Ugonna Okegwo | |
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| Background information | |
| Born | March 15, 1962 London, England |
| Origin | Münster, Germany |
| Genres | Jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, composer |
| Instrument(s) | Bass |
| Years active | 1986–present |
| Website | ugonnaokegwo |
Ugonna Okegwo (born March 15, 1962) is a German-Nigerian jazz bassist and composer based in New York City. [1] [2]
Born in London, Okegwo is the son of Christel Katharina Lulf and Madueke Benedict Okegwo. In 1963 the family moved to Münster, Germany, where Okegwo grew up. [3] [4] As a youngster he enjoyed working with his hands and played the electric bass. At age 21, he took a class in violin-making and started playing the upright bass. [4]
In 1986 Okegwo moved to Berlin and studied with bassist Jay Oliver and pianist Walter Norris. He then joined trombonist Lou Blackburn's group for a tour in Europe and played with Joe Newman, Oliver Jackson and Major Holley. [1]
In 1989 Okegwo moved to New York City and worked with saxophonists Big Nick Nicholas, Junior Cook and James Spaulding. He worked with vocalist Jon Hendricks on a regular basis. He earned a bachelor's degree in Fine Arts from Long Island University, graduating summa cum laude in 1994. In the early 1990s Okegwo formed a trio with pianist Jacky Terrasson and drummer Leon Parker. [1] [3] In 1997 he started to perform regularly in Tom Harrell ensembles. [4] He is a member of the Tom Harrell Quintet and the Mingus Big Band. [5] [6]
In 2002, Okegwo released his first album as a leader titled Uoniverse . About creating music Okegwo said, producing a note is human and personal and "in a rhythm section, the bass is the center, creating something constantly." [4]
Okegwo has worked with a wide range of artists, including Kenny Barron, Michael Brecker, Benny Carter, Johnny Griffin, Wynton Marsalis, James Moody, Clark Terry, Pharoah Sanders, [3] Steve Wilson, Michael Wolff, [4] Bruce Barth, Steve Davis, Dario Chiazzolino, Lionel Hampton, Sam Newsome, Kurt Rosenwinkel and others. [7]
Credits partly adapted from AllMusic. [7] This list is incomplete.
Tom Harrell is an American jazz trumpeter, flugelhornist, composer, and arranger. Voted Trumpeter of the Year of 2018 by Jazz Journalists Association, Harrell has won awards and grants throughout his career, including multiple Trumpeter of the Year awards from DownBeat magazine, SESAC Jazz Award, BMI Composers Award, and Prix Oscar du Jazz. He received a Grammy Award nomination for his big band album, Time's Mirror.
Charles Daniel Richmond was an American jazz drummer who is best known for his work with Charles Mingus. He also worked with Joe Cocker, Elton John and Mark-Almond.
Jacky Terrasson is a French jazz pianist and composer.
Wayne Escoffery is an American jazz saxophonist.
Jack Arthur Walrath is an American post-bop jazz trumpeter and musical arranger known for his work with Ray Charles, Gary Peacock, Charles Mingus, and Glenn Ferris, among others.
Sam Newsome is an American jazz saxophonist, composer, and educator. His music combines straight-ahead jazz, world music and experimental jazz, which uses extended techniques. Newsome is an associate professor of music and the coordinator of the music program at Long Island University's Brooklyn Campus.
Adam Cruz is an American jazz drummer from New York City.
Mike Richmond is an American jazz bassist.
Roman Nights is a 2010 album by jazz trumpeter, composer and arranger, Tom Harrell. It is the third release with Harrell's 2010-quintet of over five years, which includes Wayne Escoffery, Danny Grissett, Ugonna Okegwo and Johnathan Blake. The album contains nine original compositions by Harrell. The title track is a flugelhorn-piano duet performance by Harrell and Grissett.
Live at the Village Vanguard is a Tom Harrell album recorded for RCA with Harrell's then quintet and released in 2002. The band included Jimmy Greene on tenor sax, Ugonna Okegwo on bass, Xavier Davis on piano and Quincy Davis on drums. This is Harrell's first live album. A JazzTimes review called the album "a worthy addition to the library of recordings made at the Vanguard". With the exception of the 1940 standard "Everything Happens to Me", the album consists of mostly new compositions.
The Time of the Sun is an album by jazz trumpeter, composer and arranger, Tom Harrell, that was released in May 2011 by HighNote Records. It is the fourth album by Harrell's 2011-quintet of over six years, which includes Wayne Escoffery, Danny Grissett, Ugonna Okegwo and Johnathan Blake. The other albums by this group are Roman Nights, Prana Dance, and Light On. As with most of his album releases, Harrell composed all the tracks on this album. The title track is notable for the use of sounds produced by the magnetic field in the outer atmosphere of the sun, recorded by the astronomers at the University of Sheffield and Stanford University. Harrell received his sixth SESAC Jazz Award for this album, which topped the radio charts in the United States.
Prana Dance is a studio album by American jazz musician Tom Harrell, released on January 27, 2009, by HighNote Records and recorded on May 29, 2008, and June 10, 2008. Down Beat magazine praised the album stating that it "signals a new career high" and added, "Music that operates at this level of structural, emotional and psychic integration is rare."
Light On is a jazz album by trumpeter-composer Tom Harrell released in 2007 through HighNote Records. This is the first album recorded by Harrell's then recent quintet. The group went on to release five albums between 2007 and 2012 and forms the core of a sixth album released in 2013. The group consists of Wayne Escoffery on sax, Danny Grissett on piano, Ugonna Okegwo on bass, and Johnathan Blake on drums. In 2007, the album topped the U.S. jazz radio chart and received a SESAC jazz award in the following year.
Number Five is a studio album by jazz trumpeter, composer, and arranger, Tom Harrell, released in May 2012 by HighNote.
Colors of a Dream is the sixth HighNote Records album by trumpeter-composer Tom Harrell, featuring two basses played by Ugonna Okegwo and Esperanza Spalding, with the latter doubling on vocal, Jaleel Shaw on alto saxophone, Wayne Escoffery on tenor saxophone, and Johnathan Blake on drums. The album was released on October 22, 2013, and the sextet is expected to tour in the summer of 2014.
Uoniverse is an album by jazz bassist Ugonna Okegwo released in 2002. The album is Okegwo's first release as a leader. The album consists of five original compositions by Okegwo and five new arrangements of jazz classics, including Thelonious Monk's "Let's Call This". Jazzreview.com gave the album a rating of 4 stars and called Okegwo one of the leading bassists of his generation. All About Jazz highly recommended the album, calling it "truly diverse" and the band's rhythm "impeccable".
Jacky Terrasson is a studio album by French-American jazz pianist Jacky Terrasson released in 1994 by Blue Note label. This is his first full-size album as a leader. The release is a collection of jazz standards with four compositions written by Terrasson.
Reach is a studio album by German jazz pianist Jacky Terrasson released in 1995 by Blue Note label. This is his second album for Blue Note. The album is a collection of five originals written by Terrasson and three jazz standards.
Alive is a live album by French jazz pianist Jacky Terrasson recorded on 14 June 1997 in the Iridium Jazz Club and released on 5 May 1998 by Blue Note label.
What It Is is a studio album by jazz pianist Jacky Terrasson released on May 18, 1999 by Blue Note label. Terrasson plays on a Steinway piano.
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