Paul Clarvis

Paul Clarvis is an English percussionist,^[1] born in Enfield, London, on 9 April 1963.

He is renowned for bringing his unique style of music to many genres and can be heard on recordings by Mick Jagger, Elvis Costello, Elton John, Paul McCartney, Annie Lennox, Sting, Bryan Ferry, John Williams, Andy Sheppard, Kenny Wheeler, Fred Hersch, Karl Jenkins, Richard Thompson, Moondog, John Adams, McFly, Sam Rivers, John Harle, Gwyneth Herbert, Harrison Birtwistle, Matthew Herbert, Hugh Masekela, Gordon Beck, Marc Ribot, The Orb, Michael Nyman, Loreena McKennitt, Mark Anthony Turnage, Anthony Phillips, Michel Legrand, Maurice Jarre, John Williams, and Victoria Mullova.

He has performed with Noel Akchote and Sylvain Kassap in CAKE, Ernst Reisenjeger, Terence Blanchard, Myra Melford, Leroy Jenkins, and Joseph Jarman.

He was featured as a soloist on the last night of the Proms in 1996 in a concerto for saxophone and drum kit by Sir Harrison Birtwistle. In 1998, 2000 and 2001 he was chairman of the Percussion judges for the BBC Young Musician of the Year.

Bands

Clarvis participates regularly in several bands, some of which are: Andy Sheppard’s "Learning to Wave"; Stan Sulzmann’s Big Band; "Four in Perspective" - Wheeler, Hersch, Winstone; Henry Lowther’s "Still Waters", "Bubbling Under with Sonia Slany, Stan Sulzmann, and Tony Hymas; John Williams and friends; Colin Towns Mask Orchestra; and Victoria Mullova’s "Through the Looking Glass" with Julian Joseph.

Film

As one of the most requested session musicians, he has played on numerous films including Star Wars, Thunderbirds, The Passion, Troy, King Arthur, Dorian Gray, Kingdom of Heaven, Around the World in 80 Days, Alien vs. Predator, The Lord of the Rings, Madagascar, On a Clear Day, Spy Games, Captain Corelli's Mandolin, Shakespeare in Love, G.I.Jane (ethnic percussion), James Bond, Billy Elliot, Notting Hill, Harry Potter, The Guru (Indian percussion), ... aka Gourou et les femmes, Le (France), Ten Minutes Older: The Trumpet (drums and percussion), Birthday Girl (drums and percussion), Quills (band member: The Quills Specialist Band), The Cell (first percussion), The Miracle Maker (ethnic percussion), The Next Best Thing (percussion), The Darkest Light (percussion), Beautiful People (percussion), East Is East (drums and percussion), Heart (percussion), Beloved (featured musician), The Mighty (percussion), My Son the Fanatic (musician), and many more.

He regularly holds gigs with Mose Allison and has also played with Nina Simone, Herbie Hancock, Ravi Shankar and was Leonard Bernstein's preferred percussionist when in London. He has judged the BBC Young Musician of the Year several times, and has been made an HonARAM.

References