Primary Instrument: Vocal
”Singer and trombonist Eric Felten is a rising star on the international jazz scene,” raves PBS.
Eric's first concert special for public television, The Big Band Sound of WWII, was a tremendous success. The overwhelming response from television audiences across the country demonstrated the enduring power and appeal of classic American popular music. And it showed why PBS calls Eric a “renowned crooner and bandleader.” The program has been seen by over 12 million viewers.
Eric Felten grew up in Phoenix, Arizona, where he began studying trombone at age nine with his grandfather, a veteran of east-coast bands from the Swing Era.
At 24, Eric was named best new jazz trombonist by the International Trombone Association. In 1993 he released his first album for the respected European jazz label Soul Note, T-Bop, a record that featured Eric with legendary trombonist Jimmy Knepper and a young Joshua Redman. The result was a critically acclaimed debut album that earned four stars in Down Beat magazine. The prestigious Penguin Guide to Jazz declared that Eric “has the music in his genes…a more than promising talent, he's a man we're going to hear a lot more about.”
The Penguin Guide's prediction proved true. Eric's second album as a leader, Gratitude, was a modern take on the classic recordings of Duke Ellington's small groups in the 1930s. The disc featured an amazing line-up of international jazz stars, including Joe Lovano, Randy Brecker, Bob Mintzer and Billy Drummond. It was another critical success, earning Eric glowing profiles in the national magazines JazzTimes and JAZZIZ. The Washington Post called Gratitude “One of the year's genuine jazz treats.”
