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Justin Pierce

Member Since: 2012 | Location: Dallas | Page Views: 1,408

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About Me

Saxophonist Justin Pierce, One O'Clock Lab Band alumnus, leads a DFW jazz group with vocalist Ashley Pierce; their debut album Sway was recorded live in a single session.

Saxophonist, multi-woodwind artist, and educator Justin Pierce is a straight- ahead player with contemporary influences, known for bringing the spirit of New Orleans to Dallas–Fort Worth through brass band parades, Mardi Gras celebrations, and swinging small groups. His debut album, Sway, released August 14, 2026, features ten American Songbook standards with Latin and New Orleans arrangements, recorded live in a single Dallas session with vocalist Ashley Pierce, pianist Sean Michael Giddings, bassist Young Heo, and drummer Matt Young — all University of North Texas One O'Clock Lab Band alumni. A native of the Texas–Louisiana Gulf Coast, Pierce has performed across the United States and internationally, sharing the stage with The Temptations, Arturo Sandoval, Randy Brecker, Bob Mintzer, Doc Severinsen, The O'Jays, Wayne Newton, The Glenn Miller Orchestra, and The Tommy Dorsey Orchestra. He toured Romania with the McNeese State University Jazz Ensemble and recorded with the GRAMMY-nominated UNT One O'Clock Lab Band, appearing as lead alto on Lab 2012. For over sixteen years, Pierce has led the Justin Pierce Jazz Group, a flexible ensemble performing contemporary jazz, brass band repertoire, and standards, featured at the Charlie Christian, Sherman, and Granbury jazz festivals and a fixture at major events throughout DFW. Music runs through the whole Pierce household. Ashley Pierce, his wife and musical partner of twenty years, is the band's featured vocalist, and all five of their children are studying musicians — a family tradition that shapes everything he plays. A Conn-Selmer Performing Artist and Vandoren Artist-Clinician, Pierce holds a D.M.A. from the University of North Texas and taught jazz studies at the university level for a decade. www.justinpiercemusic.com

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The first jazz record I bought was Kind of Blue, by Miles Davis. My junior high band director recommended it to me, and I don't know if he could have picked an album more appropriate: Miles Davis, an all-star rhythm section, and two of the most important jazz saxophonists of all time (John Coltrane and Cannonball Adderley). Wonderful music that touches the soul.

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This page was last updated on 2026-08-08.

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