Darius Jones (saxophonist)

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Darius Jones
Born (1978-05-03) May 3, 1978 (age 46)
Norfolk, Virginia, U.S.
Genres Jazz, avant-garde jazz, New Music, experimental
Occupation(s)Composer, Alto saxophonist
InstrumentAlto saxophone
Years active2003–present
Website dariusjonesmusic.com

Darius Jones (born May 3, 1978) is an American saxophonist, [1] composer, [2] and professor [3] of African-American music. [4]

Contents

Jones has been recognized for work ranging from solo saxophone to chamber and vocal ensembles, [5] [6] with musical interests including Black music, avant garde music, and experimental music. [7] [8] His compositions and recordings have been included in best-of lists in publications including NPR Music, [9] The Wire, [10] and PopMatters , [11] and his live performances have been acknowledged as among the year's best in The New York Times . [12]

In 2024, Jones was announced as incoming Assistant Professor of Music at Wesleyan University. [13]

Life and career

Jones was born in Virginia [5] and graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University with a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies in 2003. [14]

Jones moved to New York City in 2005. [5] In 2008, he was awarded a Van Lier Fellowship [15] and earned a Master of Arts in Jazz Performance/Composition from New York University. [14] [16] He received the French-American Jazz Exchange Award in 2013 [17] and a Jerome Foundation Commission in 2014. [18]

Jones taught saxophone and improvisation at Columbia University in 2017. [14] The following year, Jones received a Harvard University Fromm Music Foundation commission [19] and joined the faculty at The New School, [6] where he taught in the College of Performing Arts and Contemporary Music. [20]

Jones has presented and performed major compositional works throughout the United States and Canada, including during Western Front residencies in Vancouver in 2019 and 2022. [21] Jones was the inaugural Artist-in-Residence and curator for the 2022 MATA Festival. [22]

In 2024, Jones was announced as incoming Assistant Professor of Music at Wesleyan University. [13]

Jones' musical collaborations include performing with Matthew Shipp, the quartet Grass Roots, and the punk-jazz quartet Little Women. [23] Jones has composed for and worked on projects in new music, contemporary and avant-garde jazz groups, chamber ensembles, modern dance performance and multi-media. [24] [6]

Notable releases include Man'ish Boy (A Raw & Beautiful Thing) , his debut album as a leader (AUM Fidelity, 2009); [25] [26] Big Gurl (Smell My Dream) (AUM Fidelity, 2011); [8] Raw Demoon Alchemy (a lone operation), his first solo saxophone project (Northern Spy Records, 2021); [8] and the four track LP fLuXkit Vancouver (-i-t-s- suite but sacred), co-released in 2023 by Northern Spy Records and WeJazz. [27]

Discography

As leader/co-leader

Release yearArtistTitleLabelNotes
2007Little WomenTeethSocketsJones, Travis Laplante (tenor sax), Ben Greenberg (guitar), Jason Nazary (drums)
2009Darius Jones Trio Man'ish Boy (A Raw & Beautiful Thing) AUM Fidelity Jones, Cooper-Moore (piano, diddley-bo), Rakalam Bob Moses (drums)
2010Little WomenThroatAUM FidelityJones, Laplante (tenor sax), Andrew Smiley (guitar), Nazary (drums)
2011Darius Jones & Matthew Shipp Cosmic Lieder AUM FidelityJones, Shipp (piano)
2011Darius Jones Trio Big Gurl (Smell My Dream) AUM FidelityJones, Adam Lane (bass), Nazary (drums)
2012Darius Jones Quartet Book of Mæ'bul (Another Kind of Sunrise) AUM FidelityJones, Matt Mitchell (piano), Trevor Dunn (bass), Ches Smith (drums)
2012Grass Roots Grass Roots AUM FidelityJones, Sean Conly (bass), Alex Harding (baritone sax), Chad Taylor (drums)
2013Little WomenLungAUM FidelityJones, Laplante (tenor sax), Smiley (guitar), Nazary (drums)
2014Darius Jones & Matthew Shipp The Darkseid Recital AUM FidelityJones, Shipp (piano)
2014Darius JonesThe Oversoul ManualAUM FidelityComposer; performed by The Elizabeth-Caroline Unit: Amirtha Kidambi, Sarah Martin, Jean Carla Rodea, Kristin Slipp (voice)
2015Darius Jones QuartetLe bébé de BrigitteAUM FidelityMitchell (piano), Conly (bass), Pascal Niggenkemper (bass), Smith (drums), ft. Emilie Lesbros (voice, piano)
2021Darius JonesRaw Demoon Alchemy (A Lone Operation) Northern Spy Solo
2023Darius JonesfLuXkit Vancouver (-i-t-s suite but sacred)Northern Spy / WeJazzComposer, Darius Jones (alto saxophone) with Gerald Cleaver (drums), Jesse Zubot (violin), Josh Zubot (violin), Peggy Lee (cello), James Meger (bass)
2024Darius JonesLegend of E'boi (The Hypervigilant Eye)AUM FidelityComposer, Darius Jones (alto saxophone) with Gerald Cleaver (drums), Chris Lightcap (bass)

As sideman

ReleaseLeaderTitleLabel
2023 Matana Roberts Coin Coin Chapter Five: In the Garden Constellation Records
2021 Marc Ribot HopeNorthern Spy
2020 Eric Revis Slipknots Through a Looking GlassPyroclastic Records
2019 Fay Victor Barn SongsNorthern Spy
2016 Nasheet Waits Between Nothingness and InfinityLaborie Jazz
2014 Eric Revis In Memory of Things Yet SeenClean Feed
2013 Gerald Cleaver Life in the Sugar Candle Mines Northern Spy
2010 William Hooker Earth's OrbitNoBusiness
2013Adam LaneAbsolute HorizonNoBusiness
2013 Sabir Mateen The Sabir Mateen Jubilee EnsembleNot Two
2013 William Parker Essence of Ellington Centering
2010Mike PrideBetweenwhileAUM Fidelity
2013Mara RosenbloomSongs from the GroundFresh Sound New Talent
2012 Federico Ughi Songs for Four CitiesSkycap

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References

  1. ↑ Freeman, Philip (19 November 2021). "The Intimate Worldbuilding of Darius Jones". Bandcamp Daily. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  2. ↑ Margasak, Peter (15 January 2016). "Powerhouse New York reedist Darius Jones gives a rare Chicago performance". Chicago Reader. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  3. ↑ "Faculty: Darius Aston Jones". Wesleyan. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  4. ↑ Morrison, John (April 2024). "Darius Jones: Acts of Creation". The Wire (482): 43. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 Jurek, Thom. "Darius Jones Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  6. 1 2 3 Cohen, Aaron (Jan 11, 2022). "Darius Jones renews his voice". DownBeat. Retrieved Dec 31, 2023.
  7. ↑ Dollar, Steve (Apr 26, 2011). ""Arts & Entertainment: New Hymns for the Saxophone Church --- Brooklyn Jazzman Lives Life in Song."". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved Dec 31, 2023.
  8. 1 2 3 Felsenthal, Daniel (Nov 5, 2021). "Album Review: Raw Demoon Alchemy (A Lone Operation)". Pitchfork. Retrieved Dec 31, 2023.
  9. ↑ Chinen, Nate (December 2023). "The 50 Best Albums of 2023". NPR Music. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  10. ↑ "The Wire 's Releases of the Year 2023". The Wire. December 2023. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  11. ↑ Layman, Will (10 December 2021). "The 13 Best Jazz Albums of 2021". PopMatters. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  12. ↑ Russonello, Giovanni (13 December 2017). "The Best Live Jazz Performances of 2017". The New York Times. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  13. 1 2 Mavredakis, Mike (13 March 2024). "Wesleyan in the News: March 2024". The Wesleyan Connection. Retrieved 7 July 2024.
  14. 1 2 3 "Composer Colloquium: Darius Jones". Princeton University. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  15. ↑ "Darius Jones". Roulette. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  16. ↑ Layman, Will (Oct 21, 2015). "Darius Jones, Jazz Bohemian". PopMatters. Retrieved Dec 31, 2023.
  17. ↑ "Jazz & New Music 2005-2018 Grantees". FACE Foundation. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  18. ↑ "Darius Jones: For The People". Roulette. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  19. ↑ "Darius Jones". Fromm Music Foundation. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  20. ↑ "College of Performing Arts Faculty: Darius Jones". www.newschool.edu/performing-arts/faculty/darius-jones/. Retrieved Dec 31, 2023.
  21. ↑ "Darius Jones in Residence". Western Front. Retrieved 9 July 2024.
  22. ↑ "Announcing MATA's 2022-23 Artist-in-Residence". www.matafestival.org. Retrieved Dec 31, 2023.
  23. ↑ Darius Jones on the Man'ish Boy Epic, Being Called "Punk-Jazz," and AUM Fidelity's 15TH Anniversary at The Village Voice
  24. ↑ Saxophonist Darius Jones explains why jazz is far from dead at rollingout
  25. ↑ Freeman, Phil (June 19, 2020). "The Month In Jazz – June 2020". Stereogum. Retrieved Dec 31, 2023.
  26. ↑ Jazz, All About (September 12, 2009). "Darius Jones Trio: Man'ish Boy (A Raw & Beautiful Thing) album review @ All About Jazz". All About Jazz.
  27. ↑ "Review: Darius Jones - fLuXkit Vancouver (i̶t̶s̶ suite but sacred) (Northern Spy / We Jazz Record)".
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