Benjamin Adkins
About Me
With a musical career starting early in
a family blues band, Ben’s study of jazz
began in high school at The St. Johns
County Center for the Arts. Having
earned a music scholarship from the St.
Augustine Jazz Society, Ben completed
his Bachelor of Music from the
University of North Florida (during
which he was selected to be a member
of the Disneyland All-American College
band), and Master of Music from Florida
State University, under the tutelage of
Danny Gottlieb and Leon Anderson,
respectively.
More recently Ben has ventured
into the realm of composition, releasing
his first album with original material,
entitled Salmagundi, to critical acclaim
in 2016. Ben has shared the stage with
artists such as Linda Cole, Marcus
Printup, Seamus Blake, Jiggs Whigham,
Gary Starling, Marcus Roberts, Ron
McCurdy, Wynton Marsalis, John Ricci,
Dave Douglas, Alphonso Horne, Gary
Burton, and the Jazz Conceptions
Orchestra, and was recently featured in
JAZZIZ® and DRUM!® magazines.
Ben’s music is rooted in a passion for
minimalism and subtlety, while
maintaining the integrity of the tradition
and culture of America’s greatest art
form.
