Racer Session #477 | Tom Varner | June 23, 2019

Greetings, fans of the avant!

This Sunday, we are excited to be hosting Seattle-based french hornist Tom Varner for his annual summer session. Originally from New York, Tom has played with many of the jazz greats, recorded on over 70 CDs (self-producing 11 of his own), and continues to work with the who’s-who of the jazz community at large. Tom is an inventive composer, one of the world's top Jazz French Hornists, and a valued educator at Cornish College of the Arts. He remains a mentor to many of those involved in the Racer Sessions as organizers and patrons - his passionate and playful approaches to improvisation, jazz history, ensemble collaboration, and arrangement are just some of the reasons why.

Tom will be presenting a quartet this time around, and has included personnel and his plans for the session and jam below. You’re encouraged to keep reading, and to join us this Sunday for Tom’s session! Music starts at 8pm.

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"Hellooooo Racer people! 

I'm looking forward to this Sunday's Racer Session. The opening set will be a quartet of myself, Neil Welch, Troy Schiefelbein,  and Ruby Dunphy. We'll be attacking an old one of mine called "Covert Action"  (for Haley), Steve Lacy's "No Baby" (for Ruby), and some assorted improvisations.  After about 40-45 minutes, we'll open the rest of the evening up to our wonderful Racer improvisers. 

I plan to organize the music into various "DNA-like" timed "chunks" (an important music theory term), with my trusty hotel bell, and "curate" mixes of short duos, trios, quartets, etc.  If you are an improviser, join us!  And don't feel bad if I cut you off, or if are cutting someone else off, as part of our (for example) timed "A-A-B-C-D-A-C-B" structures on the spot.  They are FUN. Hope to see you! "