Walter Theodore "Sonny" Rollins is an American retired jazz tenor saxophonist who is widely recognized as one of the most important and influential jazz musicians. In a seven-decade career, he has recorded over sixty albums as a leader. A number of his compositions, including "St. Thomas", "Oleo", "Doxy", and "Airegin", have become jazz standards. Rollins has been called "the greatest living improviser". Due to health problems, Rollins has not performed publicly since 2012 and announced his retirement in 2014.
Greg Osby is an American saxophonist and composer.
Joseph Salvatore Lovano is an American jazz saxophonist, alto clarinetist, flautist, and drummer. He has earned a Grammy Award and several mentions on Down Beat magazine's critics' and readers' polls. His wife, with whom he records and performs, is singer Judi Silvano. Lovano was a longtime member of drummer Paul Motian‘s trio with guitarist Bill Frisell.
Candy Dulfer is a Dutch jazz and pop saxophonist. She is the daughter of jazz saxophonist Hans Dulfer. She began playing at age six and founded her band Funky Stuff when she was fourteen. Her debut album Saxuality (1990) received a Grammy nomination. She has performed and recorded with her dad Hans, Prince, Dave Stewart, Van Morrison, Angie Stone, Maceo Parker and Rick Braun and has performed live with Alan Parsons (1995), Pink Floyd (1990), and Tower of Power (2014). She hosted the Dutch television series Candy Meets... (2007), in which she interviewed musicians. In 2013, she became a judge in the 5th season of the Dutch version of X Factor.
Mindi Abair is an American saxophonist, vocalist, author, and National Trustee for the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the organization that puts on the Grammy Awards show.
Grover Washington Jr. was an American jazz-funk and soul-jazz saxophonist and Grammy Award winner. Along with Wes Montgomery and George Benson, he is considered by many to be one of the founders and legends of the smooth jazz genre. He wrote some of his material and later became an arranger and producer.
Fred Lipsius is an American musician who is the original saxophonist and arranger for the jazz-rock band Blood, Sweat & Tears, for which he played alto saxophone and piano. He was with the band from 1967 to 1971 and has collected 3 GRAMMY Awards and 9 Gold Records.
Jane Ira Bloom is an American jazz soprano saxophonist and composer.
Miguel Zenón is a Puerto Rican alto saxophonist, composer, band leader, music producer, and educator. He is a Grammy Award winner, the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, a MacArthur Fellowship, and a Doris Duke Artist Award. He also holds an Honorary Doctorate Degree in the Arts from Universidad del Sagrado Corazón. Zenón has released many albums as a band leader and appeared on over 100 recordings as a sideman.
Arturo Tappin is a jazz/reggae saxophonist from Barbados. He performs predominantly the genre of smooth jazz, and has performed alongside personalities such as Roberta Flack, Monty Alexander, and on an album by Luther Vandross.
Eric Marienthal is a Grammy Award-nominated Los Angeles-based contemporary saxophonist best known for his work in the jazz, jazz fusion, smooth jazz, and pop genres.
Nicholas Thomas "Nick" Brignola was an American jazz baritone saxophonist.
Jeff Kashiwa is an American saxophonist with the smooth jazz band the Rippingtons and one of three with the Sax Pack, as well as having recorded several albums under his own name.
Steve Duke is an American classical and jazz saxophonist noted for his performance of contemporary classical music, particularly computer music.
Andy McGhee was a tenor saxophonist and educator.
Tariqh Akoni is a performing and session guitarist and songwriter based in Los Angeles, California. He is the former chair of the Guitar Department at the L.A. Music Academy as well as musical director for multi-platinum recording artist, Josh Groban. Akoni performs in multiple genres, including classical, flamenco, and rock.
The Panama Jazz Festival was founded in September 2003 by pianist and Grammy winner Danilo Pérez.
Grace Kelly is an American jazz musician, composer, and arranger. Kelly has produced and released recordings of her own, scored soundtracks, and tours with her band. She was named one of Glamour magazine's Top 10 College Women in 2011; and she has been featured on CNN.com and on the NPR radio shows Piano Jazz with both Marian McPartland and Jon Weber, as well as on WBGO's JazzSet with Dee Dee Bridgewater.
Brian Landrus is a jazz saxophonist, multi-instrumentalist, composer, producer, and educator.
Melissa Aldana is a Chilean tenor saxophone player, who performs both as a soloist and with her band Melissa Aldana & Crash Trio.
