Neill Duncan, much-loved member of the Blue Mountains community, musician, composer, one-handed saxophonist, teacher, soccer fan, disability advocate, adored father and husband, died on December 28.
Neill was charismatic, funny, loving and inclusive and had the ability to bring out the very best in people, as a teacher, producer, friend, parent. He was also a dazzling musician.
Neill was born on March 9, 1957, in Timaru, Aotearoa New Zealand, to John and Sylvia Duncan. As a boy he was obsessed with soccer and was a gifted goalkeeper, even playing an international match for New Zealand against China. His involvement in the sport continued throughout his children's lives and he was a familiar figure at Wentworth Falls FC as a parent and coach, as well as a passionate supporter of Wellington Phoenix and Manchester United.
Neill completed high school in Auckland then trained as primary school teacher before jazz found him and took him to Wellington, where he became an integral part of development of a lively music scene and was recognised as an innovative saxophonist. He was a founding member of the Braille Collective and the Primitive Art Group, and performed and recorded with legendary bands The Six Volts, The Spines and The Front Lawn.
After 15 years in Wellington, he moved to Auckland and joined The Jews Brothers and the Blue Bottom Stompers.
Neill moved to Australia in 2002 and started a family with his first wife, Rachel, in Bondi. He was a devoted father and an exceptional teacher, renowned for his gift of communicating with young people.
He taught at Emmanuel School in Sydney, before moving to the Mountains in 2004 and teaching at Blue Mountains Grammar, Penrith Adolescent Centre, and Korowal School, where he led the band, Neill's Armee.
Neill was a well-known performer in Sydney, as well as in the Blue Mountains, and played with Darth Vegas, Christa Hughes and The Surgeons, and The Snaketown Rattlers, which for a decade closed the Winter Magic After Party at The Carrington.
In 2012, Neill lost his left arm to cancer but with the help of the Blue Mountains community, Support Act and government agencies, was able to connect with Maarten Visser of Flutelab in Amsterdam, who developed a one-handed tenor saxophone and a one-handed soprano saxophone.
Neill became the world's first one-armed tenor saxophonist and was forever grateful to be able to find his musical passion again.
He formed The Three Handed Beat Bandits with guitarist John Stuart and started gigging again, producing an incredible sound as he played both sax and drums with just one hand.
Neill returned to Wellington from his new Australian home in 2015 to play his new saxophone with The Jews Brothers. That year he was invited to give a special performance at the 2015 World Saxophone Conference in Strasbourg.
Neill had found a new career as an advocate for recognition of the rights of disabled people to access the tools to fulfil their talents and became a nationally recognised speaker for disability services up until a month before his death.
In 2016, Neill was invited to become part of the 'We Are The Superhumans Band' and recorded at the legendary Abbey Road Studios for the Rio Paralympics.
In 2018, he went to Birmingham to the One-Handed Musical Instrument (OHMI) Trust Conference Music. In his keynote speech he pointed out that with the right instruments, disability could become possibility.
Neill was diagnosed with a virulent lymphoma in June 2021 which, despite the best efforts of haematologists of Nepean Hospital and Nepean Cancer Care, proved resistant to treatment.
He died swiftly and without pain at home in Katoomba on December 28. He was farewelled by Neill's Armee and a brass choir at a New Orleans-style funeral service at Leura Memorial Gardens on January 4 and a wake hosted by Korowal.
Neill is survived by his sister Jan, children Ruben, Aaron, Polly, Pearl and Floyd, former wife Rachel and wife, Naomi. He bequeathed his saxophones to OHMI.
