Biography
Jon Sass was born under the name Jonathan McClain Sass in the Bronx,
and grew up in Harlem, New York City. As a widely celebrated tubist, Jon is
recognized today as a true GROOVE MASTER and a uniquely versatile tubist.
With a sanguire personality, Jon is at home with Classical music, Jazz and many
other genres. With his truly unique and soulfully penetrating sound, Jon's career
has made a tremendous impact on the "Brass World" as well as Jazz and Classical music scenes
throughout Europe.
His first highly acclaimed solo CD Sassified which blends Jazz, Classical
and R&B vocabularies, has positioned him as arguably the most creative artist playing tuba, living today.
Since 1985 Jon has received playing opportunities from the creme de la creme of musicians from recordings
with world hit producer Peter Wolf to chamber emsembles with Vienna and Berlin Philharmonic musicians,
from Europe, Asia to North & South America. He has progressively developed his solo voice on the tuba which
is heard on over 70 recordings.
As an American Cultural representative, Jon has given workshops and is in great demand for his creative concepts.
Jon's current theme Creative Impulse is used in workshops and in a new series of play along products from
TMV records. Creative Impulse is aimed at providing a flame of inspiration for young artists,
empowering to their greater creative potential.
Jon is commonly heard and seen as performing artist who composes the music and develops his own concepts.
Many of his compoistions appear on many different CDs. He has worked as a producer
and has arranged music for the James Brown Horns. Jon presents a broad range of workshops and has
published several articles and books.
Jon’s music:
» I never considered myself a jazz or classical musician, but foremost an artist. «
Living in Europe - in Vienna - for many years, only increased Jon's stylistic flexibility and his ability to feel
at home with and crossover between classical music, Jazz and Avantgarde.
With his early musical roots embedded in R&B, Soul, Groove, Funk and Blues, especially when it comes to his
identification with singers and bass players of this type of music, Jon is best known for his distinctive,
soulful sound - for example on the 3 "Heavy Tuba and Jon Sass"-recordings, to name just a few.
Sassified - the solo CD:
The combination of Jon's huge musical talent with everything that ever influenced him can be enjoyed on his » new solo CD,
which turned out to be a unique blend of his rich experiences in various musical formations, from duets to Big Bands and from small to big classical orchestras. His early roots go back to what we might call "the best black music ever recorded", evoking memories of James Brown, Isaac Hayes and so many others, moving to present day rap and hip hop tunes - and from there crossing effortlessly over towards an almost classical structure of music, sometimes spiced with avantgarde sounds. The result is a terrific mix of differing musical styles and timings - the longer you listen to it, the more beautiful and convincing it gets - definitely a masterpiece.
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