In conversation with Wynn: Temor Jazz Quartet's Drummer
Tirza Sey catches up with Wynn Tasker to learn a bit more about jazz quartet, TEMOR.
TEMOR, photo by Ted Sonin
Emerging in 2021, TEMOR, consisting of Wynn Tasker (Lucy Cavendish, drummer), Gabriel Arpino (Caius, double bass), Finlay Waugh (Caius, trumpet) and Judah Daniels (Clare graduate, keyboard), has been making big waves in the Cambridge music scene. The group met in Freshers’ week after having been invited by Gabriel to an ‘open jam’. As if determined by fate, they were the only ones to show up — and just like that, TEMOR was birthed. Also chosen by Gabriel, Wynn jokes how TEMOR (pronounced tem-or) means 'fear’ in Portuguese — though rest assured, their gigs are more than welcoming. Initially, the purpose behind the band was to ‘keep up our playing… and find people who had a similar passion to the music that we wanted to play.’ Wynn says that the shift in vision occurred when ‘we started fusing our musicality into the band. We became so connected and thought: why don’t we take it to a new level?’
Wynn recalls that some of his fondest memories with the band were ones where the band didn't think the gig would go particularly well. One notable gig was at Robinson — ‘we all turned up in a bad mood, but as soon as we started playing the audience were so engaged. In that moment I realised that the music is all that matters.’ To him, ‘the best bit is just the playing…I remembered looking around and thinking, this is so sick.’ In the same vein, he notes that his favourite gig was at the Blue Moon, Cambridge (Easter Term, 2023). He reminisces about how ‘they came on stage and saw all these people…and it made me just think that this is why we do it…we just want people to enjoy the music and have a great time.’
From playing at May Balls to their first gig in London, TEMOR have accomplished a lot as a band. One of their proudest achievements was their collaboration with a string quartet. They composed and arranged all the music, performing a sold out show at Town & Gown Theatre, Cambridge. For Wynn, this performance ‘was something quite original…to play your own music with strings, it just felt like such a step up.’
The band is also known for composing their own music, including their newest song ‘Ginger Shot’. When describing the process, Wynn tells me how they’re not afraid to ‘go into each other's zones’ and ‘switch instruments’. It's a space where ‘everyone can suggest things, and when all the ideas fuse together, the pieces we end up composing are so us.’ For him, composing is ‘a really cool process, very organic and something I really enjoy.’
I asked Wynn how TEMOR has helped him cope with studying in Cambridge, as an academically rigorous institution. His immediate response was ‘I don’t think I could do it without TEMOR.’ He describes how he struggled with the change in environment, as someone who had grown up with music. Alongside playing the drums, Wynn is well-versed in both the violin (diploma level) and piano (Grade 8). Prior to university, he had also just completed a music foundation course in Belgium. He describes how ‘it was such a change from being surrounded by musicians all the time, and then coming to a place where most people don’t talk about music.’ By gradually entering the music circle and finding people who ‘actually cared about music and the quality of it’, he began to feel ‘more at home…more comfortable.’
Before concluding our chat, I asked Wynn about the potential continuation of TEMOR post Cambridge. He states that it’s largely dependent on the next six months, in which they hope to ‘book some festivals, some recordings, and get featured on some radio stations.’ In the interim, Wynn tells me about a new up-and-coming project ‘Big Huge New Circle’ (BHNC), featuring the members of TEMOR and Lewis Todd. Having launched their first live recording session at Clare Cellars earlier this month, they are playing at London Brixton’s Windmill in early 2024. Also on the horizon is an EP for both TEMOR and BHNC, which we can all look forward to in the new year.