Phil Nimmons

Phillip Rista " Phil" Nimmons, OC, O.Ont ( born June 3, 1923 in Kamloops, British Columbia) is a Canadian jazz musician and composer. He is regarded as one of the key persons of Canadian jazz.

Life and work

Nimmons grew up in Vancouver, where he led as a teenager also has a combo. During his medical studies at the University of British Columbia, he played in local dance bands before the quintet of guitarist Ray Norris joined, who also played for broadcasting. He wrote arrangements for the band and composed the theme song for the radio program " Anthology ". From 1945 to 1947 he studied clarinet at the Juilliard School of Music, and then from 1948 to 1950 composition at the Royal Conservatory of Music to study in Toronto. In 1953 he founded his own nonet that played for broadcasting and 1956 at the Stratford Festival had its breakthrough. In the same year, it also played with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. In 1965, he expanded the band on the strength of a big band, which persisted until the early 1980s.

Nimmons founded in 1970, the jazz program at the Banff School of Fine Arts; In 1973 he was appointed to the University of Toronto, where he led the Jazz degree program until his retirement.

Compositions

Nimmons first wrote compositions for chamber music, as his Sonatina (1948, for Flute ), Toccata (1949 ), a string quartet (1950) and Scherzo for Orchestra (1950) and Suite for Spring ( 1951). In the field of jazz, he was based at first on the West Coast jazz. Later he wrote larger sized jazz compositions as his Suite PEI ( 1973) and the five-movement Transformations ( 1975). His composition The Torch (1988 ) was performed by Rob McConnell during the Olympic Winter Games in Calgary. Its terraces: Cariboo Country Tone Poem were performed with the CBC Vancouver Orchestra and recorded.

Prizes and awards

In 1976 he received his first Juno Award, which was awarded for an album of contemporary jazz, for the recording of his Atlantic Suite with his band Nimmons 'N' Nine Plus Six. He was appointed for his services to the music of Canada to the officer of the Order of Canada in 1993.