Mark Turner

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Mark Turner (born November 10, 1965) is a well-known jazz saxophonist and clarinetist with several recordings to his credit.

Mark Turner

Biographical information

Born in Fairborn, Ohio, and raised in Southern California, Turner originally intended to become a commercial artist. In elementary school he played the clarinet, followed by the alto sax and then the tenor in high school. He graduated from Berklee College of Music in 1990 before moving to New York. Turner worked at Tower Records 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, was performing again with the Edward Simon Quartet at the Village Vanguard, after a rapid recovery of four months.

Style and influences

Mark Turner's sound is reminiscent of that of Warne Marsh, in that he often produces a somewhat dry, woody tone. He also has elements of John Coltrane in his playing. Turner has mentioned both Marsh and Coltrane [1] as influences, and has used elements of both players' styles in his music without resorting to mimicry. Turner's range extends effortlessly up into the high altissimo register, and he makes use of the full range of his instrument in his improvisations (his recordings easily negate the opposite claim, made by the Grove Dictionary of Music). His improvised lines tend to be harmonically and rhythmically complex, but with a constant organic flow. His compositions often make use of repeated patterns, odd-metered time signatures, intervallic leaps, and also a selective use of space.

Mark Turner at Baku Jazz Festival 2007

Musical Associations

Mark Turner frequently collaborates with Kurt Rosenwinkel, Larry Grenadier, and Jeff Ballard, and has formed various collectives that include these musicians (M.T.B. and prominently, fly). He has also played with the influential Dave Holland Big Band. In 2003, Turner collaborated with fellow Lennie Tristano/Warne Marsh admirer, alto saxophonist Gary Foster, in a special concert billed as "Mark Turner and Friends". [2].

Discography

As leader

• Yam Yam (Criss-Cross, 1995) [3]
• The Music of Mercedes Rossy (Fresh Sound, 1998) [4]
• Mark Turner (Warner Bros., 1998)
• In This World (Warner Bros., 1998)
• Two Tenor Ballads (Criss Cross, 2000) [5]
• Ballad Session (Warner Bros., 2000)
• Dharma Days (Warner Bros., 2001)

As sideman

With Jonny King

• In from the Cold (Criss Cross Jazz)

With Kurt Rosenwinkel

• The Enemies Of Energy (Verve Records)
• The Next Step (Verve Records)
• Heartcore (Verve Records)
• The Remedy: Live at the Village Vanguard (ArtistShare)

With OAM trio

• OAM trio & Mark Turner Live in Sevilla (LOLA! Records)

References

• Interview with Mark Turner, by Fred Jung [6]
• Grove Dictionary of Music entry by Gary Kennedy (grovemusic.com, accessed 3/14/07)
• "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.

Additional Information

Reviews:

• In This World [7]
• Dharma Days [8]
• Ballad Session [9]

G. Giddins: “Turner Classic Moves,” VV (14 April 1998), 118

G. M. Stern: “Airtime: Mark Turner: You Don’t Have to be Twenty Years Old to Succeed,” Windplayer, no.58 (1998), 10

External links

• Mark Turner discography at JazzDiscography.com
• Turner/Marsh Thesis download link at Emerzianmusic.com