Howie Smith / Mike Nock: Opal Dream

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Although their paths didn't cross until 1988, when they first met and performed together in Sydney, Australia, saxophonist m: Howie Smith and pianist m: Mike Nock are both important figures in the development of jazz Down Under. Nock, a native of New Zealand, returned to Australia in 1985 after working 25 years in the U.S. with the likes of tenor saxophonist Coleman Hawkins, reed player m: Yusef Lateef and the pioneering fusion band The Fourth Way, which he helped found. A Fulbright grant brought Smith to the Sydney Conservatory of Music in 1973 to set up the first college-level jazz studies program in the country. While serving there as the Director of Jazz Studies for three years, he also composed and performed, most notably as a founding member of Jazz Co/op. But, more important than this Australian connection, the two share an affinity for musical exploration. Both have ventured far beyond the realms of jazz throughout their careers, covering everything from chamber music and ballet to rock and the outer stretches of the avant-garde...

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