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NEWS
After premiering his New Gospel Quintet at the Jazz Standard in New York in April, Don Byron took the band on a European tour in May where their performances received standing ovations. The band features powerhouse vocalist DK Dyson, Frank Wilkins on piano and Hammond organ, bassist Brad Jones and drummer Pheeroan AkLaff. performing music by Thomas A. Dorsey and other gospel pioneers. Listen to audio clips from various shows, including a rousing renditions of the iconic "Precious Memories."
After his return from Europe, Don Byron had the extraordinary pleasure to perform for six nights with the great Allen Toussaint at the Village Vanguard. Byron is featured on Toussaint's newest recording, The Bright Mississippi, just released on Nonesuch Records.
Listen to streaming audio of the Don Byron New Gospel Quintet
Live on tour in Europe, May 2009
and
Live at the Jazz Standard, NY
AWARDS
Don Byron has been awarded the prestigious Rome Prize and was also named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize 2009 for Music:
The Samuel Barber Rome Prize for Composition
The Trustees of the American Academy in Rome awarded the The Samuel Barber Rome Prize for Composition to Don Byron, Composer, Clarinetist/Saxophonist, and Visiting Associate Professor, University at Albany State University of New York. Awardees are provided with a stipend, a study or studio, and room and board for a period of 6 months to 2 years. Don Byron will take up his residence at the American Academy in Rome, Italy in September 2009 for one year to work on a chamber opera based on the novel and film, Gentleman's Agreement.
Pulitzer Prize 2009 Finalist
Don Byron's composition 7 Etudes for Solo Piano was nominated as a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in music. The pieces, a deft set of studies that display rhythmic inventiveness and irresistible energy, charm and wit, were premiered on March 15, 2008 at Hallwalls Contemporary Arts Center, Buffalo, NY. Co-commissioned by pianist Lisa Moore and Meet the Composer, 7 Etudes are the center pieces of HIMM, Moore's upcoming solo album featuring music by Don Byron, to be released this summer on Cantaloupe Music.
Free music downloads available now!
We're offering monthly free downloads of an unreleased Don Byron track.
Please click below to download a MP3 file of a live recording from the
Jazz Standard in New York on November 15, 2008,
featuring the Don Byron Quartet.
Track: Fosbury Flop (15:22)
Don Byron, clarinet & tenor saxophone
Edward Simon, piano
Kenny Davis, bass
Eric Harland, drums
Recent Don Byron features on NPR's Fresh Air with
Terry Gross and in the Wall Street Journal!
Listen to: Fresh Air with Terry Gross
Read: The Wall Street Journal
:: CHECK OUT THE VIDEO ::
of "I'm A Roadrunner" shot in New York City at Jazz Standard
CLICK HERE to listen to Don's music
MOST RECENT CD RELEASES
Don Byron :: Do The Boomerang
The Music of Junior Walker
In December 2005, Don Byron launched a new group dedicated to the music of soul legend, saxophonist and singer Junior Walker. Featuring Byron on tenor saxophone, Dean Bowman on vocals, guitarist David Gilmore, George Colligan on Hammond B-3 organ, bassist Brad Jones, and Rodney Holmes on drums, the group recently recorded a new album, Don's sixth for Blue Note Records. Singer/guitarist Chris Thomas King appears as special guest on several tracks. Entitled "Do The Boomerang," the new CD contains covers of several of Junior Walker's biggest hits, including "Shotgun," "Roadrunner," and "What does it take to win your Love," as well as a version of James Brown's "There It Is." Don Byron Plays Junior Walker will be touring in the US and Europe following the CD release on October 3, 2006.
The Bang On A Can All-Stars & Don Byron :: A Ballad For Many
The Bang On A Can All-Stars, one of the world's leading contemporary music ensembles, recorded a new CD featuring exclusively Don Byron's music, entitled "A Ballad for Many," released on Cantaloupe Music in June of 2006. Included are two soundtracks for short films: "Eugene" was written for a 1960 TV episode with comedy legend Ernie Kovacs and has been performed live with the film by the BOAC All-Stars, who also commissioned the piece. The suite "Red Tailed Angels" is the score for Cara DeVito's documentary about the Tuskegee Airmen, the African-American combat pilot unit formed and used during WWII. The film is on permanent display at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library in Hyde Park, New York.
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