Derek Pascoe


Derek Pascoe is a British musician now based in Adelaide, South Australia. He was the vocalist and saxophonist in pop-punk band Flintlock in the 1970s. He was a member of the jazz performance academic staff of the Elder Conservatorium of Music and has collaborated with a number of musicians in musical and spoken word performances.

Biography

Pascoe trained as a saxophonist from the age of 15, after being inspired by a performance on TV. He went on to play and tour the country with pop-punk band Flintlock. After leaving the band and losing interest in pop music, he began to study and practise jazz music.
He was the vocalist and saxophonist in Flintlock.
He appeared as himself in TV show You Must be Joking and in every episode of Pauline's Quirkes in 1976. Flintlock played cover versions of a variety of songs in both series. He appeared in a two-part episode of the children's science fiction programme The Tomorrow People, "The Heart of Sogguth" in 1977, in which the band's music was used to revive an ancient demon.
In 2007, he was noted for his performance at the Tyndall Assembly, a concert series directed by Tristan Louth-Robins in Adelaide, in which he collaborated with experimental composer Luke Harrald.
He played sax in the spoken word/impro outfit Max-Mo, formed in 2009.
Pascoe was a member of the Jazz Performance academic staff of the Elder Conservatorium of Music (teaching saxophone, improvisation and small ensemble in 2011 and still a lecturer in 2017, but as of 2020 does not appear on the staff list.
Pascoe is the father of writer, stand-up comedian and actress Sara Pascoe.

Collaborations

Among his many collaborations, he joined The Shaolin Afronauts and other collaborators on Quest under Capricorn. After a performance at the Adelaide Festival Centre, the album was released on 6 July 2012 on Freestyle Records. The group reprised their Quest under Capricorn performance at The Gov as part of the festival in July 2017.

Recognition

In 2009 the Australian Music Centre described Pascoe as "among the leading free improvisers in Adelaide, whose rigorous approach to musical self-discipline gives a profound assurance to his rare extended solo public performances".