Tag Archives: adam simmons

Collider perform Solo In Red. Music based on the writing of American Author Cormac McCarthy

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On December 12 I will be presenting a new work with my band Collider, a band I co-lead with Adam Simmons.  Adam is also presenting a new work on the night. The evening is an exciting one for us. As well as giving us the opportunity to present new material we have both decided to conceptually link our compositions to literature.

I have composed my work with the brilliant Cormac McCarthy in mind, whose writing creates an atmosphere of sparseness, detachment and tension and is always touched with wry humour. He presents to us both the absolute beauty and ugly truth of existence.  These are some of the themes I have kept in mind when writing the work. I also find an intense spirituality in McCarthy’s work that seems to links into a deep religious structure overlaying much of America’s history. This is a structure that I myself have some personal understanding of, being raised as the child of missionary parents.

Adam’s work is focussing on Dr Seuss. Adam has embedded Seuss’s prosody in the compositions for this concert.

The details are

Monday December 12

Doors open at 7 for a 7.30 start

Fortyfivedownstairs

45 Flinders Lane Melbourne City

presales available : 96629966

www.fortyfivedownstairs.com

On another musical matter I will be performing as part of CW Stoneking’s Primitive Horn Orchestra on Friday the 2nd at the Corner Hotel and Saturday the 3rd at Homebake Festival, Sydney.

Announcing my Latest Musical Project: Collider.

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Some thoughts behind my music

A relatively New Band of mine, Collider, will be performing this weekend at the closing party for the Melbourne JaZZ Fringe Festival closing party Big Arse Sunday SUnday the 8th May at 303

Collider is a band that consists of trombone, tenor saxophone, drums and a string section of violin, viola and double bass. It creates a very unique and interesting sound.

Band Members are

Myself – Trombone

Adam Simmons – Sax

Andrea Keeble – Violin

Jason Dunn – Viola

Ronny Ferella – Drums

Anita Hustas – Double Bass

The other interesting aspect of the band is that everyone in it is a very strong composer in their own right which has allowed us to pursue a different approach to how the band chooses to perform. Rather than getting a bunch of tunes up we have decided to approach each future performance as an opportunity for one member of the ensemble to compose for the band. In the past both Adam and myself have composed music for various concerts and Andrea and Anita have composed work for performances at The Womans JaZZ Festival. On June 22 we will be presenting new work by Ronnie and Anita as part of th La Mamma Music series.

I have also had my head down writing for the group. My new work is a really stripped back approach to composition. I am attempting to focus in on the purity of sound and therefore trying to pair back anything I have written that is unnecessary. The idea of a purity of sound also has certain religious connotations to me, something I have avoided for a long period of my life but feel ready to tackle now. The obvious reference points for this new music I am struggling with would be Messiaen and the stark music of Morton Feldman.

For a review of the bands recent gig here is a link from AusJaZZ.net