Norman Adams - Biography

Norman Adams is Principal Cellist of Symphony Nova Scotia, the Artistic Director of suddenlyLISTEN music, Music Director of Gwen Noah Dance, and a musician eager to explore many different styles of music, sound creation and performance. A student of Hans Jørgen Jensen, the American master Bernard Greenhouse, and American new music pioneer Pauline Oliveros, Norman has been a featured soloist with SNS, and Les Jeunes Virtuoses de Montréal and has performed chamber, and improvised music throughout Canada, the US and the UK. His performances have also been heard across Canada on CBC Radio One and Two.

In addition to his work as a classical cellist, Norman is becoming increasingly well known across Canada, as an improviser and electronic musician, playing free and creative music. Norman has collaborated with many leading artists including Lori Freedman, Barry Guy, Eddie Prévost, Pauline Oliveros, Buck 65, Jerry Granelli, Marilyn Crispell and Lee Pui Ming. In the summer of 2007 Norman and EHRES were featured at the Lincoln Center Outdoor Festival, in New York City. In the spring of 2008, Norman and Buck 65 premiered Dinuk Wijeratne's new piece Hymnpeace Remix, a concerto for cello, turntable and orchestra with Symphony Nove Scotia. The concert was recorded by CBC Radio and has been broadcast frequently.

Since 2000 Norman has been the Artistic Director and Producer of suddenlyLISTEN Music, an organization that presents an annual series of eight concerts of improvised music, featuring a broad range of local, Canadian and international artists. He also continues to be dedicated to sharing music with all people, co-leading the suddenlyLISTEN sponsored, bi-weekly Improv Workshop with Tim Crofts, for the past five seasons.

Over the past thirteen seasons Norman has also collaborated extensively as a performer, improviser and composer with Halifax dancer/choreographer Gwen Noah. Together they have performed over sixty concerts around Nova Scotia, and in several tours across Canada.

This past season Norman performed with Gwen Noah in Newfoundland, and collaborated with Martin Tetreault, Gerry Hemingway, Lee Pui Ming and Pauline Oliveros on suddenlyLISTEN concerts. He performed at Acadia Summer Strings Festival, and the TD Halifax Jazz Festival, and traveled to France for Meteo Mulhouse, performing with Sebastian Lexer in London at Cafe OTO on the way home.

In 2011/12 Norman will be presenting 8 suddenlyLISTEN concerts, will tour with Lee Pui Ming and Erin Donovan to Toronto, Vancouver and Victoria, premiere a new work by Michael Parker, and perform a full season of Symphony Nova Scotia concerts.

Norman has been the recipient of numerous grants from the Canada Council and the Nova Scotia Department of Tourism Culture and Heritage, and he thanks them for their support. Norman was awarded the 2010 Established Artist Recognition Award by the Nova Scotia Arts and Culture Partnership Council, and in 2000 he was named to the Halifax Chronicle Herald Arts Honour Role.

Norman makes his home in Halifax with SNS principal violist Susan Sayle, and their two young sons. Together, they spend their summers living and working on Prince Edward Island. Norm's passion for music is equaled by his love for riding and racing bicycles, and if he's not playing the cello he's probably out cycling on the roads and trails of Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.

Norman uses two instruments in performance: a cello made by Benjamin Banks in Salisbury 1776; and a Luis and Clark carbon fibre cello. Amplification is provided by a custom Haggerty cabinet powered by a vintage Trace Eliot bass head. Interactive processing is constructed in Max/MSP. Norman uses and endorses Schatten Design pickups exclusively.