Trevor Watts

Infobox musical artist
Name = Trevor Watts

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Background = non_vocal_instrumentalist
Birth_name = Trevor Charles Watts
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Born = Birth date and age|1939|2|26|df=y
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Origin = flagicon|UK York, England
Instrument = Alto saxophone, Soprano saxophone
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Genre = Jazz
Occupation = Saxophonist
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Associated_acts = John Stevens, Paul Rutherford
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Trevor Charles Watts (b. York, UK, 26 February 1939) is a jazz and free-improvising alto and soprano saxophonist. He is largely self-taught, having taken up the cornet at age 12 then switched to saxophone at 18. While stationed in Germany with the RAF (1958-63), he encountered the drummer John Stevens and trombonist Paul Rutherford. After being demobbed he returned to London. In 1965 he and Stevens formed the Spontaneous Music Ensemble, which became one of the crucibles of British free improvisation. Watts left the band to form his own group Amalgam in 1967, then returned to SME for another stretch that lasted till the mid-1970s. Another key association was with the bassist Barry Guy and his London Jazz Composers' Orchestra, an association that lasted from the band's inception in the 1970s up to its (permanent?) disbandment in the mid-1990s.

Though he was initially strongly identified with the avant-garde, Watts is a versatile musician who has worked in everything from straight jazz contexts to rock and blues. His own projects have come increasingly to focus on blending jazz and African music, notably the Moiré Music ensemble which he has led since 1982 in configurations ranging from large ensembles featuring multiple drummers to more intimate trios. He has only occasionally recorded in freer modes in recent years, notably the CD "6 Dialogues", a duet album with Veryan Weston (the pianist in earlier editions of Moiré Music). A solo album, "World Sonic", appeared on Hi4Head Records in 2005.

elected Discography

*1971: Spontaneous Music Ensemble: "So, what do you think?": Tangent
*1971: Spontaneous Music Ensemble: "1.2. Albert Ayler": Affinity
*1974: Amalgam: "Innovation": Tangent
*1977: With John Stevens: "No Fear": Spotlite
*1977: Amalgam: "Deep": Vinyl
*1979: Amalgam: "Over the Rainbow"; ARC
*1981: With Katrina Krimsky: "Stella Malu": ECM
*1985: Moiré Music: "Trevor Watts' Moiré Music"; ARC
*1987: Moiré Music Sextet: "Saalfelden Encore"; Cadillac
*1989: With The London Jazz Composers' Orchestra: "Harmos": Intakt
*1989: With The London Jazz Composers' Orchestra: "Double Trouble": Intakt
*1990: Moiré Music Drum Orchestra: "Live In Latin America Vol.1": ARC
*1991: With The London Jazz Composers' Orchestra: "Theoria": Intakt
*2001: 'Trevor Watts and The Celebration Band' : ARC
*2005: Solo: "World Sonic": Hi4Head

External links

* [http://trevorwatts.whistlingmule.com Watts' homepage]
* [http://www.efi.group.shef.ac.uk/mwatts.html EFI page for Trevor Watts]