Jim Hegarty

I am always searching for something new, something original and without category. Each performance is an opportunity to explore the intersection between the depth and richness of the historical past and the inspired spontaneity of this very moment.

Jazz was the first music I was really excited to play and my enthusiasm for this artistic expression continues throughout my work. My music is about communicating immediate ideas; it is a dialogue, a conversation in sound that expresses insight and human connection/interaction. My process involves open forms, idiomatic techniques, non-traditional scales and harmonies, melodic line, and rhythmic energy.

I am interested in cultural and social diversity, nature and its preservation, the juxtaposition of contemporary topics with historical reference, and arts activism. As an artist working in sound, video, theatre, and performance, I am inspired by literature and the arts, non-idiomatic improvisation, and contemporary cultures.

I have performed recently at The Contemporary Art Museum in St. Louis, The St. Louis Art Museum, The Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art in Kansas City, and EyeDrum art/music gallery in Atlanta, The Lemp Neighborhood Arts Center, Three Sinks Gallery, and on concerts presented by the New Music Circle.

My mp3 album, Leaving Venice was cited as an “unassuming gem from an American artist with much to say. Unreservedly recommended....” on the Ambient website AmbientMusicGuide.com.

I grew up in the Chicago area. My first musical experiences were at home where my mother played the organ. My first lessons were from her when I was in first grade. I played guitar in basement rock bands and in high school switched to piano and organ where I led a successful jazz-rock band. I played bari sax in the school's jazz band and later at the local community college.

My formal music studies include traditional classical composition degrees from Principia College and The American Conservatory of Music. I also have a second masters degree in computer music from Northern Illinois University.

During my time at the conservatory and later when I worked for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, I spent most of my lunch hours walking through the galleries and exploring the works of art at The Art Institute, directly across Michigan Avenue. As an assistant to the associate conductor, I attended hundreds of concerts, rehearsals and recording sessions. These artistic and musical experiences are as much a part of my training as the classes I attended.

In the 80's, I wrote several orchestral arrangements of pop tunes for the CSO and Chicago Pops. This led to more commercial arranging gigs for jingle producers in the Chicago area. For 9 years, I worked as a commercial music producer.

In the 90's, my work moved into more concert oriented directions. I made numerous appearances at colleges in the Midwest performing concerts on synthesizer and Yamaha WX-7 wind controller and teaching seminars in music technology. I also wrote several concert works that combined acoustic instruments with electronics.

At this time I wrote and produced jazz recordings featuring saxophonist Cornelius Bumpus (most notably with the Doobie Brothers and Steely Dan) which received airplay on jazz stations in Chicago and Milwaukee. I wrote and produced several multimedia works including the opera, “The Soul of the Rock.” This work later received funding from the National Endowment for the Arts for development and a performance in New York City.

In 1997, I moved to St. Louis where I have held college faculty positions in jazz and music composition and currently chair the music committee of The New Music Circle, an avant-garde presenting organization. My student ensembles have performed at the Elmhurst Jazz Festival and I have performed numerous concerts of jazz, multimedia, and electronic improv music in galleries, museums, and at festivals. My compositions involving technology and improvisation been performed throughout the US and in several countries abroad.