Over the past decade, Toronto tenor saxophonist Kirk MacDonald has established a national identity. His throaty, full-bodied sound graces numerous recordings and his performances across the country have made him a must-see attraction. Coupled with superb compositional abilities, MacDonald's complete musicianship gives him a creative edge.

As a sideman, he lends his voice to a variety of bands - The Sam Noto Quintet, The Lorne Lofsky Quartet, The Bernie Senensky Quintet and The Jazz Report All-Stars - and in every instance he shines. MacDonald has the unique ability to play exactly what is needed in each circumstance.

As a leader, he fares just as well. His debut recording, The Revellers (Unity), was released in 1993 and MacDonald is currently celebrating the recent release of his second project, Reminiscence (Counterpoint/A&M).

"The new CD came out in the middle of March. It was recorded last summer at CBC's Glenn Gould Studio with Brian Dickinson on piano, Ron McClure on bass and Bob McLaren on drums. I made a record there with Kieran Overs a year ago and really liked the sound of the room. It's more for chamber music or solo piano, but it's a very resonant room and the actual recording sound is nice. We decided to record live off the floor because I wanted the ambiance of the room to become part of the recording."

MacDonald brought in Montreal pianist-drummer-educator Andre White as his engineer and co-producer. "Andre did a great job. We've known each other since the early '80s and have played together a lot over the years. When I made my first record, Andre was the only engineer I knew who understood my musical values so I invited him to work on the project.

"I have a lot of confidence in him. As a player, it is much easier to make a recording if you have an engineer and producer you trust, not only in terms of getting the sounds right but also making some choices about the music."

Along with demonstrating his tenor prowess, MacDonald flexes his compositional muscles on this release."In1992, I received a Canada Council grant to study composition with Gary Dial. I wanted to do more writing and delve into things a bit deeper. All of the tunes on this recording are from that period."

MacDonald was born in New Waterford, Nova Scotia in 1959. "My brother and I started playing in basement bands. Bass was my first instrument, but I switched to saxophone when I was 10 because a lot of rock 'n' roll bands were using it at the time. I began playing in the school band in grade seven, about a year after I got the saxophone, and then continued all the way through high school.

"I also took lessons with some local teachers. In my last two years of high school, I studied with Don Palmer, who had just moved back from New York at the time."

First drawn to jazz at age 13, MacDonald knew early on this music would be his life's pursuit. "I started studying with Don when I was 15 and also attended a summer program at Berklee College of Music around the same time. From that point on, my whole focus was on trying to play jazz."

After high school, MacDonald moved to Toronto and attended Humber College for a year. He left wanting a more active playing career, and with the contacts he'd made, MacDonald soon had work coming his way. "My first professional gig was with The Lincolns. Then I did a four or five-year stint with Manteca. In 1981, 1 started working with Claude Ranger's band and Dave Young's band. Over the next few years, we did a lot of touring back and forth across the country."

In 1985, MacDonald moved to Ottawa and took a job with The Royal Canadian Mounted Police Band. "I was ready for a change and decided it was a good opportunity. It was a full-time music gig and a nice change of scenery. We did a lot of traveling with the band - Italy, Australia, the U.S. and Canada. I was also doing some teaching at McGill in Montreal. There were good playing opportunities as well. I'd bring guys up to Ottawa or play in Montreal."

He returned to Toronto in 1991 and once again quickly established roots. He began playing with Noto's group and started leading his own bands.“I was working a lot with Sam, Jerry Fuller. Mark Eisenman and Steve Wallace and decided I'd like to make a record. That's how The Revellers came about. We did a date in Montreal and a week at George's in Toronto to prepare for it. Then we went into the studio and recorded. The result was well-received.”

Today MacDonald is more in demand than ever. Along with his performing and recording duties, he teaches at the University of Toronto.“I enjoy it. It provides a different musical setting. I'm in a couple of days a week from fall to spring. It's hectic at times but there are a lot of promising students and a great faculty so I get back as much as I give."