Mark Turner Victoria teater Oslo Jazzfestival (182123)

Mark Turner (born November 10, 1965) is an American

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 m ...

saxophonist.

Biography

Born in Fairborn, Ohio, and raised in the small Southern California town of

Palos Verdes Estates Palos Verdes Estates (''Palos Verdes'', Spanish for "Green Sticks") is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, situated on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. The city was master-planned by the noted American landscape architect and ...

, Turner originally intended to become a commercial artist. In elementary school he played the clarinet, followed by the alto and

tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The low extreme for tenors is wide ...

saxophones in high school. He attended California State University, Long Beach in the 1980s (playing in the jazz ensembles) and then transferred to and graduated from Berklee College of Music in 1990 before moving to New York. Turner worked at

Tower Records Tower Records is an international retail franchise and online music store that was formerly based in Sacramento, California, United States. From 1960 until 2006, Tower operated retail stores in the United States, which closed when Tower Recor ...

in New York City for an extended period before working full-time as a jazz musician. In early November 2008 Turner injured two fingers on one of his hands with a power saw, but as of late February 2009 he was performing again with the Edward Simon Quartet at

the Village Vanguard The Village Vanguard is a jazz club at Seventh Avenue South in Greenwich Village, New York City. The club was opened on February 22, 1935, by Max Gordon. Originally, the club presented folk music and beat poetry, but it became primarily a jazz ...

. He is married to the psychiatrist and anthropologist, Dr. Helena Hansen.

Style and influences

Turner's sound is reminiscent of that of

Warne Marsh Warne Marion Marsh (October 26, 1927 – December 18, 1987) was an American tenor saxophonist. Born in Los Angeles, his playing first came to prominence in the 1950s as a protégé of pianist Lennie Tristano and earned attention in the 1970s as ...

, but he also has elements of

John Coltrane John William Coltrane (September 23, 1926 – July 17, 1967) was an American jazz saxophonist, bandleader and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Born and raise ...

in his playing. Turner has mentioned both Marsh and Coltrane as influences, and has used elements of both players' styles in his music. Turner's range extends into the high

altissimo Altissimo (Italian for ''very high'') is the uppermost register on woodwind instruments. For clarinets, which overblow on odd harmonics, the altissimo notes are those based on the fifth, seventh, and higher harmonics. For other woodwinds, the alt ...

register. His improvised lines tend to span several octaves and contain great harmonic and rhythmic complexity. His compositions often make use of repeated patterns, odd-metered time signatures, and intervallic leaps. Turner claims that his music is "unfolding like a narrative". Consequently, his 2014 album '' Lathe of Heaven'' is named after

Ursula K. Le Guin Ursula Kroeber Le Guin (; October 21, 1929 – January 22, 2018) was an American author best known for her works of speculative fiction, including science fiction works set in her Hainish universe, and the '' Earthsea'' fantasy series. She was ...

's novel of the same title which is based on the idea of a world where the nature of reality keeps shifting.

Musical associations

In September 2014, Turner released his first album as a leader since 2001 on ECM Records; it features trumpeter Avishai Cohen, bassist Joe Martin, and drummer

Marcus Gilmore Marcus Gilmore (born October 10, 1986) is an American drummer. In 2009, ''New York Times'' critic Ben Ratliff included Gilmore in his list of drummers who are "finding new ways to look at the drum set, and at jazz itself", saying, "he created th ...

. Turner is a member of the trio ''Fly'', which includes himself, bassist

Larry Grenadier Larry Grenadier (born February 6, 1966 in San Francisco) is an American jazz double bassist. Early life Grenadier's father, Albert, was a trumpet player, and his two brothers, Phil and Steve, play trumpet and guitar, respectively. Grenadier be ...

, and drummer Jeff Ballard. He also appears in guitarist Gilad Hekselman's Quartet, and drummer Billy Hart's Quartet. Turner has recorded extensively with guitarist

Kurt Rosenwinkel Kurt Rosenwinkel (born October 28, 1970) is an American jazz guitarist, keyboardist, composer, bandleader, producer, educator and record label owner. Biography A native of Philadelphia, Rosenwinkel attended the Philadelphia High School for the ...

, saxophonist

David Binney David Binney (born August 2, 1961) is an American alto saxophonist and composer. Early life Binney was born in Miami, Florida, and was raised in Carpinteria, California. From his parents, who loved music, he was exposed to albums by John C ...

, and pianist

Aaron Goldberg Aaron Goldberg (born April 30, 1974), is an American jazz pianist. Described by ''The New York Times'' as a "post-bop pianist of exemplary taste and range," Goldberg has released five albums as a solo artist and has performed and collaborated wi ...

, among others. Turner, the ultimate jazz sideman, has played or collaborated with more than 45 jazz bands. In 2018 and 2019 alone he has played on eight different jazz albums as a sideman or collaborator. (See Sideman and Collaborators below.)

Discography

As leader/co-leader

* '' Yam Yam'' (Criss Cross, 1995) * ''Warner Jams Vol. 2: The Two Tenors'' with James Moody (Warner Bros., 1997) * ''Mark Turner'' (Warner Bros., 1998) – recorded in 1995 * ''

In This World ''In This World'' is a 2002 British docudrama directed by Michael Winterbottom. The film follows two young Afghan refugees, Jamal Udin Torabi and Enayatullah, as they leave a refugee camp in Pakistan for a better life in London. Since their jour ...

'' (Warner Bros., 1998) * ''The Music of Mercedes Rossy'' (Fresh Sound, 1998) * ''Ballad Session'' (Warner Bros., 2000) – recorded in 1999 * '' Two Tenor Ballads'' (Criss Cross, 2000) * ''

Consenting Adults In criminal law, consent may be used as an excuse and prevent the defendant from incurring liability for what was done. Defences against criminal liability A defence against criminal liability may arise when a defendant can argue that, becaus ...

'' with M.T.B. (Criss Cross, 2000) * '' Dharma Days'' (Warner Bros., 2001) * ''Dusk Is a Quiet Place'' with Baptiste Trotignon (Naive, 2013) * '' Lathe of Heaven'' (ECM, 2014) – recorded in 2013 * '' Temporary Kings'' with

Ethan Iverson Ethan Iverson (born February 11, 1973) is a pianist, composer, and critic best known for his work in the avant-garde jazz trio The Bad Plus with bassist Reid Anderson and drummer Dave King. Biography Iverson was born in Menomonie, Wisconsin. ...

(ECM, 2018) – recorded in 2017 * ''Mark Turner Meets Gary Foster'' with Gary Foster (Capri, 2019) CD– live recorded in 2003 * ''Where Are You?'' with

Kevin Hays Kevin () is the anglicized form of the Irish masculine given name (; mga, Caoimhghín ; sga, Cóemgein ; Latinized as ). It is composed of "dear; noble"; Old Irish and ("birth"; Old Irish ). The variant ''Kevan'' is anglicized from , an ...

, Marc Miralta (Fresh Sound, 2019) – recorded in 2018 * ''Return from the Stars'' (ECM, 2022) – recorded in 2019

As group

Fly with Jeff Ballard and

* '' Fly'' (Savoy, 2004) * '' Sky & Country'' (ECM, 2009) * '' Year of the Snake'' (ECM, 2012) SFJAZZ Collective * ''Wonder'' (SFJAZZ, 2012)

As sideman

With

Reid Anderson Reid Anderson (born 15 October 1970) is a bassist and composer from Minnesota. He is a member of The Bad Plus with drummer Dave King, saxophonist Chris Speed, and guitarist Ben Monder. The original lineup of The Bad Plus first played together ...

* ''Dirty Show Tunes'' (Fresh Sound, 1997) * ''Abolish Bad Architecture'' (Fresh Sound, 1999) With

Omer Avital Omer Avital (born May 13, 1971, Givatayim, Israel) is an Israeli-American jazz bassist, composer and bandleader. Early life Avital was born in the town of Givatayim to Moroccan and Yemeni parents. At age 11, he began his formal training, s ...

* ''Asking No Permission'' (Smalls, 2005) – live recorded in 1996 * ''The Ancient Art of Giving'' (Smalls, 2006) With

* ''Barefooted Town'' (Criss Cross, 2011) * ''Cities and Desire'' (Criss Cross, 2006) With

Jakob Bro Jakob Bro (born April 11, 1978) is a Danish guitarist and composer. Career Bro leads a trio with Joey Baron and Thomas Morgan. In the fall of 2016 the trio released the album ''Streams'' ( ECM). Bro also works with Palle Mikkelborg and Bro/Knak, ...

* ''Sidetracked'' (Loveland, 2005) * ''Pearl River'' (Loveland, 2007) With

George Colligan George Colligan (born December 29, 1969) is an American jazz pianist, organist, drummer, trumpeter, educator, composer, and bandleader. Early life and education Colligan was born in New Jersey and raised in Columbia, Maryland. He attended the P ...

* ''Constant Source'' (SteepleChase, 2000) * ''The Newcomer'' (SteepleChase, 1997) * ''Unresolved'' (Fresh Sound, 1999) With Benoit Delbecq * ''Phonetics'' (Songlines, 2005) * ''Spots On Stripes'' (Clean Feed, 2018) With

* ''Turning Point'' (J-Curve, 1999) * ''Home'' (Sunnyside, 2010) With Jon Gordon * ''Witness'' (Criss Cross, 1996) * ''Along the Way'' (Criss Cross, 1997) With

Tom Harrell Tom Harrell (born June 16, 1946) is an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist, composer, and arranger. Voted Trumpeter of the Year of 2018 by ''Jazz Journalists Association'', Harrell has won awards and grants throughout his career, including mul ...

* ''Trip'' (HighNote, 2014) * '' Infinity'' (HighNote, 2019) With Billy Hart * 2005: '' Billy Hart Quartet'' (HighNote, 2006) * 2011: '' All Our Reasons'' (ECM, 2012) * 2013: '' One Is the Other'' (ECM, 2014) With

Jochen Rueckert Jochen is a given name. Notable people with the name include: *Jochen Asche, East German luger, competed during the 1960s *Jochen Böhler (born 1969), German historian, specializing in the history of World War II *Jochen Babock (born 1953), East G ...

* ''Somewhere Meeting Nobody'' (Pirouet, 2011) * ''We Make the Rules'' (Whirlwind, 2014) * ''Charm Offensive'' (Pirouet, 2016) With Edward Simon * ''Edward Simon'' (Kokopelli, 1995) * ''La Bikina'' (Red, 2011) * ''Venezuelan Suite'' (Sunnyside, 2013) With

* 1996: ''

The Enemies of Energy ''The Enemies of Energy'' a 2000 jazz album release by Kurt Rosenwinkel. Its release marked Rosenwinkel's third album as a band leader.Lyles, RMark Turner Discography accessed May 7, 2019 Track listing Personnel * Kurt Rosenwinkel – guitar * ...

'' (Verve, 2000) * 2000: '' The Next Step'' (Verve, 2000) * 2001–03: '' Heartcore'' (Verve, 2003) * 2006: '' The Remedy'' (

ArtistShare ArtistShare is the internet's first commercial crowdfunding website.Crowd-Funding 101: What Every Musician Needs for a Successful Campaign It also operates as a record label and business model for artists which enables them to fund their projec ...

, 2008) CD– live * 2007–17: ''Caipi'' (Razdaz, 2017) With Gilad Hekselman * ''Hearts Wide Open'' (Le Chant du Monde, 2011) * ''This Just In'' (Jazz Village, 2013) With

Matthias Lupri Matthias Albrecht Lupri (born 29 October 1964 in Germany) is a jazz musician who plays the vibraphone. History Lupri grew up in Manhattan, Kansas, and Alberta, Canada. Initially he played the drums, and as a teenager played in blues, rock, and co ...

* ''Same Time Twice'' (Summit, 2002) * ''Transition Sonic'' (Summit, 2004) With

Ibrahim Maalouf Ibrahim Maalouf ( ar, ابراهيم معلوف, ; born 5 November 1980 in Beirut) is a French-Lebanese trumpeter, producer, arranger, and composer. In 2022, he became the first Lebanese instrumentalist nominated at the Grammy Awards for his albu ...

* ''Wind'' (Mi'ster, 2012) * ''Kalthoum'' (Mi'ster, 2015) With Joe Martin * 2001: ''Passage'' (Fresh Sound, 2002) * 2018: ''Etoilee'' (Sunnyside, 2019) With Baptiste Trotignon * ''Share'' (Naive, 2008) * ''Suite'' (Naive, 2009) With

David Virelles David Virelles (born 1983) is a Cuban jazz pianist and composer. Early life Virelles was born in Cuba in 1983Jurek, Tho"Artist Biography" AllMusic. Retrieved 21 February 2015. and grew up in Santiago. His father is José Aquiles, a singer-songwr ...

* ''Motion'' (Justin Time, 2007) * ''Continuum'' (Pi, 2012) With others * Carl Allen, ''Echoes of Our Heroes'' (Evidence, 1996) * Jeff Ballard, ''Fairgrounds'' (Edition, 2019) – live recorded in 2015 *

Diego Barber Diego Barber is a classical and jazz guitarist. He has recorded albums for Sunnyside and Origin Records. Early life Barber was born into a family of musicians. He studied at the Lanzarote Conservatory of Music with Miguel Ángel Calzadilla and ...

, ''Calima'' (Sunnyside, 2009) * Joao Barradas, ''Portrait'' (Nischo, 2020) *

Seamus Blake Seamus Blake (born December 8, 1970) is a British-born Canadian tenor saxophonist. Early life and education Blake was born in London, England and raised in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. His mother introduced him to jazz when he was a c ...

, ''Four Track Mind'' (Criss Cross, 1997) – recorded in 1994 * Stefano Bollani, ''Joy in Spite of Everything'' (ECM, 2014) *

Chris Cheek Christopher Carson Cheek (born September 16, 1968) is an American jazz saxophonist. Biography Cheek was born in St. Louis, Missouri, where his father was the director of a Junior high school band. Cheek began learning to play the alto saxophon ...

, ''A Girl Named Joe'' (Fresh Sound, 1998) *

Yelena Eckemoff Yelena Eckemoff is a Russian-born pianist, composer, poet, and visual artist. Her compositions blend classical music with jazz, and feature exploration and improvisation. Music career Eckemoff was born in Moscow, Russia, in the Soviet Union. He ...

, ''A Touch of Radiance'' (L&H, 2014) *

Robert Glasper Robert Andre Glasper (born April 6, 1978) is an American pianist, record producer, songwriter, and musical arranger with a career that bridges several different musical and artistic genres, mostly centered on jazz. To date, Glasper has won fou ...

, '' Canvas'' (Blue Note, 2005) *

Russell Gunn Russell Gunn (born October 20, 1971 in Chicago) is an American contemporary jazz trumpeter. He grew up in East St. Louis, Illinois playing trumpet. As a kid his musical interest was hip hop, with LL Cool J being his first music idol. His project ...

, ''Love Requiem'' (HighNote, 1999) *

Anke Helfrich Anke Helfrich (born 11 November 1966) is a German jazz pianist and composer. Life and work Helfrich grew up in Windhoek, Namibia and Weinheim, Germany where she received piano lessons. She studied in the Netherlands at the Amsterdamse Hoogeschoo ...

, ''You'll See'' (Double Moon, 2002) *

, ''

Common Practice In European art music, the common-practice period is the era of the tonal system. Most of its features persisted from the mid-Baroque period through the Classical and Romantic periods, roughly from 1650 to 1900. There was much stylistic evoluti ...

'' (ECM, 2019) *

Jonny King Jonny King (Jonathan Z. King, born 2 February 1965, New York City, New York) is an American jazz pianist, attorney, fisherman and writer. Raised in New York City, King graduated from Princeton University and Harvard Law School and works as an int ...

, ''In from the Cold'' (Criss Cross, 1994) *

Ryan Kisor Ryan Kisor (born April 12, 1973) is an American jazz trumpeter. A native of Sioux City, Iowa, Kisor learned trumpet from his father, Larry Kisor, and started playing in a local dance band (the Eddie Skeets Orchestra) at age ten. Kisor began clas ...

, ''On the One'' (Columbia, 1993) * Lee Konitz, ''Parallels'' (Chesky, 2001) *

Delfeayo Marsalis Delfeayo Marsalis (; born July 28, 1965) is an American jazz trombonist, record producer and educator. Life and career Marsalis was born in New Orleans, the son of Dolores (née Ferdinand) and Ellis Louis Marsalis, Jr., a pianist and music pro ...

, ''Pontius Pilate's Decision'' (Novus, 1992) *

Francisco Mela Francisco Jose Mela is a Cuban drummer and percussionist who has performed with a wide array of prominent international Latin and jazz artists including Kenny Barron, Gary Bartz, JoAnne Brackeen, Jane Bunnett, Regina Carter, Anat Cohen, Paquit ...

, ''Cirio'' (Half Note, 2008) * Ferenc Nemeth, ''Night Songs'' (Dreamers, 2007) * Josh Ottum, ''Like the Season'' (Tapete, 2006) *

Leon Parker Leon Parker (born August 21, 1965 in White Plains, New York) is a jazz percussionist and composer.All Music/ref> He is known for occasionally using a minimalist drum set with fewer components than usual, "sometimes consisting only of a snare dr ...

, ''Above & Below'' (Epicure, 1994) *

John Patitucci John Patitucci (born December 22, 1959) is an American jazz bassist and composer. Biography John James Patitucci was born in Brooklyn, New York. When he was 12, he bought his first bass and decided on his career. He listened to bass parts in R ...

, ''Imprint'' (Concord Jazz, 2000) – recorded in 1999 * Perico Sambeat, ''

Ademuz Ademuz is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in the Comarques of the Valencian Community, ''comarca'' of Rincón de Ademuz in the Valencia (autonomous community), Valencian Community, Spain. The name in Valencian language, Valencian is ''Adem ...

'' (Fresh Sound, 1998) *

Joshua Redman Joshua Redman (born February 1, 1969) is an American jazz saxophonist and composer. He is the son of jazz saxophonist Dewey Redman (1931–2006). Life and career Joshua Redman was born in Berkeley, California, to jazz saxophonist Dewey Redman ...

, ''

Beyond Beyond may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Beyond'' (1921 film), an American silent film * ''Beyond'' (2000 film), a Danish film directed by Åke Sandgren, OT: ''Dykkerne'' * ''Beyond'' (2010 film), a Swedish film directed b ...

'' (Warner Bros., 2000) – recorded in 1999 * Aldo Romano, ''The Jazzpar Prize'' (Enja, 2004) *

Jorge Rossy Jorge "Jordi" Rossy (born August 21, 1964) is a jazz drummer, pianist and vibraphonist. Early life Rossy was born in Barcelona. He started playing drums at age 11. Later life and career Between 1980 and 1989, Rossy toured and recorded extensiv ...

, ''Stay There'' (Pirouet, 2016) *

Enrico Rava Enrico Rava (born 20 August 1939), is an Italian jazz trumpeter. He started on trombone, then changed to the trumpet after hearing Miles Davis. Career He was born in Trieste, Italy. His first commercial work was as a member of Gato Barbieri' ...

, ''New York Days'' (ECM, 2009) * Samo Salamon, ''Mamasaal feat. Mark Turner'' (Dometra, 2008) *

Jaleel Shaw Jaleel Shaw (born February 11, 1978) is an American jazz alto saxophonist. Biography Raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Shaw attended Greene Street Friends School, the Philadelphia High School for the Creative and Performing Arts and graduated ...

, ''Perspective'' (Fresh Sound, 2005) * Jimmy Smith, '' Damn!'' (Verve, 1995) * Yeahwon Shin, ''Yeahwon'' (ArtistShare, 2010) * Chris Wiesendanger, ''Urban Village'' (Fresh Sound, 2002) * Mark Zubek, ''Twentytwodollarfishlunch'' (Fresh Sound, 2009) Lyles, R
Mark Turner Discography
accessed May 7, 2019

References

Reviews

In This World @ Allaboutjazz.com

* G. Giddins: “Turner Classic Moves,” VV (April 14, 1998), 118 * G. M. Stern: “Airtime: Mark Turner: You Don’t Have to be Twenty Years Old to Succeed,” Windplayer, no.58 (1998), 10 * "Saxophonist Mark Turner's Stylistic Assimilation of Warne Marsh and the Tristano School," Master's Thesis by Jimmy Emerzian, California State University, Long Beach, 2008.

External links

Mark Turner discography
at Jazzdiscography.com
interview short film with Mark Turner on his work with ECM Records

Turner-Marsh-Tristano Thesis download links
at Emerzianmusic.com

{{DEFAULTSORT:Turner, Mark American jazz clarinetists American jazz saxophonists American male saxophonists Manhattan School of Music faculty People from Fairborn, Ohio Living people 1965 births Criss Cross Jazz artists Berklee College of Music alumni People from Palos Verdes Estates, California 21st-century American saxophonists Jazz musicians from Ohio 21st-century clarinetists 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Kris Defoort Quartet members Fly (band) members SFJAZZ Collective members Jazz musicians from California