Born: May 12, 1965 Primary Instrument: Saxophone
MIKE ALLEN-saxophonist. The 39 year-old Kingston Ontario native is profiled in Mark Miller's “Miller Companion To Jazz In Canada”, has a Master's degree in Jazz from New York University and was featured in a Globe and Mail article that listed him as one of a half-dozen “Interesting Canadians To Watch”. Over his 20-year career he has worked with many well-known jazz artists including trombonist Julian Priester, drummer Donald Bailey, trumpeter Kenny Wheeler, saxophonist Gary Bartz, pianist Don Friedman, and multi-instrumentalist Don Thompson. Mike is a longtime member of the Montreal-based guitar legend Sonny Greenwich's group, with whom he recorded two CDs “Standard Idioms” (Kleo) and “Fragments Of A Memory” (Cornerstone). After relocating to Vancouver from Montreal in 1995, he began a similarly fruitful musical partnership with ex-Bill Evans bassist Chuck Israels, that led to performances throughout the Pacific Northwest, several Canada-wide tours and features on nationally aired CBC and NPR radio broadcasts.
