John Clark is an American jazz horn player and composer. ...show more

John Clark is an American jazz horn player and composer.

Biography

John Clark was born in Brooklyn and grew up in Rochester, New York. His father was William H. Clark, a professor of German and dean of education at the University of Rochester, and his mother was Margaret Garmey. He and his four brothers graduated from Brighton High School in Rochester. In 1966 he received a B.A. in Spanish from the University of Rochester, where he also studied horn with Verne Reynolds at the Eastman School of Music. From 1967 until 1971 he played in the United States Coast Guard Band. On 13 September 1967 he married Nancy Puls; they have two children. Clark received an M.M. degree (with honors) from the New England Conservatory of Music in 1973. He studied composition and improvisation with Jaki Byard, Ran Blake, and George Russell; and horn with James Stagliano, Thomas Newell, and Paul Ingraham. In 1991 he received a patent for the "hornette," an instrument with the same range as a French Horn but with a forward-facing bell for greater projection. He taught at the State University of New York at Purchase from 2001 until 2008. He is now on faculty at Manhattan School of Music.

Continue reading on Wikipedia

...show less