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Aaron J Johnson

Aaron J. Johnson (Composer, Arranger, Tenor Trombone, Bass Trombone, and Tuba) is a native of Washington, DC, but currently works in the New York City area and lives in Irvington, New Jersey. A familiar sight in the large ensembles of Jimmy Heath, Charles Tolliver, Charlie Persip, Frank Foster, Muhal Richard Abrams, Eddie Allen, Chico O'Farrill, as well as the Mingus Big Band, he also performs frequently with the Charles Tolliver Big band, Steve Turre and Sanctified Shells, The Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Orchestra, the Ebony Brass Quintet, Frank Lacy's Vibe Tribe, The LaBamba Big Band, the Reggie Nicholson Brass Concept, Paradigm Shift, and Reggie Workman's Legacy Ensemble. He is a recorded composer and arranger and leads his own ensembles of various configurations including Don't Mean A Thing!, a funky trombone quartet, the medium-sized Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Our Thing: The Salim Washington- Aaron Johnson Quintet. He has also performed with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, the Count Basie Orchestra, the Duke Ellington Orchestra, the late Jaki Byard, Anthony Braxton, and David Murray, as well as Aretha Franklin and Gladys Knight (with and without The Pips), and Nancy Sinatra.

Aaron Johnson was awarded a 2000 Fellowship in Music Composition from the NJ State Council on the Arts. Aaron teaches low brass at Rutgers-Newark University and has earned degrees from Carnegie Mellon University and the Georgia Institute of Technology.

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Take Five With...

Take Five With Aaron J Johnson

Read "Take Five With Aaron J Johnson" reviewed by AAJ Staff


Meet Aaron J Johnson: Born in Washington, D.C. Johnson studied piano and drums before taking up the trombone at age 12. While in high school, Aaron frequently performed with area funk bands. He also conducted and arranged for student ensembles under the direction of noted trumpeter Peter D. Ford. It was Ford who gave the budding young talent his first professional gigs and introduced him to Ellington alumni, bandleader and alto saxophonist Rick Henderson.

Although pursing a degree in electrical ...

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Album Review

Aaron J. Johnson: Songs of Our Fathers

Read "Songs of Our Fathers" reviewed by Woodrow Wilkins


Aaron J. Johnson serves as a reminder that the trombone is still a relevant member of the jazz family of instruments. In addition to being well-suited to larger ensembles, it can be a powerful lead instrument as well. A Washington, D.C. native, Johnson studied piano and drums before turning to the trombone. He performed with area funk bands and later became a member of the University of Pittsburgh Jazz Ensemble. Since then, he has worked alongside such artists ...

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