28 Facts About Ellery Eskelin

Ellery Eskelin was born on August 16,1959 and is an American tenor saxophonist raised in Baltimore, Maryland and residing in New York City.

Ellery Eskelin's parents, Rodd Keith and Bobbie Lee, were both professional musicians.

Ellery Eskelin has resided in New York City since 1983 and has led numerous international touring ensembles while participating as a sideman or collaborator with many of today's most forward-thinking composers and improvisers.

Ellery Eskelin has released more than twenty-five recordings as a leader since the late 1980s, primarily for the Swiss hatOLOGY label.

Ellery Eskelin has maintained lasting musical associations with Joey Baron, Mark Helias, Gerry Hemingway, Marc Ribot, David Liebman, Han Bennink, Sylvie Courvoisier, Bobby Previte and Daniel Humair among others.

Ellery Eskelin's style has its roots in the jazz realm yet his unique phrasing and the unorthodox techniques utilized in his compositions make for a music that defies easy categorization.

Ellery Eskelin began playing tenor saxophone in 1969 at the age of ten.

Ellery Eskelin's playing was characterized by a strong rhythmic feel and a commanding delivery of American songs.

Ellery Eskelin's grandfather was the musical director of the church and played the pedal steel guitar in services while performing on the electric guitar professionally in Baltimore during the late 1940s and early 1950s.

Ellery Eskelin had opportunities to sit in with locals such as Fields as well as internationally renowned artists such as Bartz, Pepper Adams and Woody Shaw.

At around this same time Ellery Eskelin met drummer Harold White and began performing regularly in White's quintet along with trumpeter Tom Williams.

Ellery Eskelin attended Towson University where he studied classical saxophone with Joseph Briscuso and performed in composer Hank Levy's Jazz Ensemble which played Levy's "odd-meter" big band compositions exclusively.

Bassist Drew Gress was a fellow student with whom Ellery Eskelin continues to collaborate and perform with to the present day.

In 1979 Ellery Eskelin met pianist Marc Copland and joined Copland's band for engagements in Washington DC including the Cellar Door, Blues Alley and the One Step Down.

Also in 1979 Ellery Eskelin encountered bay area saxophonist Mel Ellison who was performing in Baltimore for an extended engagement with trumpeter Ted Curson's group.

Ellery Eskelin took an informal lesson with Ellison, whose unique style made a lasting impression.

From late 1981 until early 1983 Ellery Eskelin toured with swing-era trombonist Buddy Morrow in a big band setting performing one-nighters across the United States and culminating in a tour of South America in early 1983.

In 1987 Ellery Eskelin began developing original music with drummer Phil Haynes leading to the formation of the cooperative group "Joint Venture" as well as numerous other projects centered around Haynes' Brooklyn loft and rehearsal space.

Ellery Eskelin began touring Europe regularly with drummer Joey Baron's group "Baron Down", a trio including Baron, Ellery Eskelin and trombonist Steve Swell.

One of Ellery Eskelin's most acclaimed recordings in the 1990s was "The Sun Died" a project based upon music by saxophonist Gene Ammons.

Additionally, Ellery Eskelin continued to maintain long-time musical relationships established in the 1990s, touring and recording with bassist Mark Helias, drummer Gerry Hemingway, drummer Han Bennink, drummer Bobby Previte and drummer Daniel Humair.

Ellery Eskelin forged new ties with musicians from around the globe such as oud player Rabih Abou-Khalil, pianist Satoko Fujii, trumpeter Dennis Gonzalez, clarinetist Ben Goldberg, bassist Lisle Ellis, pianist Erik Deutsch and drummer John Hollenbeck.

Ellery Eskelin made a guest artist appearance on the BBC Electric Proms Festival in London with the Basquiat Strings in 2007.

In 2009 Ellery Eskelin was the recipient of a Chamber Music America "New Jazz Works" grant which commissioned an extended work for the group "Different But the Same", a quartet with fellow saxophonist David Liebman.

An improvising trio of cellist Vincent Courtois, pianist Sylvie Courvoisier and Ellery Eskelin was formed in 2002 and recorded "As Soon as Possible" in 2008.

In 2011 Ellery Eskelin formed "Trio New York" with Hammond B3 organist Gary Versace and drummer Gerald Cleaver.

In 2013 Ellery Eskelin released a new recorded project for clean feed records entitled Mirage, improvisations with Susan Alcorn and Michael Formanek.

Ellery Eskelin's current working ensemble includes bassist Christian Weber and Michael Griener on drums.