Kirk MacDonald Quintet

(Left to Right)  Bruce Barth (piano), Terry Clarke (drums), Kirk MacDonald (tenor saxophone),  Virginia MacDonald (clarinet), Mark Lewandowski (bass),

“In composing the Life Cycles Suite I wanted to capture a general portrait of one’s development over a lifetime. The changing perspectives, priorities, understanding, revelations, experiences and personal history that are a common part of a life lived and influence us all in one form or another.

When composing the Life Cycles Suite I decided that I would use my recollection of my own journey throughout life as a musical self portrait. I set out to portray through music the different touchstones and phases that one goes though to act as a general unfolding of one’s journey. This music can become a model for others to interpret similarities of shared experiences invoking a sense of recollection and nostalgia.

While how we evolve as individuals remains a unique experience for each of us, I believe we share many milestones along the way in life and in listening to the suite one will be able to interpret and recollect many of the various milestones and personal development in their own journey.

While I have recently recorded two CD’s as a co- leader of The Canadian Jazz Collective ( Septology 2022 HGBS ) , (Live at Le Vauban 2023 Fresh Sound) a number of other CD’ s as a sideman ‘Life Cycles’ is a long overdue and ambitious representation of my work as a composer/saxophonist and is my first recording as a leader in almost a decade.

As with my previous leaders CD ‘Generations’ (2018) on the HGBS label I am joined on this recording by an international multi generational band spanning three generations consisting of my daughter Virginia MacDonald on clarinet, pianist Bruce Barth, bassist Mark Lewandowski and Terry Clarke on drums.”

—Kirk MacDonald, January 2026