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Adam Niewood

Adam Niewood (Saxophones, various woodwinds, EWI / electronic wind instrument, Drums) is a jazz improviser and American composer living in Manhattan New York, USA. Adam grew up in a musical household in Glen Ridge, New Jersey. His father Gerry: an improvising jazz musician and freelancing woodwind doubler. His mother Gurly: a classical clarinetist and pianist, with a full-roster of local piano students. "Piano lessons on the first floor - Jazz on the 3rd floor - There was music floating around in the house every day!!!" This environment lead to a young Adam marching around the dining room table with a penny whistle, and first tooting into a soprano Saxophone at age 2. By the time Adam was five years old, he had tagged along with his parents on two world tours with Paul Simon & Art Garfunkel, and Liza Minnelli. Adam's first instrument was the clarinet in fourth grade, for instrumental music in NJ public schools, but he quickly gravitated towards the Alto saxophone. In high school Adam's band director decided to switch Adam from Alto to Tenor. "The sound of the Tenor got me. This is when I started checking out my father’s recordings. A couple years later during my junior year in highschool, I got the great opportunity to play 2nd tenor in a Big band including: Joe Romano, Larry Covelli, Lew Soloff, Don Menza, my father Gerry, Steve Gadd, etc. for a short tour... That was all I needed to convince me that I wanted to go to music school, and play music professionally." Education: A scholarship covering his tuition lead Adam to Berklee College of music in September 1995. After two years, eager to be closer to New York, Adam transfered to William Paterson University, where he earned his Bachelors degree in Music performance. After two years of saxophone study with Dr. David Demsey, Demsey recommended Adam for an opening as a professor at a neighboring university. From 2000 �" 2003 Adam worked as the professor of Saxophone, Jazz History, and small Ensembles at Montclair State University in NJ. After one year working as a teacher, still eager to learn and develop, Adam was chosen as one of the first 18 students to attend The Juilliard School of Music's fledging Jazz program, which initiated his change of address from NJ to Manhattan NY in 2001. Two years later, after being awarded a scholarship covering 100% of his tuition to attend Manhattan School of music, Adam left the faculty at Montclair University in September 2003 to concentrate fully on his studies, graduating with a Masters Degree in Jazz Performance in May 2005.

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245
Album Review

Adam Niewood: Epic Journey, Volumes I & II

Read "Epic Journey, Volumes I & II" reviewed by Karl Ackermann


Post modern jazz musicians like New York-based multi-reed instrumentalist Adam Niewood are sometimes more adroit at pushing boundaries in terms of incorporating non-traditional instruments and equally non-traditional compositions. Niewood wrote most of the tracks on Epic Journey, Volumes I & II, composing with a mind toward letting the instruments speak in their own voices while overlapping a bigger picture as the main anchor of each piece. The result is what might be imagined, if the entire quintet had an even-hand ...

697
Extended Analysis

Adam Niewood & His Rabble Rousers: Epic Journey, Volumes I & II

Read "Adam Niewood & His Rabble Rousers: Epic Journey, Volumes I & II" reviewed by Jay Deshpande


Adam Niewood & His Rabble Rousers Epic Journey, Volumes I & II Innova Recordings 2008

Still a young man, reed player Adam Niewood is a hard-to-pigeonhole enigma for jazz fans. He sounds equally comfortable across a broad range of instruments (the tenor saxophone is his mainstay); his education has taken him to Berklee, Juilliard and the Manhattan School of Music; he has played with a handful of major names like Bill Charlap ...

314
Album Review

Adam Niewood & His Rabble Rousers: Epic Journey, Volumes I & II

Read "Epic Journey, Volumes I & II" reviewed by Jeff Dayton-Johnson


Adam Niewood's Epic Journey, Volumes I & II is the third vertex in an isosceles triangle of recent releases, the other two points being Noah Preminger's Dry Bridge Road (Nowt, 2008) and Chris Potter's Follow the Red Line: Live at the Village Vanguard (Sunnyside, 2007)--records by saxophonist-leaders ranging from reasonably to very young, with similar instrumentation--notably electric guitar--and excellent execution. Niewood's record has a bit of the funky looseness of the Potter disc, with Kristjan Randalu taking Craig Taborn's Fender ...

276
Album Review

Adam Niewood and his Rabble Rousers: Epic Journey Volumes I and II

Read "Epic Journey Volumes I and II" reviewed by Woodrow Wilkins


An epic journey can be described as anything in life that has a start, a finish and a lot of challenges, diversions or other experiences in between. With that in mind, it's easy to see how Adam Niewood and His Rabble Rousers would adopt the term as the title for an exciting two-disc album. Niewood is a multi-talented musician, songwriter and clinician. His professional associations include Steve Gadd, Chuck Mangione, Rufus Reid, Bill Charlap and many others. Niewood's ...

241
Album Review

Adam Niewood: Introducing Adam Niewood

Read "Introducing Adam Niewood" reviewed by Mark F. Turner


Though Adam Niewood's 2004 debut recording may have been late in coming, it showcases the immense voice of this little-known but rising musician. The New York saxophonist is the son of musical parents, jazz saxophonist Gerry Niewood and classical pianist Gurly Niewood. But he may be better known for his expertise as a woodwind mouthpiece refinisher, restoring the life of worn and battered mouthpieces to rejuvenated quality. That craftsmanship and attention to detail is also evident in ...

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Music Industry

A Message from Adam Niewood

A Message from Adam Niewood

Source: All About Jazz

Adam Niewood posted this on Facebook: We are all deeply saddened by the loss of Gerry Niewood, Coleman Mellett, all the passengers and crew on flight 3407, and the poor innocent man who died in his own home. It is tragic and surreal. The outpouring of phone calls, emails, text-messages etc is truly overwhelming. All I can say is, it’s too bad Gerry isn’t around to witness the impact he made on all of you. I plan on getting ...

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Performance / Tour

Adam Niewood & His Rabble Rousers @ Chris' Jazz Cafe on March 21, 2007

Adam Niewood & His Rabble Rousers @ Chris' Jazz Cafe on March 21, 2007

Source: All About Jazz

The son of the outstanding multi-reedist Gerry Niewood, Adam Niewood is a rising tenor player himself. Adam Niewood brings his group the Rabble Rousers to Chris' Jazz Cafe on March 21, 2007.

ADAM NIEWOOD & HIS RABBLE ROUSERS Adam Niewood - saxophones Jesse Lewis - guitar Kristjan Randalu - piano / nord electro Chris Higgins - bass Rohin Khemani - drums / tabla / efx

March 21, 2007 ...

"Adam Niewood & His Rabble Rousers - Epic Journeys Volumes I & II (Double CD, Innova Recordings, Jazz) This beautifully packaged set features two CDs from Adam Niewood & His Rabble Rousers. The first disc is more structured and features all original compositions by Niewood. The second disc begins and ends with Niewood compositions...but the remaining seven tracks are free group improvisations. There's a lot to take in here...in total these discs feature approximately two hours' worth of music. Joining Niewood on these recordings are Kristjan Randalu, Jesse Lewis, Chris Higgins, Matt Brewer, Rohin Khemani, and Greg Ritchie

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Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Epic Journey, Volumes...

Innova Recordings
2010

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Adam Niewood & His...

Innova Recordings
2009

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Epic Journey Volumes...

Innova Recordings
2008

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Epic Journey, Volumes...

Innova Recordings
2008

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Introducing Adam...

Native Language
2006

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Id Trio + one

Native Language
0

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Where's The Cat?

From: Id Trio + one
By Adam Niewood

Demented Lullaby

From: Id Trio + one
By Adam Niewood

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