Darcy Rolston Hepner (born December 22, 1954) is a Canadian/American saxophonist, composer, and arranger.

Biography

Born in Edmonton, Alberta and raised in Hamilton,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, he is the son of professional musicians (conductor

Lee Hepner Dr. Lee Hepner (November 24, 1920 – July 24, 1986) ARCT 1950, B MUS (Toronto) 1951, BA (Washington) 1957, MA (Columbia) 1961, honorary FRHCM 1970, PH D (New York) 1972 was a Canadian teacher and orchestral conductor. Hepner was born in Edmont ...

and pianist Patricia Rolston). His professional career began as a cellist at the age of 15 and transitioned to flute, clarinet, and

saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) 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 pr ...

during his studies at McMaster University (BMus 1978). While pursuing

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

studies at the

University of Miami The University of Miami (UM, UMiami, Miami, U of M, and The U) is a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. , the university enrolled 19,096 students in 12 colleges and schools across nearly 350 academic majors and programs, incl ...

he performed with Henry Mancini, BB King,

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in ''Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". With ...

, Tony Bennett,

Mel Tormé Melvin Howard Tormé (September 13, 1925 – June 5, 1999), nicknamed "The Velvet Fog", was an American musician, singer, composer, arranger, drummer, actor, and author. He composed the music for "The Christmas Song" ("Chestnuts Roasting on an Op ...

and many others (MMUS 1980). Moving to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

in 1983 he studied composition and saxophone at

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin. In 1832, the ...

with

Lee Konitz Leon Konitz (October 13, 1927 – April 15, 2020) was an American composer and alto saxophonist. He performed successfully in a wide range of jazz styles, including bebop, cool jazz, and avant-garde jazz. Konitz's association with the cool jazz ...

and

Bob Mintzer Robert Alan Mintzer (born January 27, 1953) is an American jazz saxophonist, composer, arranger, and big band leader. Early life Mintzer was born and raised in a Jewish family in New Rochelle, New York, on January 27, 1953. He attended the Inter ...

. During his second residency in New York from 1996 to 2005, Hepner toured with Blood, Sweat and Tears, played in Broadway and Off-Broadway shows and in clubs with such artists as

Buster Poindexter David Roger Johansen (sometimes spelled ''David Jo Hansen''; born January 9, 1950) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. He is best known as a member of the seminal proto-punk band the New York Dolls. He is also known for his work under ...

, Tom Wopat and the Ed Palermo Big Band. Since 2008 he has recorded and performed with

Tom Wilson (musician) Thomas Cunningham Wilson (born 1959) is a Canadian rock musician from Hamilton, Ontario. A veteran of the Canadian music scene, Wilson has been a writer and performer for many years. Wilson's eclectic musical style has ranged from the psychobilly ...

and LeE HARVeY OsMOND as both a woodwind player and conductor/arranger for his symphony shows which have included performances with the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra and the National Arts Centre Orchestra in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

. In 2015, he collaborated with Canadian musician Ian Thomas as arranger and conductor to develop a concert for the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra. The music for the concert was used to produce Thomas's “Life In Song” recording. Hepner taught at

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...

(Boston) 1985–89, and was founder and head of the Music Program at Selkirk College in Nelson, BC, 1989–96. From 2005 to 2020, he held the position of professor of music at

Mohawk College Mohawk College of Applied Arts and Technology is a public college of applied arts and technology located in Hamilton, Ontario. Established in 1966, the college currently has five main campuses: the Fennell Campus on the Hamilton Mountain, the M ...

, Hamilton.

Discography (selected)

As Leader The Darcy Hepner Jazz Orchestra • Blues In Another Minute (Water Street 2010) As Sideman With The

Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra The Berlin Contemporary Jazz Orchestra is a large German people, German jazz ensemble led by Alexander von Schlippenbach. The orchestra performs orchestral jazz and experimental big band music and has included in its ranks such leading musicians as ...

• The Morlocks and Other Pieces ( FMP/Free Music Production 1993) With

Larry Carlton Larry Eugene Carlton (born March 2, 1948) is an American guitarist who built his career as a studio musician in the 1970s and 1980s for acts such as Steely Dan and Joni Mitchell. He has participated in thousands of recording sessions, recorde ...

• Plays the Sound of Philadelphia (335 2010) With

Andy Middleton Andy Middleton (born May 22, 1962) is an American tenor and soprano jazz saxophonist. He has recorded with Ralph Towner, Dave Holland, Kenny Wheeler, Renee Rosnes, Jamey Haddad, Joey Calderazzo, and Alan Jones. Life and career Early life Born ...

• Reinventing the World (Intuition 2003) With Ian Thomas • A Life In Song (Universal Music 2016) With Tom Wilson (LeE HARVeY OsMOND) • A Quite Evil (Latent Recordings 2008) • The Folk Sinner (Latent Recordings 2013) • Beautiful Scars (Latent Recordings 2015) • Symphonic Scars (TCW 2018) • Mohawk (Latent Recordings 2019)

References

Darcy Hepner , The Canadian Encyclopedia
thecanadianencyclopedia.ca. Retrieved 2013-12-05
Darcy Hepner -Canada Jazz - Canada's Finest Jazz Artists
canadajazz.net. Retrieved 2013-01-31

curtainup.com. May 14, 1998
Newly Discovered Charlie Parker Arrangements Played in Upcoming Concert
jazzelements.com. February 16, 2006
Darcy Hepner gets the big band back together
The Spectator, January 12, 2008

The Spectator, February 16, 2016

The Spectator, June 16, 2016
Lee Harvey Osmond in Madison
madison.eventful.com November 6, 2016
From The Beatles With Love"
looklocalmagazine.com January 14, 2019 *''The Morlocks and Other Pieces'' ( FMP, 1994) *"The McMaster University Alumni Awards

Faculty of Humanities, 2009 {{DEFAULTSORT:Hepner, Darcy 1954 births Living people Canadian jazz bandleaders Canadian jazz musicians American jazz musicians American male saxophonists