Phillip Rista Nimmons, (born June 3, 1923) is a Canadian

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

clarinetist, composer, bandleader, and educator. Nimmons is known for playing in a "

Free Jazz Free jazz is an experimental approach to jazz improvisation that developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s when musicians attempted to change or break down jazz conventions, such as regular tempos, tones, and chord changes. Musicians duri ...

" and mainstream styles. As well as playing jazz, Nimmons also played other genres, notably classical music. Nimmons has composed over 400 pieces of music in various genres, and for various instrumentations including film scores, music for radio and television, chamber music, music for large ensembles, concert band and symphony orchestras. Nimmons studied clarinet at the

Juilliard School The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...

and composition at the

Royal Conservatory of Music The Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM), branded as The Royal Conservatory, is a non-profit music education institution and performance venue headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 1886 by Edward Fisher as The Toronto Con ...

in Toronto.

Career

Nimmons was born in Kamloops,

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

. He joined the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 ...

in 1973. In 1953 Nimmons formed the ensemble "Nimmons 'N' Nine" which, later, he led during his weekly radio show on

CBC radio CBC Radio is the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which (regardless of language) are outlined below ...

. this ensemble grew to 16 musicians in 1965 and was active intil 1980. As an educator, Nimmons has made substantial contributions to the study of Jazz music. In 1960, Along with

Oscar Peterson Oscar Emmanuel Peterson (August 15, 1925 – December 23, 2007) was a Canadian virtuoso jazz pianist and composer. Considered one of the greatest jazz pianists of all time, Peterson released more than 200 recordings, won seven Grammy Awards ...

Nimmons founded the Advanced School of Contemporary Music in Toronto. Nimmons was involved in the development of the jazz performance program at the

Awards and honors

Nimmons received the first Juno Award given in the Juno Awards jazz category, for his album ''Atlantic Suite''. His composition "The Torch" was commissioned for the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary. It was performed at the Olympics by a big band led by

Rob McConnell Robert Murray Gordon "Rob" McConnell, (14 February 1935 – 1 May 2010) was a Canadian jazz trombonist, composer, and arranger.Jeff Sultanof. Experiencing Big Band Jazz: A Listener's Companion'. Rowman & Littlefield Publishers; 8 November 2 ...

. In 1993, he was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the cen ...

. He is also a recipient of the

Order of Ontario The Order of Ontario () is the most prestigious official Award, honour in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the A ...

. In 2001 Nimmons was a recipient of the Jazz Education Hall of Fame which honors "individuals whose musical contributions and dedication to jazz education over the past 25 years have created new directions and curricular innovations for jazz education worldwide". In 2002, Nimmons received the

Governor General's Performing Arts Award A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, Canada's highest honour in the performing arts, for his lifetime contribution to popular music. On November 21, 2005, Nimmons was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by

SOCAN The Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada (SOCAN) is a Canadian performance rights organization that represents the performing rights of more than 135,000 songwriters, composers and music publishers. The organization collects ...

at the SOCAN Awards in Toronto.

Discography

* ''The Canadian Scene Via the Phil Nimmons Group'' ( Verve, 1956) * ''Nimmons 'n' Nine'' (Verve, 1963) * ''Take Ten'' (

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

, 1963) * ''Mary Poppins Swings'' (RCA, 1964) * ''Strictly Nimmons'' (RCA, 1965) * ''Nimmons Now'' (RCA, 1970) *Jazz Canadiana: all star jazz in concert (CBC, 1973) * ''The Atlantic Suite'' ( Sackville, 1975) *The dance never ends (REACO, 1997) *The Canadian scene via Phil Nimmons Group (New York, Verve, 1999) * ''Sands of Time'' (Sackville, 2000) *Vintage Nimmons 'n' Nine CBC Air Checks '59-'64' (Sackville, 2003) *Nimmons 'n nitecap (Vancouver, Capilano College, 2005) *Nimmons 'n' Nine—now (MCCO records, 2008) * ''Beginnings'' (Nimmons 'n' Music, 2009) *Friendly encounter (Marquis, 2009) * ''Canadian Composer Portrait: Phil Nimmons'' (CMC, 2009)

References

External links

Phil Nimmons
at

The Canadian Encyclopedia ''The Canadian Encyclopedia'' (TCE; french: L'Encyclopédie canadienne) is the national encyclopedia of Canada, published online by the Toronto-based historical organization Historica Canada, with the support of Canadian Heritage. Available f ...

Archival manuscripts
a
University of Toronto Music Library
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nimmons, Phil 1923 births Bebop clarinetists Canadian composers Canadian male composers Canadian jazz composers Male jazz composers Canadian jazz clarinetists Living people Members of the Order of Ontario Officers of the Order of Canada People from Kamloops Progressive big band bandleaders Swing clarinetists The Royal Conservatory of Music alumni Verve Records artists Governor General's Performing Arts Award winners Juno Award for Best Jazz Album winners 21st-century clarinetists 21st-century Canadian male musicians