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Nat Janoff
Guitarist, composer and teacher Nat Janoff, has been working steadily in the contemporary jazz scene for the past 15 years. Nat’s earliest experience with music started with the piano. Then, he switched to bass. After hearing Eddie Van Halen, Nat had to play guitar. Growing up in the 80’s, Nat’s musical interests were all things rock and metal and Nat earned a reputation for being one of the best shred guitarist in the area. Nat’s transition from metal and rock guitar to jazz occurred when he sought out a platform to improvise for longer than the standard rock riff. That, and hearing Mahavishnu Orchestra’s Birds of Fire for the first time. Pursue jazz he did and after earning his Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Performance from William Paterson University in 1996, Nat set to work forging his own musical path.
The first marker on that path was Nat’s debut album, Looking Through featuring the rhythm section of world renowned electric bassist, Matthew Garrison and drummer Gene Lake, putting Nat on the map as both a player and a composer.
“Any 29 year old that can hang with this duo (Garrison & Lake,) let alone lead the date, has transitively proven himself worthy of attention.” Review of Looking Through by Phil DiPietro for allaboutjazz.com 2000
Two more albums soon followed—a live acoustic recording with fellow William Paterson alumnus Jake Schwartz simply titled, Live and a collaborative project with Rave Tesar (of Annie Haslam’s Renaissance on keys and left-hand bass) and Ray LeVier entitled, Berkana.
2010 has been a busy year for Janoff with regards to recording. He was honored with the opportunity to contribute to ESC Records latest tribute album, Mahavishnu Redefined II, recording the track, Are You the One? with bassist Ray Riendeau and drummer Martin Diamond. Janoff also played guitar on three tracks on Ray Riendau's latest cd, Atmospheres. Most recently, Janoff went into the studio to record his latest cd, Come Together Move Apart with the great talents of pianist John Escreet, bassist François Moutin and drummer Chris Carroll. This album was officially released on September 28th 2010.
In addition to playing with his own groups, Nat Janoff has performed with the R&B singer, Joe, R&B legend David “Pic” Conley from the group Surface, legendary pianist, Norman Simmons and drummer Victor Jones’ group, Culturversy. Nat can also be heard on Atlantic Records’ recording artist Debelah Morgan’s CD, Dance With Me and on R&B artist Roland Clark’s new track, The Simple Things.
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Nat Janoff: Come Together Move Apart
by Bruce Lindsay
Guitarist Nat Janoff's Come Together Move Apart appears over a decade after his critically-applauded debut, Looking Through (Independent Records,1999). He's not been idle during the intervening years, but his recorded output has been sporadic. That's to be regretted, for Janoff's playing is a delight, and his fellow musicians on this album are some of the brightest and best on the scene. Janoff's early influences include Eddie Van Halen, whose playing was the catalyst for Janoff's move from ...
read moreTake Five With Nat Janoff
by AAJ Staff
Meet Nat Janoff:Guitarist, composer and teacher Nat Janoff is a graduate of William Paterson University, with a Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Performance. His debut recording, Looking Through, featuring the rhythm section of world renowned electric bassist, Matthew Garrison, and drummer Gene Lake, put Nat on the map as both a player and a composer. Two more albums soon followed--a live acoustic recording with fellow William Paterson alumnus Jake Schwartz, simply titled Live, and a collaborative project ...
read moreThe Nat Janoff Group: Looking Through
by Walter Kolosky
The Nat Janoff Group Looking Through NATJ 1999
Better late then never. I have some vague recollection of being contacted by Mr. Nat Janoff several years ago by phone and being asked to review this CD. For one reason or another, it never happened. Upon my favorable view of his most recent recording, Nat & Jake- Live , I decided to go back and give a listen to this 1999 release. I ...
read moreNat Janoff and Jake Schwartz: Live
by Walter Kolosky
A lot of professional guitar players are going to listen to this live album and determine they must abruptly change career paths. The playing is that good. There are truly only a handful of jazz players who can claim a unique voice on acoustic guitar. John Scofield once said that is why he doesn’t play it. He lamented that, with very few exceptions, all electric jazz guitarists sound the same when they unplug. Nat Janoff and Jake Schwartz are two ...
read moreNat Janoff: Looking Through
by Scott Andrews
New Jersey jazz guitarist Nat Janoff leads a strong trio on the 1999 record Looking Through, which merits a look back in time. Janoff has played with Michael Brecker and Kenny Burrell. On this self-released debut, he leads a trio with the ace rhythm section of bassist Matthew Garrison and drummer Gene Lake through seven original tunes. Garrison's credits include John McLaughlin's Heart of Things band and sessions with David Fiuczynski and Steve Coleman; Gene Lake has played with Steve ...
read moreNat Janoff: Looking Through
by Phil DiPietro
I must confess, it was only by chance that I stumbled upon the fact that this recording had been released and had to do some detective work to obtain a review copy. To my knowledge, this review is an allaboutjazz exclusive, and for a release displaying musicianship of this caliber, I do not take that responsibility lightly.
Guitar comfortably remains the world's most played instrument, in almost all idioms, certainly the genre we're all about here. Hence the notion of ...
read moreGuitarist/Composer Nat Janoff Releases New CD "Come Together Move Apart"
Source:
Michael Ricci
Come Together Move Apart is guitarist/composer Nat Janoff's latest release as a band leader. The new recording features John Escreet (piano), Francois Moutin (double bass), and Chris Carroll (drums). Come Together Move Apart is a collection of all new original compositions and effectively melds Janoff's background in traditional jazz with his independent exploration of non-traditional harmonies and improvising. After playing a series of live shows with this band, Janoff decided that these musicians were the ones who could best interpret ...
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Nat Janoff Group Featuring Francois Moutin and Ray Levier at Smalls This Saturday Nov 3rd
Source:
All About Jazz
Nat Janoff & Francois Moutin Guitar & Bass Duo Thursday, May 24
Source:
All About Jazz
Nat Janoff and Francois Moutin Guitar and Acoustic Bass Duo This Friday Nov 10th
Source:
All About Jazz
Nat Janoff Trio @ Luna Rossa Saturday Aug 27th
Source:
All About Jazz
The Nat Janoff Trio will be playing at Luna Rossa this Saturday Aug 27th. The Trio is a exciting blend of contemporary jazz, funk, and fusion!! If you enjoy guitarists like Mike Stern, John Mclaughlin, Pat Metheny you will really enjoy this group.
Luna Rossa is a wonderful bar/restaurant located in Clifton New Jersey. It's like a great jazz club in Manhatten but with parking and a more ...
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Primary Instrument
Guitar
Willing to teach
Advanced only
Credentials/Background
Teacher of guitar and bass for 17 years. All levels, all styles except classical guitar.