Mark Turner (musician)
| Mark Turner | |
|---|---|
Turner in 2010
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| Background information | |
| Born |
November 10, 1965 Fairborn, Ohio, U.S. |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instruments | Saxophone |
| Years active | 1990s–present |
| Labels | Warner Bros., ECM |
| Associated acts | Kurt Rosenwinkel, Aaron Goldberg, David Binney, Billy Hart, Gilad Hekselman, SFJAZZ Collective |
| Website | www |
Mark Turner (born November 10, 1965) is an American jazz saxophonist. He is considered one of the most influential tenor saxophonists of his generation.
Born in Fairborn, Ohio, and raised in the small Southern California town of Palos Verdes Estates, Turner originally intended to become a commercial artist. In elementary school he played the clarinet, followed by the alto and tenor saxophones in high school. He attended California State University, Long Beach in the 1980s (playing in the jazz ensembles) and then transferred to and graduating 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 he was performing again with the Edward Simon Quartet at the Village Vanguard.
He is married to the psychiatrist and anthropologist, Dr. Helena Hansen.
Turner's sound is reminiscent of that of Warne Marsh; he also has elements of John Coltrane 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 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, intervallic leaps, and a selective use of space.
The bandleader claims that his music is "unfolding like a narrative". Consequently, his 2014 album Lathe of Heaven is named after Ursula K. Le Guin's novel of the same title which is based on the idea of a world where the nature of reality keeps shifting.
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Wikipedia