Paul Harvey was born in Sheffield in 1935, studied at the Royal College of Music, London and has been a member of the Band of the Irish Guards, the Scottish National Orchestra and the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra. For most of his career he has been a freelance player in London, working mainly with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and National Philharmonic, doing film and recording sessions and many West End Musicals. He was also leader of the London Saxophone Quartet and Professor of Clarinet and saxophone at the Royal Military School of Music, Kneller Hall. Paul Harvey is a prolific composer of solo and ensemble pieces for both clarinet and saxophone. 'Happijazz', the first of the 'Three Harveynian Showpieces' was commissioned as a "short, cheerful, jazz-influenced piece" by the North London based Ionian Clarinet Choir in 1995 to mark its 25th anniversary. The composer has condensed the 10 clarinet parts of the original to an arrangement for solo clarinet and piano, preserving the tempo and the cheery, jazzy feel of the piece. The gently swinging 'Jollipop' also started life as a 5 to 7 part clarinet ensemble in 2005. It is dedicated to Ian Haysted, a former pupil of Paul Harvey's at RMSM Kneller Hall and an international single reed soloist and ensemble player. The dedicatee of 'Hinsong', Nigel Hinson is another former Kneller Hall pupil of the composer's and a successful soloist for whom he has written much more. This piece has a tempo marking of 'Frenetic' and the first eighty or so bars concentrate on the lower register with frequent changes of time signature.
