJazz.com

2005 Interview with John Fordham - PDF [5] - Jazzservices.org.uk

2005 Review of the Kenny Wheeler Big Band by John Fordham in the Guardian [6] - Guardian.co.uk

FMP releases [7]