Q&A: International Saxophonist Benn Clatworthy Coming to Mission Viejo

Benn Clatworthy is a self-made man and an incredibly talented reed player. And he will perform tenor saxophone on Monday, May 2, as the special guest of Saddleback College’s jazz department during a lab concert.

His story is unusual in that Clatworthy was drawn to music without any significant early mentoring in the arts. Like Marvin Gaye says in his multi-platinum album titled “Trouble Man”, “… I come up hard baby. I come up getting’ down!”  That’s the Benn Clatworthy I know. He offers no apologies for his past and has marched into the future with his horn in hand and the belief that he could and would become a first rate musician.

Sixteen recorded albums later, after sharing the stage with some of the truly iconic musicians of our times, Clatworthy has accomplished far more than he ever dreamed. I had an opportunity to interview this internationally acclaimed musician last week and this is what he told me.

Benn Clatworthy: I was born in England. As a kid, I was shifted about from Hastings to London ‘cause dad was living in London and mom was living in Hastings. When they finally made the divorce official, I was around eleven and a little bit out of control. I ended up being sent to a youth authority type school; an experimental place for troubled kids.

Clatworthy: You didn’t get much attention there, but you had chores to do and not much school work at all that I can remember. From about 13 years old until 16 I was there and then I returned to London to stay with my father and sometimes other places. In those early years, from eleven to twelve, I was heavy into music and loved reggae and soul music. I attended dances at the youth clubs and saw the live bands. I was fascinated by them.

Clatworthy: Early in life, I had piano lessons as a child and thinking back, I was always fascinated by music. At that school, I first discovered jazz because I heard this Jamaican fellow who played saxophone on record named Harold McNair, and it struck me when I heard him. I tried being a drummer for a while and next, a guitarist. After I left that school, I was still trying to play the guitar and I had a friend; the son of Alexis Korner. Everybody came through Korner’s band and John Mayall’s band in England. I heard Charles Mingus and Eric Dolphy at Alexis Korner’s house. That’s when I sold my guitar for a saxophone. 

Clatworthy: I have a brother and a sister who both live in England. I come from an artistic family. My father is a sculpter and a painter. My grandmother, on my mother’s side, was Gertrude Lawrence, quite a famous person in musical theater. “Body and Soul” was written for her by Johnny Green. She became the first British performer to star in an American musical on Broadway. She was on Broadway in 1952 when she died. She was starring in “The King and I."

Clatworthy: She sang classic standards like “Someone to Watch Over Me” and “My Ship." Those songs were written for her because she sang in plays that featured those songs. I never met my mum’s mother, but I learned about her later in life. So maybe music is in the genes.

Clatworthy: My biggest inspirations were Sonny Rollins and Dexter Gordon.  They were huge influences and of course Duke Ellington.  Booker Ervin and (John) Coltrane inspired me too.

Clatworthy: All those years working as a musician, I never studied with a saxophone teacher until I was 25 years old. Yeah,  the first time I studied was when I came to the United States. I studied properly with Phil Sobel. I was playing in London, but I didn’t know what I was doing technically. I was working in all the pubs and little clubs and I was always trying to play jazz. 

Clatworthy: One thing I noticed after working locally in America and overseas, more people come to listen in Europe than in America. They seem to be happy to pay to come and listen and they listen with rapt interest. Jazz is held up in more esteem in Europe than it is here. But in Europe you don’t get people saying emotionally, “Yeah – yeah - play it baby” like in America. I like to hear that and I like to give some of that back to my audiences.

Clatworthy: Most recently, I was terrified for five weeks preparing for an appearance with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and it was great. I wanted to be perfect to perform with the orchestra and with John Beasley’s trio. Roy McCurdy was on the gig and I love playing with Roy.  It’s hard to be objective when you’re up on the stage and I was just praying that I played my very best.  After the concert, the first violin player came up to me and said I was great.  I was so humbled by that.  His words really touched me. 

Clatworthy: I find myself more into classical music for the last couple of years.  Their playing is so technically incredible. They can play these amazing things and I’m trying to write with more harmonics and more knowledge of orchestration. On my albums I do a bit of original music.  I force practicing, but I don’t force writing. I let it come when it wants to. 

Clatworthy: For this upcoming gig at Saddleback College, I’m working with the Jazz Lab band and some of the students have written some arrangements specific for the concert including Teryn Carter, who’s a young, female musician working on becoming an arranger. She arranged one of my originals and she did a great job.  Joey Sellers (the Director of the Jazz Program at Saddleback College) has written a couple of things for us to play.  I’m looking forward to it! 

Clatworthy: I’m happy to see so many young people inspired by music. Playing an instrument takes a lot of discipline. Doing anything well takes discipline. You’ve got to practice like your life depends on it. It takes discipline to practice. I get up in the morning and practice and everyday I try to improve as a musician and as a human being.  I think education is very important, but I also believe that you can do anything you want to once you put your mind to it.

Benn Clatworthy is a good example of that! 

The Lab Concert is open to the public.  Tickets are $10 general admission and $7 for students and seniors. They are currently on sale at the McKinney Theater box office. Saddleback College is located at 28000 Marguerite Pkwy in Mission Viejo, just east of Interstate 5 at the Avery Parkway exit. Parking is available in Lot 12. Take Avery Parkway to Marguerite Parkway turn left to the third traffic light, which is Saddleback’s Marguerite entrance. Turn right into the campus and take the second left to “Theatre Circle,” turning right into Lot 12.