Christchurch
Saxophone Lessons | Ensemble Coaching, Jazz Improvisation Lessons, Online Lessons
Bio
Kia ora, I’m Jimmy – a jazz-trained saxophonist based in Ōtautahi with an
appetite for crossing genre lines, from improvised music to Balkan-dub to
electronic production.
I play with Yurt Party, a six-piece Balkan-Latin-dub group whose two albums
have taken us to Woodford Folk Festival, CubaDupa and Electric Avenue, and
I’ve performed and recorded with Marlon Williams & Delaney Davidson, Scribe
and 2XM.
I’m an Artist in Residence at The Piano, where I teach, and I founded
03 Sessions – a Christchurch concert series that has presented over 150
shows of original and improvised music since 2020.
Teaching Info
Who it’s for
I work with players who already have the basics down – usually a couple of
years in, often heading into or already playing in a school jazz band – and
who want to get serious about improvising, sound, and playing with other
people. I’m not currently taking on beginners.
What a lesson looks like
Every lesson works on three things: sound and technique, ears, and
repertoire. That means long tones and time spent on tone production,
transcribing and learning solos by ear, scales and harmony applied to real
tunes rather than in isolation, and improvisation from the first lesson.
We work with recordings constantly. You’ll leave with specific practice
material and a clear idea of what to do with it during the week.
Teaching style
Direct and practical. I’ll tell you what’s actually holding your playing
back rather than working through a book chapter by chapter, and the
material is chosen for where you are rather than a fixed syllabus. The
students who get the most out of it are the ones who practise between
lessons and bring things they want to play.
Where it leads
The goal is playing music with other people. Students who are ready for it
get pointed towards ensembles, jam sessions and the local scene – that’s
where the real learning happens, and it’s the part a lesson can’t replace.
Lessons are 45 or 60 minutes, at my studio in The Piano or online.