Jon Irabagon

2008 THELONIOUS MONK INTERNATIONAL JAZZ COMPETITION WINNER ASSEMBLES DREAM TEAM OF MUSICIANS ON THE OBSERVER

SAXOPHONIST & COMPOSER JON IRABAGON TO RELEASE CONCORD JAZZ DEBUT OCTOBER 20TH

On October 20th Concord Jazz will release The Observer, saxophonist and composer Jon Irabagon’s newest recording as a leader, Concord debut and follow up to his first album as leader, Outright!, released last year by Innova. Winning the 2008 Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition has afforded Irabagon the opportunity to assemble a dream-team of musicians, including the stellar rhythm section of pianist Kenny Barron, bassist Rufus Reid and drummer Victor Lewis, alongside veteran producer Don Sickler and legendary engineer Rudy Van Gelder.

While The Observer is comprised of compositions that are clearly rooted in the melodies and harmonies of jazz’s myriad and long-nourished traditions, they are treated with a liberal helping of Irabagon’s open-eared eclecticism. Much of the intrigue generated by such an approach results from his decisive but malleable laying style. His sound blends the relaxed and loping ease of Adderley with the bold and up-front precision of Wayne Shorter’s tone, but he shows no trepidation about launching into the occasional multiphonic passage in the manner of John Coltrane or Anthony Braxton.
The Observer is a diverse but cohesive collection sure to please jazz aficionados and new fans alike.

Bio
Jon Irabagon, winner of the 2008 Thelonious Monk International Saxophone Competition, has performed extensively as both a sideman and as a leader in an ever-expanding range of projects, from the most straight ahead to the most searching. Jon has studied under such divergent artists as Dave Liebman, Wynton Marsalis, Dick Oatts, Jason Moran and Victor Goines, and has performed and/or recorded with musical luminaries such as Billy Joel, Wynton Marsalis, Bright Eyes, Tom Harrell, Tommy Iago, Joe Lovano, Dave Liebman, Deborah Gibson, John Abercrombie, Frank Wess, Wycliffe Gordon, Renee Fleming, Kenny Washington, Lou Reed, Jenny Lewis, Ron Sexsmith, and Ken Vandermark. Jon has performed and done clinics and workshops in the United States, Canada, Europe, Macau, Taiwan, Costa Rica, and Japan, and performs regularly in New York City’s top venues such as Birdland, the Jazz Standard, 55 Bar, the Jazz Gallery, Zebulon, Barbes, Sweet Rhythm, and Dizzy’s Club Coca Cola.

Jon’s conception of complete musical inclusion in his improvisation and composition is apparent in the wide-ranging body of work he has compiled in his young career: his quintet Outright! (Innova) that embraces the complete history of jazz while wrapping it up in group improvisation, his continuous additive duo project with drummer Mike Pride “I Don’t Hear Nothin’ But the Blues” (Loyal Label), his unapologetic 80s cover band, his Sonny Rollins Tribute Trio, the straight-ahead modern jazz group Confluence (For the Artist Records) that he co-leads with fellow Manhattan School of Music graduates, the freely-improvising RIDD Quartet (Clean Feed), as well as his long-time tenure in the self-destructing bebop cyborg terrorist band Mostly Other People do the Killing (Hot Cup).
Jon has been signed to Concord Records and has a CD of original music and jazz standards coming out in the fall of 2009.

Jon picked up the alto saxophone in 4th grade and piano shortly thereafter, but didn't become serious about music until high school. At this time Jon began playing gigs in suburban Chicago, where he grew up, and quickly found himself playing different kinds of music. He then attended DePaul University in the heart of the city to continue his music education, obtaining a Music Business degree with a minor in Journalism in 2000. During these formative years, Jon performed with notable jazz musicians John Abercrombie and Tom Harrell, pop superstars Richard Marx and the Pointer Sisters, and up-and-coming crooner Michael Buble.

Jon recorded many albums as a sideman during this developmental time in his musical growth. These recordings span the gamut as far as musical styles go, and include everything from traditional big band recordings to orchestral settings, Brazilian dance music to avant-garde jazz, and backing up singers to backing up hard rock bands.


In the fall of 2001, Jon moved to New York City to attend the Manhattan School of Music and study with one of his idols, Dick Oatts. After receiving his Master's Degree there in 2003, Jon was invited to play lead alto for the recently-formed jazz program at the Juilliard school, and received an Artist Diploma there in 2005. Since that time, Jon has been performing in and around New York City, and has toured through the continental United States, Europe, Costa Rica, Japan, and Taiwan.

Jon has been fortunate enough to be recognized in Downbeat's Student Music Awards for both performance (2004) and composition (2006), and was a participant in the 2003 Henry Mancini Institute in Los Angeles, the 2006 Betty Carter Jazz Ahead Program in Washington, D.C., as well as the Steans Institute for Jazz in 2008. Since his relocation to New York, Jon has performed and/or recorded with Billy Joel, Wynton Marsalis, Davie Liebman, Bright Eyes, Wycliffe Gordon, Rufus Reid, Deborah Gibson, Lou Reed, Ron Sexsmith, and Tommy Iago. Jon has also performed modern classical works of Dmitri Tymoczko and Remigijus Merkelys, has worked with the Pascal Rioult Dance Company, and has toured with Chicago the Musical.

As a leader, Jon recently formed Outright!, a quintet dedicated to honoring the jazz tradition by using the different styles found under its umbrella and joining them all through group and free improvisation. Outright!'s first album was recorded in spring 2007 at Systems Two Studios in Brooklyn, and has just been released on the Innova label. He also has an additive duo project with drummer Mike Pride, as well as a trio dedicated to the joy, humor, and flowing ideas of Sonny Rollins. Jon also runs an 80s cover band because he wants to.

As a sideman, Jon works in several forward-thinking groups, including Matt Grason's Motel Project (featuring Washingon, D.C.'s most daring freestyle beat poets), the free improvising RIDD Quartet (Clean Feed Records), the Jostein Gulbrandsen Quartet (Fresh Sound New Talent), Jon Lundbom's Big Five Chord, and Moppa Elliott's terrorist bebop band Mostly Other People Do the Killing (Hot Cup). The latter has been garnering rave reviews and interviews in JazzTimes, Downbeat, and Playboy magazines.

Jon also is an active teacher and clinician. He currently teaches private lessons and ensembles at Lagond Music School in Elmsford, NY, as well as for the Middle School Jazz Academy at Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has run masterclasses in the United States, England, Scotland, Japan, and Costa Rica.