Tim Stevens

Tim Stevens is an Australian improvising pianist, composer and scholar based in Melbourne, Australia. He studied at the Victorian College of the Arts (MMus, 1996) and the University of Melbourne (PhD, 2000), graduating from the latter with a thesis entitled 'The Origins, Development and Significance of the Red Onion Jazz Band, 1960-1996'. Between 1995 and 2000 he was a member of the co-operative trio Browne - Haywood - Stevens, with Allan Browne (drums) and Nick Haywood (bass), and this band released two CDs: 'King, Dude and Dunce' (Newmarket, 1996) and 'Sudden in a shaft of sunlight' (ABC Jazz, 1998). He lived in Sydney from 2000-2001 and formed a trio there with Mark Lau (bass) and Simon Barker (drums), that travelled to perform at the Pori Jazz Festival and Umbria Jazz in 2001. Prior to leaving Sydney he recorded his first album with Rufus Records, the solo 'Freehand'. Since returning to Melbourne he has performed and recorded with a trio comprising Ben Robertson (bass), Dave Beck (drums) and himself, and this trio's first two recordings 'Nine open questions' and 'Three friends in winter' have been critically praised. They feature, respectively, Stevens' own compositions and the trio's collective spontaneous improvisation.