JOHN THOMAS – 8PM & 10PM

JOHN THOMAS IS PLOTTING A NEW COURSE Protean artist John Thomas spans the chasm between the concert and jazz saxophone worlds. Equally adept at the arts of improvisation and interpretation, he insistently explores the bounds of genre and idiom. From his beginnings as a jazz saxophonist, to appearing with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, and composing his own electro-acoustic music, he has refined and expanded his horizons as a performer and educator- a model of the 21st Century musician. As a sideman, Mr. Thomas has appeared with such artists as Bob Mintzer, Kevin Mahogany, Slide Hampton, Carroll V. Dashiell Jr. and Michael Formanek. Pop music engagements include appearances with the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra, Glen Miller Orchestra, Ben Vereen, and Little Anthony and the Imperials. As a leader, John heads up a variety of groups spanning electroacoustic improvisation to swinging straight ahead jazz. In the Baltimore/DC area, Mr. Thomas is a busy performer as both leader and sideman. Locally, he has performed at venues including An Die Musik, The Wind-Up Space, Club 347, Meryerhoff Symphony Hall, Wolf Trap, the Strathmore, and Bethesda Blues and Jazz. Mr. Thomas has been featured at North American Saxophone Alliance national and regional conferences, the U.S. Navy Band Saxophone Symposium, and the World Saxophone Congress at Mahidol University in Thailand. Before relocating to Baltimore, he was the Director of Jazz Studies at Casper College, and is currently the Director of Jazz Ensembles at the Baltimore School of the Arts while maintaining an active private saxophone studio. John Thomas is Vandoren Regional Artist, and is available for recitals, concerts, clinics, and masterclasses. Current Projects: The Electric Saxophone Solo Saxophone Compositions and Improvisations with Interactive Electronic Soundscapes The John Thomas Quartet Swinging straight-ahead band, Standards and Original Compositions John Thomas and AIRSHAFT Funk/Fusion original music. In the tradition of Chris Potter’s Underground and Joshua Redman’s Elastic band. JT Organ Quartet Grooving B3 jazz at its best