Born: 1967 Primary Instrument: Trumpet
Seattle-based trumpet/flugelhorn player and composer Jason Parker has been quietly making a name for himself as a first-call jazz, funk, R&B and rock musician. It was a visit from Dizzy Gillespie and band to Jason's elementary school that started him on the path to becoming a musician. Eight-year-old Jason worshipped at the feet of Dizzy for 30 minutes, and immediately asked his parents to buy him a trumpet. He played in jazz and rock bands all throughout high school and college, but put down the horn after graduation to focus on a career in radio. Starting on the midnight-6am shift at his college radio station in Los Angeles, Jason worked his way through better and better shifts in LA, Eugene and Denver, finally working his way to Program Director of a major adult rock station in Seattle. After winning the prestigious Gavin Award for A3 Major Market Program Director of the Year, Jason walked away from his promising career to turn his attention back to the horn.
Jason currently leads the Jason Parker Quartet, one of Seattle’s busiest jazz bands. He also plays with the improv-funk group Water Babies, Soul Provider Sensational Soul & Funk Review, Sarah Shannon, and the Jason Parker/Josh Rawlings duo, and occasionally sits in with Crooked Fingers, DeVotchKa, and many others.
Since moving to Seattle 12 years ago, Jason has played and recorded with local luminaries Byron Vannoy, Carrie Akre, Josh Rawlings, Sean Nelson, Brian Kirk, D'vonne Lewis, Nathan Spicer, Ty Bailie, Heather Duby, Evan Flory-Barnes, Darrius Willrich and Choklate, as well as national artists Tom Scott, Crooked Fingers and Sarah Shannon. His bands have shared stages with Elvis Costello, The Presidents of the United States of America, DeVotchKa, Little River Band, Greta Matassa, Micah P. Hinson and others, and have been featured at Bumbershoot, EMP's Jazz in January, Summer Concerts at Chateau Ste. Michelle, and The Triple Door. Jason has been asked to play for The Seattle Supersonics, Starbucks, Microsoft, UW Medical Center, Gov. Gary Locke and Pike Place Market.
Jason is also an avid educator, teaching private trumpet lessons, classes in recording, performance and music theory, and is an instructor for Paul Allen's Experience Music Project and The Right Brain Center for the Arts.
“The Jason Parker Quartet re-defines traditional Jazz.” --Gene Stout, Seattle Post-Intellegencer
“Swinging and spontaneous while remaining tightly orchestrated.” --Hot House Jazz
“The Jason Parker Quartet applies just the right amount of intensity, leaving plenty of room for beauty.” --Marc Myers, JazzWax
“What a killing group!” --AccuJazz
“Jazz with its feet firmly in the present” --Euskir Music
“Shockingly, unwittingly dance-in-your-kitchen good” --Nextbop.com
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