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All Big Ideas & Moving Air  It is three years since saxophonist, Mark Lockheart, released his last album, Imaginary Dances, and his last interview for Jazz Views. So with the eagerly awaited new recording Moving Air released on Basho Records this month, Nick Lea catches up with Mark to find out what?s new, and what he?s been up. Mark Lockheart?s career to date has not been a meteoric rise, but more about gradual progress and development. Emerging from the hothouse of talent in British jazz in the 1980?s that was the big band Looses Tubes, after the demise of the group Lockheart whilst not exactly being invisible did not seem to garner the publicity as did some of his other peers. But then again, let?s face it there were any number of horn players all eager to appear in the glossy magazines around this time, and young men with saxophones were very fashionable even if the music they played did not have quite the same mass appeal. Iain Ballamy, Andy Sheppard, Tommy Smith and Courtney Pine were all big news with careers on the point of taking off.  Mark spent time after the Tubes playing with his own bands, touring with Annie Whitehead and Roger Dean's Lysis. In 1992, he began working with the co-led band Perfect Houseplants (which is still an ongoing concern). Current activities include working with the John Parricelli Quartet, his own quartet and the larger Scratch band, although as Mark is quick to point out ?Its been hard to find time for my own stuff as I?ve been busy playing in other peoples bands like Polar Bear, Curious Paradise, June Tabor and the Works ( a new band with Nic France, Patrick Wood and Neville Malcom).?So, for someone whose career contains a wealth of playing with the emphasis on a group identity it seems somewhat at odds that his latest album, Moving Air should feature Mark on a variety of reed instruments, piano and much use of overdubbing and studio technology. ?The album started from playing around with ideas on the saxophone and bass clarinet? Mark explained. ?I started to improvise little fragments, which I wrote down and then experimented with layering and arranging them. The first few things I came up with where rhythmic based compositions like the first track on the album called ?Tell Me Why?.? So was it then the intention to feature yourself on various reed instruments and use multitracking and overdubs? ?It was more a case of developing the ideas in the studio? continued Mark. ?I had a very rough list of the instrumentation I wanted on each track but this soon changed, for instance originally I didn?t really hear bass on the album but certain tunes cried out for more bottom end.? The compositions on Moving Air draw influences from many sources including contemporary classical, folk and world influences. Is this a conscious decision to draw from these different idioms, I asked, or just a natural part of the writing process? ?Its not a conscious thing with me. What excites me about writing is the unknown, and when I come up with something unusual sounding I get fired up and that drives me on to the next part of the composition. ?Strange Remark? is a particular favourite in this respect as a lot of this piece sounds unusual to me. If the different idioms come out in the music that?s fine with me but I never think of trying to incorporate certain styles as I feel this would more than likely sound forced and unnatural. ? my favourite compositions are the ones that sound unlaboured and as if they have just popped out of the ether.?  In last months Jazz Views when interviewing (drummer) Martin France we talked about how many of the musical relationships that were forged in the early 1980's, and that emerged from the big band Loose Tubes have continued to flourish and develop some twenty years on. Indeed, you and Martin have played together on countless occasions over the years. Martin along with basist Dudley Phillips and guitarist John Parricelli are your colleagues on Moving Air, they all featured on your previous CD "Imaginary Dances" and as quartet you recorded the album "Alba" under John's leadership for Provocateur Records in 1999. What do you think has kept the creativity and musical longevity in these musical relationships? ?I have a special respect for Martin, Dudley and John as we have played so much together and we know each others playing so well? enthuses Lockheart. ?For instance, I can play a melody with John P and we will just intuitively phrase it in the same way, although we never talk about phrasing, etc. Martin is my favourite drummer for my music, and as well as being fantastic on the drums he has a amazing ear for shape and form. He quite often suggests things in my music which become incredibly important to the composition. Dudley is a huge part of my music too and has a wide understanding of different feels and grooves and again is totally concerned with the overall shape and texture of the music.?Another long term partnership has been with pianist, Huw Warren, who with Martin and Dudley in Perfect Houseplants you have recorded six albums. What next for the Houseplants? ?Well, Houseplants has been put on hold recently as all four of us have been working on solo projects. We have a commission for next year so will be writing lots of new material?watch this space.? Having played in many different contexts and styles with artists as diverse as Django Bates, Billy Jenkins, June Tabor, Jah Wobble and the beautiful collaborations with the Orlando Consort integrating the vocal repertoire from Medieval times and the Renaissance with the improvisational nature of jazz. How would you define yourself as a player, given the diversity of the music that you embrace? ?I like all sorts of music I suppose and just want to play the saxophone as well as I can. I don?t really see what I do as particularly diverse. I grew up on American Jazz and still love Coltrane , Shorter , Jarrett , Ellington , Sinatra , Metheny etc etc but feel that there is no point trying to sound like these guys ,so as a result I pursue my own style of playing and writing, it seems most natural this way. Also, great music or art was never made copying someone else. I always try and encourage my students to develop their own voices as soon as possible. ? And what's next on the agenda, and plans for the future? Mark laughs ?Oh, lots of plans! I want to do a Big Band tour and recording. I was fortunate enough to work recently with the Hamburg based NDR big band , playing some of my music . It was a wonderful experience and I definitely want to develop this, perhaps a CMN tour in a few years. Also I want to do a live quartet album, etc, etc.? 
Moving Air is released on Basho Records and is available from Jazz Cds. |
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