Results for "Saxophone"

Mindi Abair

Born: May 23, 1969

Any artist who takes his or her craft seriously will inevitably reach a point on the journey when history can no longer be overlooked. The direct line between the music of now and the music of then becomes too important to ignore, and the riches of generations past are suddenly rediscovered—and eventually reinterpreted for a new era.

Saxophonist Mindi Abair has reached that critical juncture. After more than a decade of performing, songwriting and recording, she has taken a step back from the more polished sensibilities of contemporary jazz and embraced the sounds of past decades—specifically the ‘60s and early ‘70s, a period widely regarded as the golden age of R&B, soul and funk. The result is In Hi-Fi Stereo, her new album set for release on May 18, 2010, on Heads Up International, a division of Concord Music Group. The album captures the raw and edgy aesthetic of that golden age, when a slab of vinyl could instantaneously put band and listener together in the same room and establish a visceral and enduring connection. Loaded with infectious grooves generated by a high-caliber crew of players, In Hi-Fi Stereo rekindles that spark for a new generation of ears.

Jim Mair

Jim Mair Jim Mair is a multi-instrumentalist specializing in saxophone, flute, percussion, jazz piano and voice. As a High School Student in 1984 he played lead tenor saxophone in the Canadian High School All Star Big Band and that same year his Quintet was selected top combo in Canada. At age 19 he was recognized by Down Beat magazine as a young musician deserving wider recognition. He has been a full time college professor for 27 years. In 2017, he was the recipient of the UMKC Conservatory of Music and Dance Alumni Achievement Award. In 2015, he was awarded an Honorary Degree from the University of West London, College of Music in the United Kingdom

Paul Nedzela

Paul Nedzela was born and raised in New York City. He is currently a member of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and has also played with many renowned artists and ensembles, including (in alphabetical order) Ruben Blades, Bill Charlap, Chick Corea, Paquito D'Rivera, Kenny Garrett, Benny Golson, Branford Marsalis, Wynton Marsalis, Christian McBride, Eric Reed, Diane Reeves, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Wayne Shorter, Frank Sinatra Jr., and The Vanguard Jazz Orchestra.

Paul has performed in Twyla Tharp's Broadway show, Come Fly Away, as well as in major festivals around the world, including but not limited to, The Monterey Jazz Festival, The Newport Jazz Festival, The Detroit Jazz Festival, The Banff Music Festival, The International Montreal Jazz Festival, The iLoveJazz Festival in Brazil, The Valencia Jazz Festival in Spain, The Umbria Jazz Festival in Italy, and The American Festival of the Arts in Doha, Qatar

Robert Lewis

Born: June 24, 1971

Based in Charleston, SC, saxophonist/composer/educator Robert Lewis is enjoying a growing presence in the jazz community of the South. Robert is in demand as an artist and clinician, both as a leader and as a sideman. He is also the Director of Jazz Studies at the College of Charleston, balancing his career between performance and education. Robert's most recent album, "First Takes," is as part of a collaborative trio going by the name Lewis/Gregory/Wiltrout, featuring Gerald Gregory on keyboards and organ, and Ron Wiltrout on drums. Along with musical collaborator Frank Duvall Robert has released two critically acclaimed cds of original music, Swagger and Fearless Jones

Matt Parker

Born: March 9

Richard X Bennett and Matt Parker's latest album, "Parker Plays X" is set to release on May 5th by BYNK Records. The two showcase their all-encompassing musical visions by co-leading a session for the first time, exploring a dozen compositions that range from straight-ahead bebop to avant-garde freakouts to classic jump blues. Bennett is inclined toward music with a groove while Parker prefers free jazz's boundless experimentation, making their merger a unique experience where they assimilate each other's sensibilities.

Casey Benjamin

Born: October 10, 1978

GRAMMY® award-winner Casey Benjamin is one of the original members of the Robert Glasper Experiment. Through his melodic ingenuity on the vocoder, textual mastery on the keytar, and spiky virtuosity on the alto and soprano saxophones, Benjamin gives the Experiment some of its most defining sounds. This has enabled the group to gain international acclaim in the jazz, R&B, and hip-hop scenes on such trailblazing records as Black Radio (Blue Note Records, 2012) and Black Radio 2 (Blue Note Records, 2013). Born in 1978, Benjamin grew up listening to music in his South Jamaica Queens, New York home

Danny Meyer

Born: May 5, 1985

Danny Meyer was born in Colorado and began playing the saxophone at the age of 10. He has performed throughout the United States and has had the privilege to play alongside notable musicians such as Theo Peoples (Four Tops, Temptations), John Popper (Blues Traveler), Ron Miles (Bill Frisell, Don Byron), DJ Logic, and Kent McLagan (Jane Ira Bloom). A graduate of the University of Colorado School of Music in Boulder, Mr. Meyer has developed his own original music projects as well as contributed to notable local ensembles such as the 9th and Lincoln Jazz Orchestra, the Legacy Jazz Orchestra, the Future Jazz Project, the Lelah Simon Quartet, the Carmen Sandim Sextet, the Bijouix Barbosa Trio, amongst others.

John David Simon

John David Simon has performed extensively on the national and international jazz scene with Ella Fitzgerald, Chaka Khan, Clark Terry, Pat Martino, Buddy DeFranco, Ray Charles, Dizzy Gillespie, J.J. Johnson, Shirley Scott, The New Jersey Pops Orchestra, T.S. Monk and Charles Earland. John’s big band credits include The Lionel Hampton, Illinois Jacquet, Artie Shaw, Jimmy Dorsey, Harlem Renaissance and Cotton Club Orchestras. He has toured Japan, Europe, Scandinavia, Canada and the United States performing at major festivals including the Playboy, Monterey, Montreal, North Sea, JVC, Pori, Grande Parade du Jazz (Nice, France), and Newport jazz festivals

Steve Treseler

Born: July 17, 1981

Steve Treseler is an award-winning Seattle-based saxophonist, composer, and innovative leader in teaching improvised music. Hailed by Earshot as a “firebrand of the tenor saxophone,” DownBeat calls his music “beautifully crafted...whether free, through-composed, or somewhere in between.” Steve performs and leads improvisation workshops throughout North America and Europe, performing at Birdland, Blue Note Hawaii, and live on NPR’s Jazz Night in America.

Treseler’s bold and collaborative approach to improvised music began to take shape during his early adolescence in Edmonds, WA immersed in the hypnotic rhythm of Seattle’s grunge scene. He started playing clarinet in a public school band program, adding tenor saxophone in middle school. Throughout his high school years, Steve was obsessed with the spontaneity and virtuosity of classic jazz recordings. He began composing original music and performed at festivals up and down the West Coast with a youth trad jazz band. Treseler’s musical voice crystallized during his studies at New England Conservatory in Boston, where he was exposed to group improvisational techniques and the mentorship of jazz legends Jerry Bergonzi, Bob Brookmeyer, and George Garzone.

Today, Treseler is embedded in the jazz and creative music scene in the Pacific Northwest, performing with the Jim Knapp Orchestra, Johnaye Kendrick, Jay Thomas, and as a leader in his own notable groups. Treseler’s projects as a leader include collaborations with the lauded trumpeter Ingrid Jensen: Center Song, which reached #53 on the JazzWeek Radio Charts, and Invisible Sounds: For Kenny Wheeler on Whirlwind Recordings, which was named one of DownBeat's best albums of 2019 and praised by the New York Times as “lyrical and songlike, whether moving at a quick clip or drifting as slowly as cloud cover. . .a standout album.” His sixth album, The Grind with In Motion Quartet, will be released in early 2025.

Embracing eclectic sounds beyond jazz, Treseler collaborates with songwriters Damien Jurado and Lacey Bown, layering woodwind textures to their poignant storytelling. He explores experimental sonic worlds with Scrambler Soundpainting Ensemble, a multidisciplinary artist collective, and Radiant Fields, a solo project for saxophone and electronic effects.

As a teaching artist, Treseler is the founder of Infinite Improvisation, offering community-centered workshops and retreats that draw from improv theater games, conducted improvisation, and the aural tradition of jazz. Seattle JazzED calls his workshops, “revolutionary. . . Steve is an expert at teaching improvisation in a fun, encouraging way.” Steve has led workshops and artist residencies throughout the U.S. and Europe, including at Berklee College of Music, Hawaii’s Pacific Music Institute, Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival, and in the Austrian Alps with Più Piano. Steve is the author of two instructional books, the #1 Amazon Bestseller Creativity Triggers for Musicians (2017) and The Living Jazz Tradition: A Creative Guide to Improvisation and Harmony (CMA Press, 2014), used in music schools worldwide.

Treseler graduated from New England Conservatory with a distinction in performance and was named “Outstanding Jazz Soloist” in the DownBeat Student Music Awards. He holds a Master of Music in Jazz Studies and Improvised Music from the University of Washington where he was a teaching assistant for groundbreaking trumpeter Cuong Vu.

Treseler is a Conn Selmer performing artist.

Luther Renaldo François

Born: December 15, 1952

Luther Renaldo François was born December 15, 1952 in Castries, St. Lucia. He attended the Methodist Infant and Primary schools and St. Mary’s College before becoming a fulltime musician. He played violin, guitar, keyboards and double bass among others before taking up the saxophone and later the flute as his main instruments. In 1977 he put on the first ever public jazz concerts in St. Lucia before spending two years at the Jamaica School of Music studying with Melba Liston, Peter Ashbourne and Cedric Brookes among others. In 1980 he did a State department with Melba Liston’s group and was musical director for St Lucia’s 1981 Carifesta presentation while working with the island’s department of culture