Teaser Trax:

These Teaser Trax are a couple of examples of the things I’ve been doing lately; there will be a new CD or two in the future of these sorts of things. Misterioso features the incredible soprano and tenor saxophone work of legendary New York studio musician George Young, who dropped by the San Carlos Cathedral in Monterey when I was recording there one afternoon in the Fall of 2011. Who Needs It is a Steve Lacy solo piece for soprano saxophone that shows the amazing acoustics in the Cathedral, there are no effects on this whatsoever. I engineered both tracks myself on my laptop.

• Misterioso

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• Who Needs It

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Leader Dates:

My leader dates show my evolution as a player, composer and studio musician. Gary Regina produced Simple Beauty, my first solo recording. Simple Beauty has become my signature tune, and has evolved well beyond this initial version into many different settings, including some still to be recorded in odd meters. The Marking Time CD has a different, more varied feel to it. Biff Smith composed Marking Time to feature my bass clarinet playing for me, and I especially like the soprano saxophone on Dari Jawa and Dreamsong. By the way, that’s me on piano on Dreamsong! The Turkish Miniatures feature Daniell Hoffman on violin and Kevin Mummey on percussion. Two of the most inspiring and creative musicians I’ve had had the pleasure of playing with. Sinfonetta was a challenge to put together, I made an inspired pilgrimage to New York City to work with this group of inconic NYC jazz musicians. They responded with some fabulous playing, and it was a dream to realize my idea of working with Maestro Perry Robinson. Pianist Frank Kimbrough, one of my favorite musicians of all time, was a pleasure to have on the date as well. This is the first example of some of the free playing that I was starting to delve into, an interest that carries through to today and beyond. The Call is Perry’s signature tune…….

• Simple Beauty #1

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• Marking Time

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• Dari Jawa

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• Dreamsong

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• Turkish Miniature #1

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• Turkish Miniature #6

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• (More) Simple Beauty

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• The Call

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Purchase Music:

Recordings as a Leader

Universal Truths – 2013

From the Liner Notes:
Sound has for centuries provided a means to communicate thoughts, moods and feelings to people of all races and cultures. A “universal language” if you will. A musician that speaks through his music tries to communicate truthfully and honestly his life experiences. Musicians therefore possess the ability to express……Universal Truths.

This recording is the result of the last two years (2011-2012) spent learning the music notation software Finale and the home recording software Logic. All the music is original, and all the recording was done by me personally with the help and input of Colin Dyer. The result is a huge leap for me, integrating many of the styles and genres I’ve been influenced by over the years. I feel my compositional style has emerged and become another deep aspect of my musical foundation as a result of this work. I’ve tried in certain pieces to incorporate through composed chamber music with free improvisation, and several of these compositions were written with specific musicians in mind. I am indebted to these friends who generously allowed me to integrate their artistry into my music, and who performed with such integrity, skill and enthusiasm. All were supportive and energetic, and it was a thrill to watch how this all came together over time. A big thank you to all of them for their efforts…..

Featured Musicians:

Perry Robinson – clarinet
Evan Francis – flute
Jack Chandler – flute
George Young – tenor sax
Paul Eastburn – bass
Phil Grenadier – trumpet

Sinfonetta – 2005

Recorded in New York City in October of 2004, Sinfonetta features mostly original compositions by Mark Sowlakis with a stellar band of New York’s finest jazz musicians.

Prominently featured on the disc is iconoclastic clarinetist Perry Robinson, who’s over forty year performing and recording career has included stints with Carla Bley, Dave Brubeck and Tete Montilieu. Pianist Frank Kimbrough, who’s garnered many rave reviews for his own recordings and compositions as well as his work with many New York area ensembles including Maria Schneider’s Big Band and the Herbie Nichols Project, contributes several fine solos and adds a wonderful harmonic sense to the project. Brothers Ed and George Schuller round out the band on bass and drums, simultaneously propelling and supporting the ensemble with their thoughtful and probing rhythm section work.

Modern, urban jazz meets finely wrought melody, at times a bit on the avant garde side, this recording sets the bar ever higher in the expanding discography of Mr. Sowlakis.

Marking Time – 2002

Featuring a five movement work for bass clarinet and rhythm section, the composition Marking Time was written for Mark Sowlakis by Monterey composer and pianist Biff Smith. This charming and melodic CD also features Daniel Hoffman and Kevin Mummey of Davka on Six Turkish Miniatures, and pianists Jay Jackson and Leonard Thompson, as well as two beautiful classical compositions by renowned classical composer Carl Anton Wirth.

Simple Beauty – 2000

Produced by mutli-instrumentalist Gary Regina, Simple Beauty showcases a stellar grouping of drummer Eddie Sassin, bassist Stan Poplin, pianist Leonard Thompson and guitarist Baird Miller on several Sowlakis original compositions, a reworking of Eric Dolphy’s classic tune Sorino, and a romp through Eddie’s ska tune Skalp It, recorded previously by Undercover S.K.A. on their CD: The Things Men Do.

Guest Recordings

With Bob Brozman

With The Nuclear Whales

Every recording has some sort of story about it. My early association with the Nuclear Whales Saxophone Quartet is linked to my recordings with Steel Guitar wizard Bob Brozman. The Whales backed Bob on some live concerts in those days, and Bob used various combinations of Whale saxes for three of his recordings. I helped Bob realize the saxophone parts for the recordings. The first NWSQuartet/Sextet had many interesting saxophone characters on it, including the late Bill Trimble, longtime saxophone professor at San Jose State, current SJSU saxophone professor Dale Wolford, and Rach Cztar on baritone saxophone. Who could forget Rach, a terrific musician and entertainer. The Whales Quartet would later morph into The Nuclear Whales Saxophone Orchestra…..

With Linda Arnold

Children’s singer Linda Arnold hired me for the two tunes for Lullaby Land, I like how the clarinet and her voice go together on these tracks.

With Gary Regina

The selected demos here are a bit rough in spots, but worth keeping for both musical and sentimental value. Gary engineered Skarosh, a Greek folk style that I was working with at the time, and Stranger On The Shore, a classic clarinet tune if there ever was one. Thanks Gary……

With Undercover SKA

My buddy from college, Dave Barrows, was responsible for getting me into the band Undercover Ska, a San Francisco sensation in the mid 1990’s. I had a lot of fun in that band, there was never a dull moment and a lot of laughs, and jokes from that band still survive to this day. Bob and Pat, thanks for having me, like you said, you never leave Undercover SKA!

With Achi Ben Shalom

I played a lot of Bar/Bat Mitzvahs and Jewish weddings in the late 90’s and early 2000’s with Achi Ben Shalom and his group Adama. This tune is an example of the sort of things we did with his group.

With Rhan Wilson

I really admire the creativity and musical vision of Rhan Wilson. We went to the same high school, and he’s a very talented guy with a unique of vision. His minor key versions of Christmas tunes are brooding and thought provoking.

Rhan Wilson Altered Christmas Live – 2007

At Cayuga Vault Santa Cruz CA

Clarinet and Saxophone

• Carol Of The Bells
• Joy To the World

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• Over The River

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• Rudolph/Roxanne

With God Of Shamisen

Reptile Records 2004

• Dragon String Attack – Clarinet

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With Estradasphere

Palace Of Mirrors-The End Records 2006

• Palace Of Mirrors Reprise – Clarinet and Bass Clarinet

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With Luke Lehman’s Prime

The live tracks from my friend Luke Lehman’s show Prime have a lot of energy, and the shows were a lot of fun to be involved with. I love Suzanne’s voice……

• I Love You

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• Prime

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With Them Horn Moans

Lastly, Them Horn Moans were a band I played a bit with when I was still in college in the late 1980’s. There was a lot of humor in their music, and we hope to do some more recordings in the future as we are all still in touch and we are all still playing, hopefully better than ever.

• Mr. Tubercular

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• Moltov Reprise

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