Warwick Alder - Biography

WARWICK ALDER Jazz Peformer,Composer and Teacher
Warwick graduated with honours from Sydney Conservatorium in 1981 in Jazz Studies and since then has regularly performed with most major Australian jazz artists and many leading international artists as well as touring extensively in Australia and overseas.Presently he is a leading performer in Sydney as well as a much in demand teacher in Sydney including a lecturer in Jazz improvisation and ensemble direction at Sydney Conservatorium.
In 1983 Warwick became a founding member of James Morrison's first band [Morrison Bros. Big Bad Band]with whom he made 2 CDs and 1 ABC TV special.Also at this time he started playing with some leading avant-garde ensembles which developed his sense of freer improvisation and composition.In 1986 he was chosen as a founding member of "Ten Part Invention"_ still widely regarded as Australia's leading modern jazz ensemble.At the same time WA was also playing regularly with Aust's leading jazz traditionalists.In1988 he was chosen to represent Australia in the Bicentenial Australian Jazz Orchestra which for 6 months toured Australia and the USA.In2005 he performed at the Chicago Jazz Festival and toured Europe with the legendary Bernie McGann.He has played with such international stars as Cleo Laine,Joe Williams,Branford Marsalis,Eartha Kitt amongst many others.
Alder's compositional skills were first recorded on Andrew Speight's CD "Now's The Time" in the form of "Feaux Pais"-inspired by The 1950s hard bop style.Other recorded eg's include"Ogogoro" and Here nor There" on Bob Bertles' Cd "Cool Beans".The former being inspired by the African roots of Jazz.More recently 2 Alder compositions appear on Bernie McGann's CD "Blues For Pablo Too"{2005} and they are "A Deep Shallow" [a piece reflecting the feeling of sadness often felt by creative artists]and midget [a veiled tribute to the writing of Kenny Dorham].
Alder teaches that jazz composition can be seen as an extension of improvisation and thus requires a complete knowledge of harmonic and melodic aspects of Jazz and therefor music in general.