Jacob Varmus
Being pushed in a pram along the banks of La Scala in 1976 the two-year old Jacob Varmus suddenly emitted squeals and shrieks of unmasked delight. The most rapturous sounds he'd ever heard were bouncing off the plaza stone: a lone trumpeter's warming up from within open stage doors at the local opera house. Ten years later Jacob Varmus had a trumpet of his own and began winning top marks at all the California Music Educators' Association festivals for his work as soloist (Haydn's trumpet concerto and Goedicke's Concert Etude) and chamber musician.
Evolving parallel to his love of music was an interest and talent in using language artistically thru poetry, critical essays, and autobiographical stories. In high school he won awards for poetry and sports journalism (an avid San Francisco Giants fan) as well as music. His first year of college, Jacob was admitted to the undergraduate Iowa Writers Workshop for poetry where he studied closely with MacArthur grant recipient Jorie Graham. At Iowa he also had the good fortune of studying with classical trumpet virtuoso David Greenhoe.
An initiation to the music and mastery of John Coltrane, as well as inspiring lessons with progressive trumpeter (and Iowa alum) Paul Smoker led Varmus to focus primarily on learning jazz music to the fullest. In 1994 he decided to move to New York to finish his BFA at the New School Jazz program where he received timeless lessons from a long list of artists including Arnie Lawrence and Billy Harper. Here he became known to his peers and elders as a composer of harmonically intricate yet compellingly simple and striking tunes.
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Album Review
- Aegean by Dan Bilawsky
- Terminal Stillness by Dan Bilawsky
- All the Things We Still Can Be by Dan McClenaghan
- All The Things We Still Can Be by Michael P. Gladstone
October 30, 2006
The Jacob Varmus Quintet Every Tuesday at Cup in Queens, NY--Free!
October 05, 2006
Jacob Varmus Releases His New CD "Adhering To The Law Of Pleasure"
July 20, 2006
a powerful trumpet utterance.... The Jacob Varmus band astounds us with a euphonic elaboration including plenty of ardour, reverberations and candle luminance
Primary Instrument
Cornet
Willing to teach
Advanced only