Dave Cliff
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Dave Cliff (25 June 1944– ) is a British jazz musician who plays guitar.
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[edit] Career
David John “Dave” Cliff was born in Hexham, Northumberland in 25th June 1944. Dave began his career playing rhythm and blues in the Newcastle area. In 1967, he moved to Leeds and gained a diploma in jazz studies from Leeds College of Music while studying with bassist Peter Ind and Bernie Cash.
In 1971, after moving to London Dave became established on the local scene. During 1976-1977 he toured Holland, Denmark, Italy and the UK with the Lee Konitz - Warne Marsh Quintet. The following year Dave toured the UK with Soprano Summit (Kenny Davern and Bob Wilber). He worked increasingly as a freelance from the 1980s on.
His first album under his own name, "The Right Time" was recorded in 1987. It featured Geoff Simkins on alto, and was the first of a number of albums with Simkins, with whom Dave has collaborated extensively.
Dave has appeared frequently at Ronnie Scott’s jazz club in varied settings including Georgie Fame's Blue Flames, Mike Carr Trio, Irene Reid, the Dick Pearce Sextet and the Bruce Adams Quartet. He has worked extensively with visiting American musicians, including Slide Hampton, Nina Simone, Kenny Davern,George Masso, Spike Robinson, Herb Geller, Lanny Morgan, Harry Allen, Buddy Childers, Lew Tabackin, Mundell Lowe, Bucky Pizzarelli, Jack McDuff, Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis, Richie Cole, and Ken Peplowski.
In 1998 Dave won the BT Jazz Awards in the guitar category.
[edit] Influences
Dave’s influences on guitar include Charlie Christian and Wes Montgomery, and he has also been extensively influenced by the Lennie Tristano school, whose influence he encountered when working and studying with Peter Ind.
[edit] Teaching
Dave is involved in Jazz education, teaching jazz guitar at London Trinity College of Music & Birmingham Conservatoire. Dave also teaches at the Glamorgan Summer jazz school, the Jamie Aebersold Summer School in London and at the Christiansand jazz course in Norway.
[edit] Teaching style
Dave's teaching style is unique in the UK. His approach to tutoring jazz guitar removes the instrument from the equation (which is often the biggest stumbling block for the student jazz guitarist) and concentrates on 'learning music', often by singing, which is then applied to the guitar by whichever method the student feels comfortable. Dave will take the student on a journey through jazz, studying music by way of the great solos and applying the harmony to the chord changes in the tune. From Charlie Christian to Lester Young, to Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie, to Wes Montgomery and Sonny Rollins and beyond, at each stage reinforcing the understanding of how arpeggios relate to the underlying harmony and the importance of phrasing and building a solo.
Forcing 'swing' out of a student who never had it is one of Dave's specialities. Dave's no-nonsense approach, kindness and generosity greatly inspires his students and promotes a lifelong love of his music and jazz as both a historical branch of music that has reached through time and also a contemporary form.
[edit] Selected recordings
with Geoff Simkins:
The Right Time (LP)
West Coast Blues (MC)
Sipping At Bells (CD)
The Music of Tadd Dameron (CD)
with Allan Ganley and Geoff Simkins:
Live at the Station
with Phil DeGreg:
Tranzatlantic Interplay
With Bruce Adams:
Always and Forever
Live at Ronnie Scott’s
[edit] Sources
John Chilton, Who's Who of British Jazz, Cassell, London 1997 ISBN 0-8264-7234-6
[edit] External links
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