Phillip Rista Nimmons, (born June 3, 1923) is a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 jazz

Jazz

Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...

 clarinetist, composer, bandleader, and academic.

Born in Kamloops, British Columbia

Kamloops, British Columbia

Kamloops is a city in south central British Columbia, at the confluence of the two branches of the Thompson River and near Kamloops Lake. It is the largest community in the Thompson-Nicola Regional District and the location of the regional district's offices. The surrounding region is more commonly...

, the son of George Rista and Hilda Louise (McCrum), he attended Lord Byng Secondary School

Lord Byng Secondary School

Lord Byng Secondary School is a grade 8-12 school located in the West Point Grey neighbourhood on the west side of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada...

, graduating in 1940. He then received a B.A. from the University of British Columbia

University of British Columbia

The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...

 in 1944. From 1945 to 1947, he was a scholar at the Juilliard School of Music. From 1948 to 1950, he attended the Royal Conservatory of Music

Royal Conservatory of Music (Toronto)

The Royal Conservatory of Music, also known as The Royal Conservatory, is one of the largest and most respected music education institutions in the world...

.

He joined the University of Toronto

University of Toronto

The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...

 in 1973 as instructor in jazz techniques and is now Director Emeritus of Jazz Studies. Among his notable pupils are composers Jerry Toth

Jerry Toth

Jerry Toth was a Canadian saxophonist, clarinetist, flutist, arranger, composer, and record producer.-Life and career:...

 and Rick Wilkins

Rick Wilkins (musician)

Rick Herbert Richard Wilkins is a Canadian composer, conductor, and tenor saxophonist. He is primarily known for his work as an arranger. He has worked extensively for CBC and CTV arranging, rehearsing, and often conducting music for television and radio programs of pop-music and variety...

.

In 1976

Juno Awards of 1976

The Juno Awards of 1976, representing Canadian music industry achievements of the previous year, were awarded on 15 March 1976 in Toronto at a ceremony hosted by John Allan Cameron at the Ryerson Polytechnic Institute...

, he received the first Juno Award

Juno Award

The Juno Awards are presented annually to Canadian musical artists and bands to acknowledge their artistic and technical achievements in all aspects of music...

 given in the jazz category

Juno Award for Contemporary Jazz Album of the Year

The Juno Award for "Contemporary Jazz Album of the Year" has been awarded since 1977, as recognition each year for the best contemporary jazz album in Canada.-Best Jazz Album :...

 for his album Atlantic Suite performed by his band Nimmons 'N' Nine Plus Six.

In 1993, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada

Order of Canada

The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...

. He is also a recipient of the Order of Ontario

Order of Ontario

The Order of Ontario is the most prestigious official honour in the Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier David Peterson, the civilian order is administered by the Governor-in-Council and is intended to...

. In 2002, he received the Governor General's Award, the highest civilian award, for his contributions to Canadian music.

External links

• Phil Nimmons at The Canadian Encyclopedia
  The Canadian Encyclopedia
  The Canadian Encyclopedia is a source of information on Canada. It is available online, at no cost. The Canadian Encyclopedia is available in both English and French and includes some 14,000 articles in each language on a wide variety of subjects including history, popular culture, events, people,...