Jeff Antoniuk

Internationally respected jazz saxophonist and composer Jeff Antoniuk has received numerous awards and commissions, appeared on many albums and toured extensively.

Currently based in the Washington, DC area, Antoniuk can be found fronting both The MARS 4-tet and Jeff Antoniuk and The Jazz Update. He is a solid contributor to many activities in the nation’s most cherished cultural institutions such as the Smithsonian Institution, the Kennedy Center and Washington Performing Arts Society. He draws many jazz artists to the region to perform and teach at his side.

In the U.S. Antoniuk has performed and recorded with diverse hit makers such as Ray Charles, Natalie Cole, Bobby McFerrin, Freddie Hubbard, Marcus Miller and Najee. He has collaborated with fellow saxophonists Jeff Coffin and Walt Weiskopf, guitarists Steve Herberman and Steve Rochiniski, percussionists Sherrie Maricle and Joe McCarthy, bassist Gary Grainger and young Latin Jazz pianist Zaccai Curtis.

He's worked with Canadian greats such as Ralph Bowen, PJ Perry, Senator Tommy Banks, big band leader Rob McConnell, the iconic David Foster and trumpet sensation Ingrid Jensen.

His concerts and recordings with the Unified Jazz Ensemble, the Jazz Update and other ensembles have been consistently well received by critics.

Jeff Antoniuk was born in Edmonton, Canada in 1965, to a large Ukrainian family. They lived in Benin City, Nigeria for a time and the colorful sights and sounds of that experience have never left him. He began his musical education there, studying classical piano. Back in Canada in his teens, he took up the saxophone relishing any opportunity to play.

After attending Grant MacEwan College in Edmonton, Canada Antoniuk swept into the United States like an Alberta Clipper. From the University of North Texas, he earned a master’s degree in jazz performance and West African ethnomusicology. He began making his mark as an artist and educator early in his career: touring, teaching and composing before he even graduated.

He then co-founded the Unified Jazz Ensemble, enjoying numerous accomplishments with that group in his 12-year tenure. The quintet toured North America and Asia and were adjunct faculty at Luther College in Decorah, Iowa for two years. A grant from the Canada Council and studies with Tim Hagans helped Antoniuk mature as a performer and composer before he became a bandleader - the next step in his career. In 2004 he formed the Jazz Update quartet, featuring some of the most in-demand jazz artists on the East Coast of the United States.

The Jazz Update’s 2007 CD, Here Today earned considerable praise, rapidly climbing the jazz radio charts in the US and Canada and capturing a No. 2 position for jazz in the vast Music Choice Network. Said Jazz Review: " The fact that Antoniuk and his quartet are an actively-gigging, road-tested unit is no small factor in their artistic success."

Tags

Jeff Antoniuk saxophone, tenor

Take Five With...

Take Five With Jeff Antoniuk

Album Review

Brotherhood by Woodrow Wilkins

“Jeff Antoniuk and the Jazz Update are frequent and admired contributors to the Washington, DC jazz scene. This is a quartet steeped in a 21st century style of hard bop that still values solid melody lines, probing improvisa- tion, and, when called for, sheer beauty.” - George Fendel, Jazzscene

“The group’s second album, Brotherhood, finds them in great form on origi- nals and classics…Antoniuk is especially fired up on alto sax on his own 'Global Village,' but excellent solos by all of the musicians abound on an album with a creative spark that never lets up." -" Ron Netsky, Rochester City Newspaper

"Canadian-born tenor saxophonist Jeff Antoniuk, now based in Maryland, fronts an empathetic quartet on several originals and covers of Cole Porter’s 'All of You' and Tadd Dameron’s 'Hot House,' which segues cleverly into Monk’s 'Evidence.' Antoniuk and pianist Wade Beach showcase their considerable chops up front on the burning opener, 'Screwball.'” -Bill Milkowski, Jazz Times

“Antoniuk shifts to the soprano for 'Global Village.' In 12/8 time, it’s a celebration of the popularity of West African music being incorporated into jazz. The leads are excellent, between Antoniuk and Beach, but Martucci’s versatility on drums and percussion highlights this piece... Brotherhood features five Antoniuk originals, two songs penned by Baldwin and fresh interpretations of three jazz standards. The music is diverse in its energy and mood. - Woodrow Wilkens, All About Jazz

"Antoniuk's sinuous saxophones are enticing...style and substance, what a concept!" - Michael Joyce, Washington Post

" The fact that Antoniuk and his quartet are an actively- gigging, road-tested unit is no small factor in their artistic success." -Dave Wayne, Jazz Review

"Antoniuk's sinuous saxophones are enticing...style and substance, what a concept!" - Michael Joyce, Washington Post

" The fact that Antoniuk and his quartet are an actively- gigging, road-tested unit is no small factor in their artistic success." -Dave Wayne, Jazz Review

Show less

Primary Instrument

Saxophone, tenor

Willing to teach

Advanced only

Credentials/Background

Jeff Antoniuk is one of the most important and sought after jazz teachers in the mid-Atlantic area. He has developed and runs a major jazz education hub for adults in the Washington DC/ Maryland/ Virginia area. Antoniuk works with individuals at all levels and on all instruments (call for rates). He also runs one-day clinics, weekly workshops and small group playing situations, as well as a major adult level summer camp.

Antoniuk holds a master's degree in jazz performance and West African ethnomusicology from the University of North Texas. He was an adjunct faculty member at Towson University for seven years. He is a master teaching artist with Washington Performing Arts Society (WPAS). Antoniuk is also the artistic director of Maryland Summer Jazz, a top rated jazz camp with public concerts for adults held each July in two sessions. See www.marylandsummerjazz.com

Clinic/Workshop Information

Primary Instrument

Saxophone, tenor

Willing to teach

Advanced only

Credentials/Background

Clinic/Workshop Information

Jeff Antoniuk is a busy clinician and adjudicator in both the USA and Canada. He has worked with middle school and high school students, university level and adult community groups for over twenty years. Antoniuk and his "Jazz Band Masterclass" program do twice-a-month clinics with 12 different adult amateur bands in the Washington DC/Maryland area. JBM is one of the most important adult jazz education programs on the east coast, and has served hundreds of aspiring jazz musicians. www.jazzbandmasterclass.com Antoniuk is also the artistic director of "inDepth Jazz Clinics", a yearly series of jazz workshops and concerts in the Washington, DC area. Jeff Antoniuk and inDepth Jazz have programmed over 25 uniquely themed clinics (such as Blue Note Soul, Jazz Theory, Afro- Cuban Jazz, and Vocal Improvisation) over the past four years. See www.indepthjazz.com The two programs draw many hundreds of students from about a dozen states. He also travels widely to teach and adjudicate in the US and Canada.

Show less