Mark Isaacs

Reminder to myself

2011-12-09T10:16:00.000+11:00

I'd say the required ingredients for real achievement in the arts are inspiration, talent, skill, industriousness and an unwillingness to be cowed by orthodoxies (without creating or adhering to an even more stifling counter-orthodoxy, the political analogue of which George Orwell so brilliantly articulated in "Animal Farm").

Diatribe of the day

2011-12-09T09:06:00.002+11:00

The more I think about it, the more Modernism (and its close cousin post-Modernism) represent a repudiation of everything I believe about Art. Everything, except for the value to be found in the noble spirit of energetic experimentation (though the energy side of things has mostly evaporated in the case of listless post-Modernism). However, the elevation of the largely middling results of these often sprawling experiments to a gargantuan significance on par with the canon's masterpieces seems to me a colossal arrogance, an Emperor without clothes. Some will resent this position and accuse me of arrogance myself, and will deconstruct my use of "canon", "masterpiece" etc ad nauseum, but I simply exercise here a basic freedom; the freedom to think, to hold to my own values and to come to my own conclusions without allegiances. And to share those thoughts on Facebook. (By the way, don't get me started on media-driven "popular culture" either, I can't work out which is worse, especially given the marriage of convenience between pop-culture and po-mo!). I also need to add that of course many individual artists work loosely under the umbrella of these stifling orthodoxies and still manage to come up with work of true value.

Article on Resurgence Band

2011-11-21T15:21:00.000+11:00

An article I wrote for Resonate magazine about the musical and morphological underpinnings of the Resurgence Band.

Adelaide Review article

2011-11-17T08:37:00.000+11:00

A preview article about my recital in the 2012 Adelaide Festival

Adelaide Festival recital

2011-10-20T11:51:00.001+11:00

I will be doing a solo recital in the Adelaide Festival on March 5, including new works composed especially for the Festival. More information here.

Bootleg

2011-09-16T18:34:00.008+10:00

Some bootleg footage of the Mark Isaacs Resurgence Band - an excerpt from the song "Will-o'the-wisp" - taken by a fan at the very last concert on our May/June 2011 Australian tour at the Sound Lounge in Sydney

Composing

2011-07-06T15:07:00.001+10:00

After the big May/June Resurgence Band Australian tour the rest of 2011 will be devoted almost exclusively to composing. My projects begin with a cello concerto and hopefully moving onto a new suite of solo piano music.

Australian Tour

2011-06-16T12:27:00.000+10:00

The Resurgence Band's 14-concert Australian tour has been a blast. We are finishing it with two-night season at the Sound Lounge in Sydney Friday 17 & Saturday 18 June. You can read my Insights from the road at the ABC Jazz site and also this great report on the Canberra show.

Limelight review of Aurora

2011-04-13T10:36:00.005+10:00

CLICK ON IMAGE TO ENLARGE

extempore review of Aurora

2011-04-13T10:35:00.000+10:00

You can read it here

Jazz Bell Awards finals

2011-04-13T10:32:00.001+10:00

Nominations for the Australian Jazz Bell Awards 2011 have been announced. The Resurgence Band's CD Aurora is one of three finalists for Best Australian Jazz Blend Album and the Resurgence Band is also one of three finalists for Best Australian Jazz Ensemble. Winners announced at the awards ceremony in Melbourne May 5.

New review of Aurora at AllAboutJazz

2011-03-09T07:16:00.003+11:00

C. Michael Bailey's review of Aurora at AllAboutJazz can be read here. The CD/DVD is available with free postage worldwide here.

International review for Aurora

2011-02-10T14:46:00.001+11:00

Review of Aurora at AllAboutJazz by respected critic John Kelman can be read here

2011-01-27T12:34:00.002+11:00

Sydney Morning Herald review of Aurora (click to enlarge) from Spectrum January 22.

Upcoming performances

2011-01-20T16:37:00.004+11:00

The launch of the new Resurgence Band CD/DVD Aurora is coming up soon.

When: Saturday January 29, 8:30pm-11:00pm
Where: Sound Lounge, Seymour Centre, Sydney
Bookings: tel: 9351 7940 or book online

The CD which features a brand new repertoire and a Bonus DVD of Tell It Like It Is is available online for $29.95 with free postage or will be for sale at the launch.

Also to let you know that I will be doing some trio gigs in the next few weeks with Brett Hirst and Tim Firth. Look out for us as Kinetic Jazz in Enmore Wed Jan 27, at 505 in Surry Hills Wed Feb 9 and at the Walsh Bay Jazz Festival Fri Feb 18.

First review of Aurora

2011-01-14T19:00:00.006+11:00

Click image to enlarge

From The Age, Melbourne, Thursday January 12, 2011

Composition prize and Composer-in-Residence

2010-12-17T17:10:00.001+11:00

Just received a "Highly Commended" in the Jean Bogan Prize for Piano Composition from the University of Newcastle. Also heard today I have the position of Composer-in-Residence at North Sydney Girls High School. Impressive music program at this school. The students will be studying my works for their matriculation exams. It will be exciting helping them look at them and nurturing their own compositional forays.

Top 5

2010-12-13T17:39:00.003+11:00

You can read what I wrote for extempore about my favourite musical experiences of 2010 .

Aurora liner notes

2010-12-04T15:45:00.006+11:00

You’re now holding in your hands two recordings by the Resurgence Band.

In 2009 we released the live CD Tell It Like It Is recorded at a concert in Sydney. That show was filmed for video and we have included it here as a Bonus DVD, effectively re-releasing the album with the pictures. Then in 2010 we went into the studio to record this latest project Aurora. You can compare if you like the natures of the quite different beasts that are studio and live recordings. With the Aurora release I have also rekindled my own label Gracemusic.

I’m often asked “Why ‘Resurgence’?”. In the simplest terms, it goes back to a 2006 recording I made in Los Angeles with guitarist James Muller and a collection of American heavyweights including drummer Vinnie Colaiuta. The song Resurgence from that CD became the album’s title track and soon it became the name of the all-Australian band I formed in the wake of its release – with James Muller again a key player - for touring in Australia and Asia. But words mean quite specific things. Beyond the prosaic explanation of its genesis as the band name, “resurgence” resonates in another way for me that goes right to the nub of this work and the changing role of music in general in our society over the last 30-40 years.

I consider myself lucky that my years as an adolescent completely passionate about being a musician, and then as an emerging professional artist in my late teens and early 20s were all during the 1970s. It was a period when stunning new instrumental music captured the imagination of young people who were looking for something else in contemporary music other than the “popular song” vocal format (whether truly “pop” or “alternative”). Bands like Mahavishnu, Return to Forever, Weather Report and the ‘Belonging’ band as well as progressive rock artists like Emerson, Lake and Palmer and Yes in which vocals were not necessarily the main game made brilliant, virtuosic and challenging – yet accessible – music. Melody was still king and in one way or another the music was “romantic” rather than overwhelmingly cerebral or looking over its shoulder at the confines of one particular genre for its credibility.

The word fusion was coined, and it remains quite a usable one. Jazz fused with rock, classical fused with rock, classical fused with jazz, “world music” fused with all of them and simultaneously an ambient and minimalist instrumental style took root as a place for all to go. It was instrumental music that was challenging without being arcane, melodic without being about nothing else, virtuosic while still lyrical and it employed traditional as well as the newer instruments and recording technologies. All this was started by the artists themselves and their audiences rather than a record company marketing exercise, and was driven from the ground up by a generation that simply wanted to engage with it.

Then came the 1980s and the multinational record companies managed to sideline what had been a truly free exercise of individual musical choice by a deluge of marketing and manufactured celebrity. The blinds of a window through which the sun had briefly shone seemed to be drawn and this music ended up trapped in the shadows. New alternative popular song forms arose but were corporatized and warehoused quickly. Instrumental music (apart from the blandest pop instrumentals) didn’t get much of a look in since there was now no template passed down by those who had once felt the flame for instrumental music as a way to make sense of it all.

So, I strive with others toward a resurgence of this lost legacy as a broadly social – rather than fringe - activity. I’m encouraged in this endeavour by seeing the number of music lovers across all generations who are showing up at our performances.

And as even the niche record labels – being mostly distributed by the multinational corporations - cast off artists in droves and feel unable to sign new ones, with Gracemusic I join those musicians who are harnessing new media in bypassing those corridors to engage directly with you.

I will let the actual music speak for itself. I’ll just say that if you are willing to listen (or watch) your way right through the disks without interruption – a way of approaching an album that is becoming less common - there will be aspects of their construction and flow that can only be appreciated thus.

I’d like to once again thank James, Matt, Brett and Tim for their truly awesome playing and for being such great company on the road, in rehearsal and in the studio. Thanks to all the production team but especially star engineer Richard Lush who back in the day recorded Sgt. Peppers with The Beatles and who suffered a crippling health blow recently that saw him record and mix Aurora in a wheelchair, just out of rehab and smiling all the time (here’s to your full recovery mate). I’d like to thank Roen Davis for undertaking the filming and editing of the DVD, he is one of those who still remembers clearly. Pianist and composer Tim Stevens has been the one esteemed musical colleague who has befriended me in such a way that we share our thoughts about music and life on an almost daily basis and I thank him for that blessing. And last - and obviously not least - I am grateful beyond words to my adorable wife Jewel whose beautiful painting graces the cover, just as she herself graces everything I do that is truly worthwhile.

Mark Isaacs
Sydney, November 2010
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Videos

2010-12-04T14:56:00.005+11:00

You can watch some of the videos of the Mark Isaacs Resurgence Band from the DVD Tell It Like It Is (a bonus DVD with new CD Aurora) here.

New CD/DVD "Aurora" can be ordered now

2010-11-29T19:37:00.016+11:00

Free postage anywhere in the world until Xmas!

Flute sonatina

2010-10-24T20:10:00.002+11:00

My recently-composed flute sonatina was just broadcast on ABC Classic FM in Australia. It was commissioned by the terrific Australian flautist Melissa Doecke who plays it here; I accompany her at the piano. It's in 3 movements, a 12-minute listen if you'd like to take the time out to listen from the player below.

Collaboration with Sachal Vasandani

2010-10-11T14:33:00.011+11:00

I'm looking forward to collaborating on Thursday October 21 at the Brisbane Jazz Festival with New York vocalist Sachal Vasandani (pictured). Sachal was named "Rising Star" in the 2010 Annual Downbeat Critic’s Poll.

As well as Sachal's material we'll be doing the debut of a vocal version of my song You Never Forget Love from the Resurgence Band CD Tell It Like It Is. I recently wrote lyrics to it.

New trio performance, Sat Sep 4 in Sydney

2010-08-20T10:42:00.001+10:00

More information here

Preview track

2010-08-15T10:06:00.009+10:00

A preview track Bagatelle from the just-mixed new album by the Mark Isaacs Resurgence Band (release date/label TBA).

Other previews can be heard from the Music Player on the band's Facebook page or at its MySpace

Comeback of legendary engineer

2010-07-20T17:02:00.003+10:00

You can read here the story of the comeback of legendary engineer Richard Lush on Mark's latest CD recording. Above a picture of Richard and Mark at the Neve console.

New Resurgence Band recording

2010-07-13T17:48:00.002+10:00

The new album by the band is mixed. Release date TBA but likely some months. We recorded at the premier recording facility in the Southern Hemisphere Studios 301 with legendary engineer Richard Lush who started his career at Abbey Road, London working on many Beatles albums including Sgt. Peppers. The band members really brought my compositions to life, fantastic musicians.

June performances and recording

2010-06-09T12:34:00.002+10:00

I've been lying low for a while and practising hard at the piano toward my June performances and recording. Lennie Tristano has been as inspiration for linear fluency, Eckhart Tolle for spiritual nourishment. Given up coffee and taken up the treadmill for exercise again.

The Resurgence Band is playing at the Sound Lounge in Sydney on Saturday June 19 and 26. On June 28 we go into Studios 301 to record a new CD, a whole new repertoire of songs which we will play at the gigs.

I am also do trio performances on Friday June 18 at 505 in Sydney and Sunday June 20 at Bennetts Lane in Melbourne.

I've also had a chance to share some time with a couple of jazz masters like Dale Barlow and Chuck Yates, just playing together for the spirit of it. What a wonderful antidote to some of the inevitable loneliness in these kinds of periods.

Bell Jazz Awards

2010-04-18T13:02:00.006+10:00

I had a nice time in Melbourne last Thursday night attending the Bell Jazz Awards where my composition Minsk was nominated for Best Jazz Song. It didn't win but the same song is also a finalist in the jazz category of the International Songwriting Competition with the winner being announced April 28. The judges there are John Scofield and McCoy Tyner so it will be interesting to see how they rate my work! If you haven't heard the piece you can listen here.

My life with Sibelius

2010-03-29T09:16:00.065+11:00

Opening Sibelius music notation software has become like sitting down with the closest and most intimate of friends. I take real joy simply in the time spent together as well as what the relationship generously offers and produces.

As a young adolescent, Sibelius - this time I mean the monumental Finnish composer - also felt like a deep and close confidant as I immersed myself in my recordings of his symphonies. Part of the pleasure in merely opening this splendid software is hearing a short excerpt from one of those symphonies beautifully rendered as it starts itself up (let's face it, software sounds are more normally of the boink, klonk, zing variety!).

I was bitten with the bug to write music in early 1971 at the age of 12. I would spend many of my school holidays writing down my compositions - for orchestra, chamber music and piano music. In those days I used black ink. There was no corrector fluid available and so to make a correction you'd paste a cutout piece of manuscript over the changed bar or scrape the offending notes away with one of Dad's razor blades and then deal with the irritation of newly-applied ink that feathered out chaotically on the lacerated microsurface of the paper.

One day in early 1975 at the age of 16 having put in weeks of solid work writing down an extended and quite intricate work for flute and piano, I went out with my parents and brother and left the score on my desk which lived under a window which was unfortunately on this occasion left open. While we were gone it rained heavily; the wind blew hard and the water fell from the heavens in a diagonal trajectory. Upon my return I went to my desk and found my score in a puddle and my careful notation blotted into what looked like the results of a Rorschach test. Certainly the psychological impact of this inky mess needed to be speedily evaluated. Like the score, I too was a mess and as much as I was impelled by a unshakeable desire to preserve my musical thoughts for posterity I also could not imagine doing all that work again. Thanks to the sympathetic but tough love of my mother - who said either do what is necessary no matter how hard or otherwise live with a stillborn piece - I knuckled down and did indeed do it all again. I'm sure that is why I now have multiple and automated backup routines, with my work living on two hard drives in my house and simultaneously on two separate servers in a "cloud" from which rain no longer spitefully falls.

In my twenties as well as continuing to write my concert pieces I began to churn out music for film and television, initially doing orchestrations for film composer Simon Walker who was something of a child prodigy in that particular field. He is a few years younger than me and when I orchestrated his music for a major miniseries screened nationally on Australian TV and he stood up in front of an orchestra of seasoned professionals in the recording studio to conduct it, he was only 18. Later I went on to write my own scores for film and TV.

At this point I was producing reams of finished manuscript a month and taking a lead from Simon's example I adopted some upgraded notational tools. In the first place his design of a sketch pad to have on the piano stand while composing I use to this day (I still do my initial creative work at the piano). Each page has 3 systems of 4 staves, each divided into four bars of generous width allowing you to sketch out reasonably complex music in what is called short score (for example, in orchestral music the string parts may be summarised on the bottom two staves with the wind and brass parts in composite on the top two).

Simon also convinced me to give up using ink and write my scores in pencil so that they could be corrected with an eraser. He shared the benefit of his research and told me that a B pencil was the best choice: dark enough for prominent readability and good strong photocopies yet light enough to be rubbed out with fairly clean results. To this day as well as his sketch pad format I always have a big box of B pencils for sketching. Plus a large eraser as well as a narrow extendable one for targeting only the required notes for excision.

When it came to writing the actual finished scores on big sheets in pencil, I hated ruling up all the very many long barlines (with breaks for each subgroup of instruments) and occasionally managed to find ways to farm this job out to a sympathetic young girl who would later marry me. I began to purchase pre-ruled and labelled manuscript papers that could be bought in various instrumental groupings from Barlow Music in the Sydney suburb of Concord.

The final accoutrement I adopted from Simon was a large architects' drafting stand that stood on my desk and sloped 45 degrees so that I wouldn't have to crouch down over a flat surface to write and thus suffer neck and shoulder pain from the 16-hour days I would often do.

Armed with all these tools and templates I pumped out score after score for the screen and concert hall. I became more and more speedy and industrious and was proud of the large callus that developed on my right hand second finger from the rubbing of my B pencil. It seemed like a battle wound.

These working methods served me until quite recently. While I loved my computers it just didn't seem right to involve these machines in producing my scores. I clung to my rituals: they seemed honourable and organic. I did have the luxury of copyists producing the instrumental parts from the score. Initially they worked by hand and later with music notation software. When they started using the software it seemed like their tool, not mine. It made sense for copyists to use the programs, but for me to work with my traditional tools. Or that's what I thought then.

Now my life has changed: I am a dedicated and passionate user of Sibelius. Like many people, I'd never bought any high end serious software before. Maybe a few shareware utilities and a basic accounting program. Some desktop publishing gear. So as well as the sheer power of the program I was not prepared for the level of nurturing support that followed my purchase of Sibelius 5.

Sibelius telephone technical support was a joy after the scantily-informed IT call centre support I'd experienced to date. Here were people who knew the program intimately and also deeply understood what I was trying to achieve. I was nearly beside myself in my early novice days when technical support offered to "show" me what they meant. Next thing I was clicking on a window that popped open on my screen and my computer was taken over by the consultant as my mouse pointer ran around the screen and did things at his bidding while the friendly voice on the telephone explained them.

I have become a regular user of the online Sibelius technical forum where power users will patiently answer any question - often within minutes of posting - and the redoubtable UK-based senior product manager and Sibelius guru Daniel Spreadbury offers his wisdom on almost every thread as well as replying personal emails promptly and in detail. It really is a fantastic community - indeed something of a family - and I feel like I am in safe and nurturing hands in such a way that I have never experienced with any other commercial operation and its fellow customers. I now am sometimes myself helping other users on the forum as I was (and am) helped.

So how has Sibelius changed my composing life and what do I love about it? Let me count just some of the ways:

1. My scores can be constantly revised, a process which I avoided previously because of its sheer impracticality.
2. The program works with me to automatically produce beautiful scores that look engraved. This is approaching the sublime now with the implementation of Magnetic Layout whereby objects automatically move around to place themselves optimally and avoid collisions. It's a miracle to witness. Almost all the time the program does what I want automatically as I feed it the notes, rhythms, articulations, dynamics and other information that make up a score. Very occasionally I show it what I want the result to be through simple and intuitive commands.
3. The instrumental parts are embedded in the score and update as the score updates or is revised, but can have their specific layout tweaked without affecting the score.
4. Sibelius playback is now of sufficient quality to render very acceptable synthetic demos of my pieces that I can send to players and colleagues in advance of the actual performance. These "demos" also give me an enhanced sense of satisfaction and achievement in my work upon its completion and while I wait for the real thing. The sounds that come with Sibelius are already excellent but there is a whole world of "virtual instruments" out there should one wish to go further. Playback has begun to assist my writing process: I used to play my pieces through at the piano to judge their overall shape and how they flowed, but with difficult music not written for the piano the playing itself was challenging and thus commandeered part of the mind toward the actual rendition rather than it being wholly free for critical judgement. Now I can hit Play and step back like an artist viewing a large work on a wall to see what it might need.
5. Though I've only done it once so far, I know that on occasion when I am sketching at the piano I can leave a particular strand of my music till later and compose it directly into the computer if I wish. Even phrase by phrase with instant playback all the while.
6. As well as the demos I can quickly produce PDFs of my scores to share. Musicians can print out their parts at home.
7. Sibelius has inspired me to buy a 27" monitor to have serious screen acreage for my scores. Now I want a 30" screen that swivels from landscape to portrait for orchestral scores that need to be much longer than they are wide.
8. I don't need copyists routinely any more. Some of them did great work - and some of them were careless and didn't do fine proofing. Now I am responsible for what the musicians see.
9. Sibelius listens to suggestions from users and the program is constantly in development such that I cannot wait to see what version 7 will be like. Just moving from version 6.0 to 6.1 offered enhancements that were jaw-dropping in a free point upgrade.

Speaking of suggestions I actually have a dream for the future that commonly available technology will need just a little more time to catch up to. It is prompted by the fact that the callus on my finger is subsiding and the only evidence of my former artisanship are the piles of handwritten scores in the cupboard. I feel sad that I am gradually forgetting the skill I once had in rendering music by hand. Input into Sibelius is easy and there are a number of methods to do so. But handwriting would be the ideal way for me and many others, and would be super fast.

About the only piece of technology that I get passionate about apart from Sibelius is my iPhone. It is just so intuitive to eschew pointing devices, buttons and other ways of communicating with an operating system and simply use contact with the screen itself as we saw foreshadowed some years ago in the movie "Minority Report". The touch screen iPad is about to be launched and Dell has a small touch screen desktop on the market. You can in fact buy a touch screen overlay for any size screen though they are rare and prohibitively expensive for larger size screens.

I am hoping that 5 years from now there will be 30" touch screens for the desktop commonly available that can sit at a 45 degree angle like my old architects' stand. And that with stylus in hand I will write my music once again but directly into Sibelius which will have adopted this as another possible input method and will quantise my music handwriting into the program's own beautiful engraving.

That would be a kind of full circle on a 40-year journey from my rained-on score at my parents' house (I'll still be backing up my scores like crazy regardless of the weather!). More of a helix than a circle really as it would be another dimension entirely of music "handwriting", indeed it would be a kind of direct electronic engraving.

I'm hoping Daniel Spreadbury might be thinking along these lines too.
READ MORE....

String sextet, other compostitions and solo jazz program

2010-03-29T08:37:00.008+11:00

My Sextet for strings which was composed under the terms of the Albert H. Maggs Composition Award from the University of Melbourne was premiered by the Australia Ensemble in their first subscription concert for 2010 last Saturday night. The team consisted of some of the finest string players in Australia including members of the Goldner String Quartet and principals from the Sydney Symphony Orchestra: violins - Dene Olding and Dimity Hall, violas - Irina Morozova and Yvette Goodchild, cellos - Catherine Hewgill and Nathan Waks. The piece was warmly received by the audience. The concert will be broadcast nationally in Australia at 8pm this Wednesday March 31 on ABC Classic FM. It can be heard live on the Internet here (convert that previous date and time from Australia Eastern Summer Time to your time zone)

On Friday April 9 at 9pm on ABC Radio National my composition Chinkon for bass koto will be broadcast in a program called Rhythm Divine featuring Australian virtuoso koto player Satsuki Odamura. Hear it on the Web here at that time AEST.

Finally on the premiere front, my guitar quartet Autumnal Dances will be premiered at Llewellyn Hall, Canberra on Sunday April 11 in a concert beginning at 3pm that will also be broadcast live on ABC Classic FM and streamed on the Web here.

In other composition news my Sonatine for flute and piano was recorded for broadcast for ABC Classic FM by flautist Melissa Doecke and myself along with the Dutilleux Sonatine, Poulenc Sonata, some duo improvisations and a Brett Dean solo piece Demons. Will post an update when the program is broadcast.

Not neglecting jazz, a program of jazz solo piano I recorded for digital radio station and Web platform ABC Jazz was recently broadcast and can be streamed here.

New review of CD

2010-02-27T08:20:00.001+11:00

A new review of the Resurgence Band CD Tell It Like It Is just appeared at the USA-based website All About Jazz. Read it here and you can get a copy here.

News recent and upcoming

2010-02-25T07:33:00.008+11:00

The Resurgence Band - having featured in Sydney's inaugural Walsh Bay Jazz Festival earlier this month - has a two-night season at Sydney's new 505 venue Fri Feb 26 and Sat Feb 27. 505 is at 280 Cleveland St Surry Hills (cnr. Perry and Cleveland Streets, enter via Cleveland St) and the performances start at 9pm. Tickets are $18/$12 at the door. Having relinquished its underground status and moving to a new premises in Surry Hills, 505 - an initiative of extraordinary bassist Cameron Undy and his partner Kerri - now offers a bar and good food. We'll be premiering two new compositions of mine at these shows and only 9 months after the release of our CD Tell It Like It Is we now have an entirely new repertoire which we will record for CD in June. You can download a free preview recording of one of the new songs made by the ABC here.

In other news on Saturday March 20 in the Sir John Clancy Auditorium at the University of NSW my Sextet for strings will be premiered in the opening concert in the the 2010 subscription season by the Australia Ensemble, performed by members of the internationally-renowned Goldner String Quartet with guest artists Yvette Goodchild (viola) and Nathan Waks (cello). More information and bookings here. This piece was commissioned by the University of Melbourne by the 2007 Albert H. Maggs Composition Award.

Walsh Bay Jazz Festival

2010-02-04T19:27:00.001+11:00

The Resurgence Band appears Friday evening Feb 5 and Sunday afternoon Feb 7 at Sydney's inaugural Walsh Bay Jazz Festival.

SMH article

2010-02-04T19:24:00.002+11:00

Photo of the Resurgence Band (unfortunately minus Matt Keegan) adorning a Sydney Morning Herald article I did an interview for about the resurgence of jazz in Sydney

Classical guitar pieces

2010-01-19T17:40:00.005+11:00

Just before Christmas I completed composing a set of five short pieces for solo classical guitar commissioned by Australian guitarist Timothy Kain. A performance will happen in due course but in the meantime this is my computer playing them with the Sibelius program driving a classical guitar sample. It gives a reasonable idea. The set is called Five Bagatelles

Violin concerto

2010-01-17T12:14:00.007+11:00

My violin concerto Debekuth was commissioned by the leader of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra Dene Olding some years ago and was recorded with the Queensland Symphony Orchestra for broadcast. It has never been publicly performed or recorded for disk but now I would like to try and remedy that. In the meantime, you can hear it here.

What's on the plate at the New Year

2010-01-06T09:38:00.005+11:00

Have hit the ground running at the start of 2010.

Right before Christmas I finished composing a commissioned solo work for classical guitarist Timothy Kain and after Christmas composed a short solo piano piece written - as required - in a single day in response to a call for submissions by Sydney's 2010 Aurora Festival of new music.

The Resurgence Band swings into action next week with a recording of a brand new tune for ABC Jazz, the new ABC jazz digital radio station and online platform (I'm also recording some solo piano improvisations in those sessions). Then in early February the band will be featured in Sydney's inaugural Walsh Bay Jazz Festival and later in the month at Sydney's new 6-night-a-week jazz venue 505.

Also in February I am doing the premiere recording of my flute Sonatine, plus the Dutilleux Flute Sonatine and the Poulenc Flute Sonata with flautist Melissa Doecke for ABC Classic FM.

March sees the premiere of my String Sextet in the first subscription concert for the year by the Australia Ensemble and in April the long-awaited premiere of my guitar quartet Autumnal Dances by Guitar Trek (originally written for Saffire in 2003) in a live national broadcast from Canberra on Sunday Live, ABC Classic FM.

SMH review....

2009-11-23T17:08:00.001+11:00

of the Resurgence Band's recent Sound Lounge performance here

Extempore with James Morrison

2009-11-03T18:33:00.002+11:00

Exhilarating doing duo free improvisations with James Morrison on Sunday night at Brisbane Powerhouse; it felt crystal clear, selfless and pure. What a musician James is - and what a communicator! I'm so glad to have had the opportunity to experience this music and a hearty slice of life itself while sharing the vantage point of a master like James. And! - a standing ovation for wholly extemporised material from an audience largely believed to be his normal Brisbane crowd who might be expected to expect something they know. A lot of theories are just that, theories.....

ARIA nomination

2009-10-08T17:39:00.003+11:00

My latest CD with the Resurgence Band Tell It Like It Is has been nominated for an ARIA Award for Best Jazz Album. Winner announced in November.

Video shoot of Sydney launch of new CD

2009-07-10T06:50:00.006+10:00

Opening song here

Watch the whole gig here

First North American review of new CD

2009-07-03T17:57:00.003+10:00

The first North American review of Tell It Like It Is, by respected critic and All About Jazz Managing Editor John Kelman is here.

Japan

2009-07-03T08:21:00.001+10:00

The Resurgence Band will performs two concerts in this year's Tokyo Jazz Festival in early September. Other Asian dates are in play.

Multicam video of Sydney CD launch

2009-06-23T12:06:00.003+10:00

A multicam shoot of the recent Sydney CD launch concert by the Resurgence Band at the Factory Theatre can be seen here.

You can watch the whole thing or navigate between songs and announcements.

In some exciting recent news the band has been invited to do two concerts at the Tokyo Jazz Festival in September with further Asian dates in play.

SSSO

2009-06-11T08:45:00.002+10:00

On Sunday June 21 I will be performing The Last Signal by Stuart Greenbaum at the Sutherland Entertainment Centre, Sydney with the Sutherland Shire Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sven Libaek. I'm honoured firstly to be playing with my local community orchestra (I live in the Shire) which I performed with when I was in my teens and also to be working again with Sven, a consummate musician with whom I recorded many studio projects. Last but not least it is terrific to be playing The Last Signal again which I premiered in the Aurora Festival in 2006 and which was written especially for me by Stuart. The concert begins at 2:30pm.

Promo video

2009-06-04T09:48:00.001+10:00

Short promotional video from the ABC on YouTube re the new CD Tell It Like It Is.

Just back from the Australian tour, 'twas a blast...

Review...

2009-05-21T16:59:00.001+10:00

of the Resurgence Band CD launch in Sydney here.

Touring

2009-05-19T05:49:00.004+10:00

Having a great time touring with the Resurgence Band for the new CD Tell It Like It Is.

Here are the tour dates:

Sat May 16 Brisbane Valley Jazz Festival (CD launch)
Sun May 17 Melbourne Bennetts Lane Jazz Lab (CD launch)
Wed May 20 Sydney Factory Theatre (CD launch)
Fri May 22 Adelaide The Promethean
Sat May 23 Perth The Ellington Jazz Club
Tues May 26 Albany WA Albany Town Hall
Wed May 27 Mandurah WA Mandurah Performing Arts Centre
Fri May 29 Darwin Darwin Entertainment Centre
Mon June 1 505

Online interview...

2009-05-06T14:58:00.000+10:00

..about the new CD and tour here.

Ordering new CD

2009-04-22T13:32:00.003+10:00

The new CD is being released May 1 but can be ordered online already here.

YOU NEED A VERY SPECIAL DRUMMER FOR IT TO SOUND BETTER THAN NO DRUMS

2009-04-18T08:40:00.001+10:00

Western non-classical music has evolved to the point where a composite instrument called a drum kit (or set) consisting of several drums and several cymbals of varying sizes is played continuously with four limbs throughout the entire rendition of any given piece (with occasional brief exceptions).

This is quite unusual in the history of music across all cultures. The density of a multi-drum/cymbal set-up and the unique application of four limbs using pedal mechanisms for the feet is equivalent to at least two instrumentalists playing drums with hands. The cymbals would be another player. Leaving aside the special case of actual music for drums alone this use of a drumset in a wider instrumental ensemble is an unusual instrumental balance. Continuous percussion in folkloric musics might come from a single tambourine or hand drum playing with several melodic instruments rather than what amounts to maybe the density of three traditional percussionists pitted against an equivalent amount of melodic instruments. Moreover there is the singularity of the very assumption of the drumset's necessary constancy in the foreground of the music. Traditional folk musics and non-Western classical traditions like Indian and Arabic musics feature long passages without drums or if the drumming is continuous it doesn’t necessarily have the same degree of constant primacy that it so often does in jazz, rock and related forms. And of course in Western classical music drumming and cymbals are used only very occasionally for punctuation.

Now, the situation with drums as we now know them is all very well and I in no way intend to make a case that it should be any other way in non-classical Western music. But what is the musical purpose of this unusual case of the multiple drums + cymbals playing such a big role all the time?

Drummers need to justify their existence far more. It's not at all the case that "swingin’ or groovin’" music needs drums inherently. A master folkloric player will groove like crazy without drums. Same for the unstoppable swing of a sublime jazz musician playing alone or indeed the rhythmic propulsion of a great country guitar picker. A certain kind of classical player - I'm thinking of someone like Glenn Gould - can also groove palpably without drums. Orchestras (really good ones) might get you on your feet dancing in certain passages with no more than an odd timpani bump, or not even that.

Clearly an accomplished musician doesn't (or shouldn't) need a drummer to keep time for them or to create a groove that they themselves are apparently incapable of generating. Why would it be that way other than lack of skill? All instruments are percussion instruments. Chick Corea once remarked that he liked to approach the piano as if he were a drummer with 88 drums and 10 drumsticks at his disposal. Even a voice can be percussive. So really – as is the case with every other instrument – the drums should bring something truly special of its own beyond the rhythmic dimension that all instruments contribute to anyway.

What distinguishes the master drummers that I know of is that they make sure they are really adding to the music something that it would lack without them. And so mere timekeeping is no more important to them than it is to any player. They play in time and share in the groove along with everyone else, no more, no less. But when music without a drummer is capable of grooving of its own accord if we're going to have drums all the time it behoves the drummer not to forget that along with everyone else they must make very sure they are at all times adding something of unique value to the timbre, orchestration, counterpoint, dynamics and all the other spectrums of the music. And since their instrument can so easily dominate adversely, they of all people need to pay extra special attention to balance.

Let's strive to be sure the music really is better by virtue of what the drums are playing as it clearly is when Tony Williams - or any other master - plays. Too often the reverse holds, with a bombastic, gormless drummer wringing all the dynamics out of the music, puncturing a carefully spun fabric with boorish ejaculations and drowning out or indeed completely destroying the subtleties, careful pacing and shadings of other players to whom they just can’t be bothered to pay deep attention since the art of accompanying largely evades them. When this lamentable situation is in play the drumming is so far from being special that the music really would sound better without it.

Mark Isaacs, Good Friday, 2009

CD liner notes - Tell It Like It Is

2009-04-10T14:56:00.002+10:00

In 2006 I recorded my previous CD Resurgence – also released on ABC Jazz – in Los Angeles. That album was in every way a studio project. Not only was it made in a recording studio, the band itself had never – nor has it ever since – played live. It’s a unique way of working, and when one engages musicians who are not only formidable jazz players but also consummate studio musicians – as I had done with Vinnie Colaiuta, Bob Sheppard and the rest of the American team – it is quite possible to work very successfully despite the band meeting each other and the music the day before the sessions. I think of the results as being as crafted, polished and succinct as I could ever want them to be.

On New Year’s Day 2007, feeling in the doldrums with the LA recording yet to find a label, I sat down at the piano and came up with the melody of You Never Forget Love surprisingly quickly. It instantly became a song in search of a band and I realised how much I wanted to continue with the particular instrumentation and subgenre of jazz I had explored on Resurgence.

Integral to the sound was the sheer genius of Australian guitarist James Muller who had joined me in Los Angeles. The ‘subgenre’ I’ll call my take on jazz fusion, melding the rhythmic feels and sound worlds of gospel, blues, soul, Latin and classical into a largely acoustic jazz framework while approaching the composing in a way that contrasts highly arranged – even through-composed – sections with the ‘blowing’ (or improvised) soloistic passages.

An email chat with James helped me find the ideal players for the Australian edition of the band. Bassist Brett Hirst had played superbly in some previous music of mine in a similar format on a tour in 2000 and had played hard to get with a busy schedule ever since. I knew the warm and friendly grittiness of his sound would suit the new project perfectly. Matt Keegan’s loving approach to melody and beautiful sax sound had already knocked me out at a concert I had curated in Brisbane. Drummer Tim Firth was the wild card, a young player whom I had in fact never heard play, but he was James Muller’s drummer, which was recommendation enough. Tim grew into being the perfect drummer for the band, sensitive and strong, creative yet accurate, virtuosic and subtle. Since so many seminal ideas pertinent to the band had emerged from the Resurgence CD and we would be touring on the back of its release, it seemed natural to call it the ‘Resurgence Band’.

At the soundcheck for the first gig in March 2007 I felt the balance of personalities was perfect with all opposites neatly in place, as I hoped they were in the music – in turn serious and fun, edgy and pensive, the list goes on. With a brand new repertoire written since LA we became a touring – rather than a studio – band, and we certainly got around. An Asian tour in 2007 took us to Japan, Korea and Thailand followed by an extensive Australian tour later that year and concerts through 2008.

Unlike the studio project, with a working band like this the music can develop organically on the road. As well as bringing in new tunes, I’d endlessly refine the arrangements, bailing up band members with yet another idea (or scribbling) whether in a motel room in Mackay, as our seatbelts clicked in on an international flight takeoff, or at soundcheck and backstage. Eyes would sometimes roll in response to my ‘Guys, I’ve just thought of one more thing’, not least because it was never the last tweak. Of course, much changed of its own accord without direction from me or anyone else. I became delighted with the dynamics and pacing the band achieved, and felt we were reaching for a larger-scale narrative beyond merely presenting tunes and solos.

When the opportunity to record arose in the second half of 2008 it was pragmatic factors that led me to a live rather than a studio recording, but as so often is the case, what was practical was also the perfect aesthetic. The band was distinguished from the previous project by being a working band, so how better than to capture it than in performance? And without losing any of the polish of a studio project, I knew that playing live we could also stretch out and really go for it. We recorded two nights for safety but everything here came from the second night, which had that required magic. At the end of the first night filmmaker Roen Davis offered to document the second night with a five-camera video shoot and subsequently edited it painstakingly to the CD mixes. I don’t think I’ve yet had a better offer at the end of a gig and I hope that the pictures along with the sound of Tell It Like It Is will soon be coming to a screen near you.

To tell it like it is simply denotes honesty and I hope you’ll feel the music coming from just
this place.

Mark Isaacs

Tour poster - Australian Tour May 16-29

2009-04-10T14:54:00.003+10:00

CD cover - release May 1 on ABC/Universal

2009-04-10T14:51:00.001+10:00

Nice, huh? Thanks ABC designers!

Facebook Page

2009-03-31T20:38:00.001+11:00

Find the Mark Isaacs Resurgence Band's Facebook page here.

Between the Shores video

2009-03-16T18:05:00.005+11:00

Between the Shores live at the Sound Lounge, Seymour Centre, Sydney, August 29, 2008. Composed by Mark Isaacs.

Mark Isaacs - piano, James Muller - guitar, Matt Keegan - soprano sax, Brett Hirst - bass, Tim Firth - drums.

From the CD Tell It Is (ABC/Universal - release date May 2, 2009).

Video produced by CBD Central Business Digital and includes all other material from the CD.

Here between the hither and the farther shore
While time is withdrawn, consider the future
And the past with an equal mind.

T.S. Eliot
THE DRY SALVAGES (No. 3 of 'Four Quartets')

New Year

2009-02-17T17:10:00.003+11:00

The flute piece is finished, it's a Sonatine.

I'm currently writing for a brilliant Australian classical trumpet player based in New York for his Masters recital at Julliard in May. His name is Brent Grapes and I plan to be there for the rehearsals and premiere. It's a piece for trumpet and chamber ensemble.

Meantime I'm getting ready for the release of the Resurgence Band CD Tell It Like It Is on ABC Jazz May 2 followed by a national tour.

Dates for the tour are:

Sat May 16 Brisbane Valley Jazz Festival (CD launch)
Sun May 17 Melbourne Bennetts Lane Jazz Lab (CD launch)
Wed May 20 Sydney Factory Theatre (CD launch)
Fri May 22 Adelaide The Promethean
Sat May 23 Perth The Ellington Jazz Club
Tues May 26 Albany WA Albany Town Hall
Wed May 27 Mandurah WA Mandurah Performing Arts Centre
Fri May 29 Darwin Darwin Entertainment Centre

Interview with Chick Corea

2008-12-13T12:27:00.002+11:00

I recently had the exciting opportunity to interview Chick Corea, who has been an inspiration to me since I was a teenager. You can read what resulted here.

Composing

2008-12-06T13:14:00.002+11:00

Since the beginning of November I have been a hermit. Composing a piece for flute and piano commissioned by the Doecke-Callanan duo. Melissa Doecke (flute) and Mary Callanan (piano) are based in London, though Australian expatriates. They've been making good headway and doing high profile concerts. The piece should be finished early in January. The last time I wrote for flute and piano I was sixteen!

Video production

2008-10-21T14:23:00.003+11:00

I'm thrilled that a multi-camera video of the recent concert by the Resurgence band that generated the new CD is currently being edited. It's all thanks to Roen Davis of Central Business Digital who initiated the project with great enthusiasm. The CD will be released on ABC early in May followed by an Australian tour.

New CD recording

2008-09-06T09:41:00.008+10:00

The recording of the Resurgence band went really so well! Fantastic to record live. The mix was a blast. I lived at the wonderful Studios 301 for several days in the apartment they have for clients and worked with star engineer Richard Lush. The CD - called Tell It Like It Is - will be out in due course. There are six tracks online as a preview here.

CD recording with Resurgence band

2008-08-06T08:57:00.002+10:00

I will be recording a new CD live at the Sound Lounge in Sydney on Thursday August 28 & Friday August 29 with the Resurgence band. This is a favourite venue and now has a brand new Yamaha piano (I and several Sydney pianists performed in a fundraiser concert to assist the purchase on July 30). The material for the band has been developed over the last 18 months since the release of the Resurgence CD and has been honed during an Asian and Australian tour last year. More info here

Two piano project

2008-08-05T09:03:00.000+10:00

Rai Thistlethwayte and I are developing a jazz two-piano project. It's been great fun putting it together - I love Rai's playing. We'll be performing it at the Brisbane Jazz Festival on Saturday November 1.

Instrumental Work of the Year

2008-07-22T14:48:00.004+10:00

At the Classical Music Awards at the Sydney Opera House last night I was honoured to have been presented with the award for "Instrumental Work of the Year" for my piece Walk a Golden Mile from the CD Resurgence.

Classical Music Awards

2008-07-14T00:04:00.006+10:00

There are three works on the finalist short list for "Instrumental Work of the Year" at the Classical Music Awards. Two of the three are mine, Walk a Golden Mile and Waltz for Melanie both from my CD Resurgence.

The winner will be announced at the awards night to take place at the Sydney Opera House on Monday July 21. I have also been asked to perform at the Awards. The Classical Music Awards are sponsored by APRA and the Australian Music Centre. Full list of finalists here.

Book review

2008-07-12T11:07:00.001+10:00

My review of The Permanent Underground: Australian Contemporary Jazz in the New Millenium by Peter Rechniewski (Currency House) can be read here.

Melbourne performance Sunday July 6

2008-07-08T09:31:00.002+10:00

A quick visit to Melbourne and a performance with David Jones (drums & percussion) and Evripides Evripidou (electric bass) at Bennetts Lane was a most memorable evening of spontaneous music making.

Recently

2008-05-13T05:19:00.004+10:00

Having worked on composing the score of Songs at First Light for several months it was exciting to put it into rehearsal and make music with a 9-piece band consisting of jazz piano trio, a string quartet and two classical wind players and premiere it at the Aurora Festival. For the moment you can still hear audio-on-demand of the concert here (under "Listen to the latest programs" scroll down to Saturday April 19).

Following that the Resurgence Band gave two performances in Sydney at the Sound Lounge, Seymour Centre and will perform in Sydney and Newcastle in July. The band has evolved to a new level after extensive touring last year and I hope to record it very soon for CD.

New composition, new performances

2008-03-21T08:57:00.005+11:00

I have just completed a major composition entitled Songs at First Light for jazz piano trio and chamber sextet, a 40-minute piece that I have been working on full-time for several months. It will be premiered in the Aurora Festival on Saturday April 19 along with the premiere of my String Quartet No. 3. More information here. The concert will be broadcast direct to air nationally on ABC Classic FM and streamed live on the Web.

In May I will be performing again with the Resurgence band, including some new material. We'll play in Sydney at the Sound Lounge, Seymour Theatre Centre on Saturdays May 3 & 10 and again on May 21 at the Stonnington Jazz Festival in Melbourne.

Aurora Festival

2008-02-22T11:33:00.006+11:00

I'm immersed in composing a new work for the Aurora Festival in Sydney. More info here.

Resurgence reviews

2008-01-03T22:40:00.005+11:00

Mark Isaacs Resurgence CD (ABC Jazz/Universal) with James Muller, Bob Sheppard, Steve Tavaglione, Jay Anderson and Vinnie Colaiuta

“Isaacs, with every release, has refined his systematic approach to post-modernity jazz to the point that his sound defines what jazz should sound like at the advent of the 21st Century in the same way Joe King Oliver, Satch, and Bix defined New Orleans/Chicago, Basie and Ellington defined the swing era, Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie defined be bop and Miles Davis defined everything else”
C. Michael Bailey ALL ABOUT JAZZ (USA)

“James Muller’s lack of visibility isn’t just curious, it’s downright criminal. As is also true for Isaacs. With Resurgence the pianist makes it clear that he’s a writer who understands balance and a player who knows the meaning of context and development. There’s no posturing or meaningless displays on Resurgence—just fine writing, compelling playing and a group sound that’s all the more remarkable for it being a one-time event”
John Kelman ALL ABOUT JAZZ (USA)

“The success of Isaacs’ venture lies in, not only the unique accessibility of his compositions, but even more so in unspoken communication that allows for such immersion in, and expression of, music”
Don Williamson JAZZ REVIEW (USA)

“The original program is full of brightness and energy, harmonised by thoughtful composition…most impressive”
Takafumi Mimori SWING JOURNAL (JAPAN)

“An excellent CD of quality and substance” Brent Keefe DRUMMER MAGAZINE (UK)

“Some of the finest solos come from Isaacs himself, chiselled from the bones of the songs”
John Shand SYDNEY MORNING HERALD

“The album is an absolute gem…. this is one of the best jazz recordings to have been made by an Australian jazz artist in the last few years. It is essential listening”
Peter Kenyon JAZZREVIEW (PERTH JAZZ SOCIETY)

“Everything that is good about music is present; careful consideration of dynamics and texture with strong composition, improvisation and group interaction”
Aaron Searle MUSIC FORUM MAGAZINE (AUSTRALIA)

MARK ISAACS RESURGENCE BAND (touring band) with James Muller, Matt Keegan, Brett Hirst and Tim Firth

“Bigger than any big band on the night was the emotion pianist Mark Isaacs brought to the Wangaratta Town Hall at 11pm…..Isaacs felt every nuance and played it”
Roger Mitchell HERALD SUN (MELBOURNE)

“Isaacs’ compositions are reminiscent of Chick Corea’s tunefulness, but with a more laid back groove….recognisable for [his] trademark lyricism and craftsmanship”
Rosalind Appleby THE WEST AUSTRALIAN

“The intensity of the collective belief in the project was evident immediately, the leader's first solo having an almost frightening intensity to it, while still exuding a tangible and effecting beauty….This band must be heard”
“Mark Isaacs's Resurgence Band framed not only the leader's tender piano stories but also Matt Keegan's big scrawling tenor and James Muller's guitar playing, so gritty as to threaten gravel rash”
John Shand SYDNEY MORNING HERALD

“Mark Isaacs led his Resurgence band through an all-new original repertoire that coaxed some superb playing from all five musicians” Jessica Nicholas THE AGE (MELBOURNE)

“Magnificent originals penned by Isaacs…each one was a pearl”
JAZZ ACTION SOCIETY MAGAZINE (AUSTRALIA)

Recent and upcoming

2007-12-29T17:09:00.000+11:00

Goodness, more than 2 months since I posted any news here.

The Australian tour by the Resurgence band was very succesful as was the 2007 Brisbane Jazz Festival which I curated. I hope to record the Resurgence band's repertoire in 2008 and give some more performances with this great bunch of musicians. The last concert on the tour was at Arthur Boyd's property Bundanon and I managed a 3-day break staying there with Jewel in the Writers' Cottage. After that I gave a concert at Temple Emanuel in Sydney with trio and singer Elana Stone. It was dedicated to my grandfather as it was the first anniversary of his passing. It was great to play with Elana again and Jono Brown and James Hauptmann made the trio warm and clean like crystal.

Right now I am focussed on composing a major piece for the 2008 Aurora Festival in Sydney. It will be for jazz piano trio (I'll play with Jono and James) with classical chamber ensemble (flute, clarinet and the Greenway string quartet). It will be a long work of about 40 minutes and a challenge to integrate the classical and jazz configurations into a coherent whole. It is also planned that the concert will feature the premiere of my Third String Quartet originally commissioned by Tankstream Quartet.

Other compositions on the agenda to be written during 2008 are a flute and piano piece for the UK-based Australian-expatriate Doecke Callanan Duo and a piece for recordist Genevieve Lacey, strings and myself on improvising piano which I will write as a result of my being awarded the 2007 Albert H. Maggs Composition Award by the University of Melbourne.

New composition

2007-10-17T13:37:00.000+10:00

I've recently completed a new composition for the wonderful MLC School. It's called Between the Shores and is written for 7 flutes (one of which is an alto flute), vibraphone and bongos.

Review

2007-10-16T11:27:00.000+10:00

New review of Resurgence at All About Jazz.

Resurgence Band Australian Tour Oct 25-Nov 25 2007

2007-10-01T09:48:00.000+10:00

This band must be heard – SYDNEY MORNING HERALD

Mark Isaacs - piano James Muller - guitar Matt Keegan - saxophones
Brett Hirst - bass Tim Firth - drums

TOUR DATES

Canberra Thurs October 25 8:30pm Canberra Southern Cross Club Woden
Wollongong Fri October 26 7pm Wollongong Conservatorium of Music
Sydney Sat October 27 8:30pm The Sound Lounge
Adelaide Sun October 28 8:30pm The Promethean
Perth Mon October 29 8pm Charles Hotel
Burnie Tues October 30 8:30pm Stage Door the Café
Hobart Wed October 31 8:30pm Queen’s Head Café & Wine Bar
Wangaratta Festival of Jazz Sat November 3 9pm Wangaratta Town Hall
Armidale NSW Mon November 5 8pm The Cattleman's Motor Inn
Glenn Innes NSW Tues November 6 8pm Glenn Innes Service Club
Byron Bay NSW Wed November 7 8:30pm The Blue Birdy
Darwin Fri November 9 8pm Darwin Entertainment Centre
Gold Coast Sun November 11 2pm Gold Coast Arts Centre
Nowra NSW Sun November 25 1:30pm Boyd Education Centre, Riversdale

An article...

2007-09-21T19:23:00.000+10:00

.... I wrote answering a question about perfect pitch here

ARIA Award nomination for Resurgence

2007-09-19T15:11:00.000+10:00

I have just returned from the ARIA Awards Nomination Event in Sydney, where my new jazz CD on ABC Resurgence was nominated for Best Jazz Album. The winner will be announced at the Awards ceremony on October 15, but of course a nomination is always very nice acknowledgement in itself. I will be touring Australia with the Australian Resurgence Band Oct 25-Nov 25. Tour dates at my MySpace

(For overseas friends, the ARIA Awards are the Australian equivalent of the Grammy Awards).

Review of Resurgence at All About Jazz

2007-08-23T10:08:00.000+10:00

John Kelman's review can be read here.

Thai newspaper interview

2007-08-16T16:15:00.000+10:00

An interview I did for The Nation, the Thai national newspaper, can be read here. (Note: I'm definitely not a "singer" as well as pianist. I wish!)

Punter's review

2007-08-15T15:34:00.000+10:00

Instead of professional critics, here's a voice from the crowd for a change.

Photos from the tour

2007-08-15T11:38:00.000+10:00

Just came back from a great tour with the Resurgence Australian band, first to the Queensland Music Festival then on to Japan, Korea and Thailand. Some photos here.

Classical composition award

2007-07-31T02:44:00.000+10:00

I am honoured to have received from the University of Melbourne the 2007 Albert H. Maggs Composition Award

Brisbane Jazz Festival

2007-07-20T06:56:00.001+10:00

I have curated the 2007 Brisbane Jazz Festival which will take place at the Brisbane Powerhouse Nov 1-4. More info here.

Sydney Symphony Orchestra pre-concert talks

2007-07-19T07:10:00.000+10:00

I'll be doing these talks

Resurgence Band last Sydney date before tour

2007-07-11T19:04:00.000+10:00

Saturday June 14 Sound Lounge. More info here. Last show before our tour to the Queensland Music Festival and on to major festivals and venues in Japan, Korea and Thailand.

The Elements

2007-07-07T17:31:00.000+10:00

The Elements, my set of four solo piano improvisation CDs titled Earth, Water, Air and Fire originally released by ABC has been relaunched in Australia by the The Planet Company through MGM and can be obtained through good music retailers.

Upcoming concerts & touring....

2007-07-04T07:09:00.000+10:00

.... are listed here

Review of new CD in USA

2007-07-04T07:03:00.000+10:00

Read it here

CD launch and review

2007-06-19T18:54:00.000+10:00

The CD launch of Resurgence was a really a wonderful night. You can read the Sydney Morning Herald review here. In the paper itself the review appeared under the headline "Thrilling notes to feed the hunger"

Sydney Philharmonia Choirs.....

2007-06-10T18:44:00.000+10:00

....premiere my unaccompanied choral work i carry your heart with me on July 7. I was honoured to receive permission from the estate of ee cummings to set his poem for this commission. More information about the concert here.

New composition

2007-06-10T18:40:00.001+10:00

I've just completed a new composition Pange Lingua: Fantasia on a Hymn of St Thomas Aquinas for string quartet and string orchestra. Commissioned by MLC School it will be performed in Budapest here on September 21, and elsewhere in Europe.

Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.......

2007-06-08T15:40:00.000+10:00

... chamber players perform an early composition of mine on Sunday June 17.

Read about it here

New CD

2007-06-07T14:31:00.000+10:00

Buy it here

CD Launch Thursday June 14 @ 8:30pm, Winebanq.

CD launch Thursday June 14

2007-05-27T12:06:00.000+10:00

CD Launch Mark Isaacs Resurgence (ABC Jazz/Universal)
Thursday June 14 at 8:30pm
Winebanq (www.winebanq.com.au)
53 Martin Place (cnr. Elizabeth Street), Sydney
Bookings: (02) 9222 1919 bookings@winebanq.com.au

CD features original compositions by Mark Isaacs with James Muller, guitar, Bob Sheppard, saxophones (Chick Corea), Steve Tavaglione, saxophone/flute, Jay Anderson, bass (Joe Sample, Maria Schneider) and Vinnie Colaiuta, drums (Herbie Hancock, Frank Zappa, Sting)
Produced by Mark Isaacs and recorded and mixed at Capitol Studios, Hollywood by Bernie Kirsh (Chick Corea)

For the Sydney CD launch, performers are:
Mark Isaacs, piano, James Muller, guitar, Matt Keegan, saxophones, Brett Hirst, bass and Tim Firth, drums.
Sound samples www.myspace.com/markisaacs
www.markisaacs.com

"This combination of the best of two worlds defines Mark as a quintessential musician of our era" - Paul Grabowsky

For further info contact
ABC Jazz: Melissa Kennedy (02) 8333 2853 melissa.kennedy@abc.net.au
Mark Isaacs: (02) 9589 0289 0412 601 296

The CD recording was assisted by the Australia Council, the Federal Government's arts funding and advisory body

Review of debut of new band.....

2007-04-25T17:16:00.000+10:00

... here

Resurgence CD release and other news

2007-04-20T11:16:00.001+10:00

My new jazz CD Resurgence will be released on the ABC/Universal label on June 9 and launched in Sydney at Winebanq on Thursday June 14 at 8:30pm. Recorded last year in Los Angeles at Capitol Studios, Hollywood the band features award-winning Australian guitarist James Muller and American luminaries drummer Vinnie Colaiuta (currently touring Australia with Herbie Hancock), saxophonists Bob Sheppard and Steve Tavaglione and bassist Jay Anderson. Recorded by Chick Corea's engineer Bernie Kirsh and produced by yours truly it features eight of my original compositions. (preview listening here)

The Australian "Resurgence" band playing for the Sydney launch features saxophonist Matt Keegan, bassist Brett Hirst and drummer Tim Firth along with James Muller and myself. Following the launch we will be appearing in Mackay on July 27 for the Queensland Music Festival's Tropic of Jazz program. From there we'll fly to Japan to appear at the Kutchan Festival July 29, the Sapporo City Jazz Festival and on to concerts in Tokyo, Korea and Thailand.

On the composition front, on Monday May 7 my piece Divertimento will be premiered at the concert hall of the Sydney Opera House by students of MLC Girls' School. On Saturday May 19 in Townsville, Queensland my piece Chinkon for bass koto solo will be performed in Belgian Gardens cemetery by Satsuki Odamura as part of the In Repose project. And on Saturday July 7 Sydney Philharmonia Chamber Singers will premiere my choral setting of the ee cummings poem i carry your heart with me at the Verbruggen Hall in the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.

After curating three jazz festivals since 2005 at the Brisbane Powerhouse performing arts venue I have now taken up a permanent part-time position with them as Curator, Jazz Program. I'm currently working on programming a major festival for early November which will feature an exciting roster of international and Australian artists. Also around that time I will tour nationally with the Australian "Resurgence" band.

Debut of new band

2007-02-25T07:50:00.000+11:00

MARK ISAACS RESURGENCE
SOUND LOUNGE, Seymour Centre, cnr. City Rd & Cleveland St, Chippendale, Sydney
Friday March 23 @ 8:30pm

Last year Mark Isaacs recorded a new CD of his original music in Los Angeles at Capitol Studios, Hollywood which will be released later in the year. Recorded and mixed by Chick Corea's long-time engineer Bernie Kirsh the band was an Australian/USA coalition featuring such American luminaries as drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, saxophonist Bob Sheppard and bassist Jay Anderson, with Mark and guitarist James Muller (plus Mark's tunes and producing) holding up the Aussie side.

Mark has formed an all-Australian version of the band to play the brand new material he has written since the recording. He is planning a national tour later in the year and the band will feature in the Queensland Music Festival in July, but meantime this is the debut of the new line-up and material.

Acclaimed internationally as a jazz pianist and classical concert hall composer, Mark Isaacs's engaging, challenging and often intricate jazz compositions take centre-stage in this quintet project following his earlier highly regarded trio explorations of standards

.......As ever with Isaacs, it is direct, concentrated and free-wheeling, as playful and serious as art can be..... - Australian Financial Review

Mark Isaacs (piano) James Muller (guitar) Matt Keegan (saxophone) Brett Hirst (bass) Tim Firth (drums)

$18, $14 students/Jazz Action/Jazzgroove members, $12 SIMA members BOOKINGS 9351 7940

Premiere of Koto piece

2007-02-13T16:10:00.000+11:00

Koto virtuoso Satsuki Odamura premiered my piece Chinkon for bass koto in the Japanese section of Townsville cemetery last Saturday night. This was a performance for invited guests as a preview before the full multimedia work In Repose (involving dance, video and pieces by other composers) is presented to the public in May. My wife Jewel and myself flew there for the occasion. The music was presented with original choreography danced by Wakako Asano of the Sydney Dance Company. It was a truly magical night.

New Australian band for 2007

2007-01-12T19:04:00.000+11:00

I am currently putting together and writing material for a new Australian band. It will follow the instrumentation and general musical soundworld of my as-yet-unreleased Australian/USA recording Resurgence that I made in Los Angeles last year. I plan to debut the project in Sydney in March and then take it on an Australian tour late October/early November.

The band - a quintet - will be called Resurgence and the band members joining me will be James Muller (guitar) Matt Keegan (saxophone) Brett Hirst (bass) and Tim Firth (drums).