Sarah Jane Cion
Web Site
May 2000

Summer Night
Naxos Jazz
2001

Reviewed By
C. Michael Bailey

Moon Song
Naxos Jazz
2000

Reviewed By
C. Michael Bailey

Sarah Jane Cion was the first place winner of the internationally acclaimed 17th Annual Great American Jazz Piano Competition held in Jacksonville Florida on November 11th, 1999. The judges were Horace Silver, Kenny Barron, Ellis Marsalis, Benny Green and Bill Charlap. Ms. Cion's trio performed in Japan at the prestigious Fukuoka Blue Note for the month of January in 2000 and Sarah appeared on the Nationally syndicated NPR radio show Piano Jazz with Marian McPartland on February 8th, 2000.

Sarah has performed with young and older jazz legends such as Clark Terry, Al Gray, Don Braden, Santi Debriano, Etta Jones, Della Griffin, Alan Harris, Philip Harper, Alvester Garnett, Lonnie Plaxico, Dennis Irwin, Ron McClure, David Leibman, Dr. Lynn Christie and many others. She is often found performing with New York City mainstay big bands such as the Lew Anderson Big Band at Birdland and The Spirit Of Life Ensemble at Sweet Basil. Her debut CD, Indeed! features alto saxophonist Antonio Hart, drummer Tony Reedus and other young jazz giants. Her second CD Moon Song was released internationally on the Naxos Jazz label in May of 2000 featuring Phil Palombi, Chris Potter and Billy Hart. Her third CD, Summer Night will be released in April of 2001, featuring saxophone giant Michael Brecker, and the reprise of Billy Hart and Phil Palombi.

The Sarah Jane Cion Trio was the opening act for the George Coleman Quartet at the Mellon Jazz Festival in Pittsburgh in June of '98, and her quartet was featured in the JVC jazz festival in New York City later that summer. In May of 1999, her trio headlined at the Kennedy Center for the prestigious Women In Jazz Festival. The trio also performed at the Freihofer's Jazz Festival in June of 2000, and at the Indy Jazz Festival in July. Cion was featured as a solo pianist at the DuMaurier Atlantic Jazz Fest in Nova Scotia, Canada later that month.

Cion has toured Israel, Portugal, Japan and Germany, and in July of 1996 Sarah worked side by side with Monty Alexander in his jazz workshop in Verbier Switzerland to assist and perform during the course of the week. Sarah's original song, It's Christmas Time, Once Again, was a finalist in the internationally acclaimed 1997 John Lennon Songwriting Contest. Her entry of the CD release It Could Happen to You with the Herve Jeanne Trio was a Jazz Podium winner, and Sarah was flown over to perform five concerts in Northern Germany in October of 1998.

Sarah Jane Cion graduated from the New England Conservatory in 1990 with honors and distinction in composition and performance. Cion was the recipient of the 1988 Boston Jazz Society Award, and she was chosen as one of four pianists to attend the Banff School For the Arts in 1991 with an all-star faculty of Steve Coleman, Rufus Reid, Kevin Eubanks of the "Tonight Show" orchestra, Marvin "Smitty" Smith, Kenny Wheeler and Dave Holland.