Brian Landrus (born September 14, 1978) is a jazz saxophonist, multi-instrumentalist, composer, producer, and educator.

Career

Landrus was born in

Reno Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada–California border. It is the county seat and most populous city of Washoe County, Nevada, Washoe County. Sitting in the High Eastern Sierra foothills, ...

, Nevada, where he began playing professionally at the age of 13. He earned a degree in saxophone performance at the

University of Nevada, Reno The University of Nevada, Reno (Nevada, the University of Nevada, or UNR) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Reno, Nevada, United States. It is the state's flagship public university and prim ...

. At the age of 18 he began performing on tenor and baritone saxophone with

The Temptations The Temptations is an American vocal group formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1961 as The Elgins, known for their string of successful singles and albums with Motown from the 1960s to the mid-1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield ...

The Four Tops ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The ...

The Coasters The Coasters are an American rhythm and blues/rock and roll vocal group who had a string of hits in the late 1950s. With hits including "Searchin'", "Young Blood (The Coasters song), Young Blood", "Charlie Brown (The Coasters song), Charlie Bro ...

The Drifters The Drifters are an American pop and R&B/soul vocal group. They were originally formed as a backing group for Clyde McPhatter, formerly the lead tenor of Billy Ward and his Dominoes in 1953. The second group of Drifters, formed in 1959 and ...

, and

Martha Reeves Martha Rose Reeves (born July 18, 1941) is an American R&B and pop singer. She is best known for being the lead singer of the Motown girl group Martha and the Vandellas, which scored several major Hot 100 hits such as " Nowhere to Run", "Heat ...

. In 2003 he moved to Boston in to attend the

New England Conservatory The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a Private college, private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. The conservatory is located on Huntington Avenue along Avenue of the Arts (Boston), the Avenue of the Arts near Boston Symphony Ha ...

. After graduation in 2007 Landrus recorded his album ''Forward'' for Cadence Jazz Records. He toured internationally with

Esperanza Spalding Esperanza Emily Spalding (born October 18, 1984), sometimes professionally known with the stylized name of esperanza spalding, is an American bassist, singer, songwriter, and composer. Her accolades include five Grammy Awards, a Boston Music Aw ...

. Landrus is an Associate Professor of Jazz Composition at

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music () is a Private university, private music college in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern Music of the United ...

Education

* Bachelor's Degree in Saxophone Performance, University of Nevada Reno, 2002 * Master of Music Degree in Jazz Saxophone,

, 2007 * Master of Music Degree in Jazz Composition,

, 2007 * PhD in Music Composition,

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

, 2019 Main source:

Awards

* Rising star, miscellaneous instruments (bass clarinet), in ''

DownBeat ''DownBeat'' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm that it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1 ...

'' magazine's Critics' Poll in 2021 * Rising star, baritone saxophone, in ''DownBeat'' magazine's Critics' Poll in 2015

Praise for Brian Landus

The ''

Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...

'' reviewer of his 2011 album ''Capsule'' wrote that the album, "which includes pianist Michael Cain (mostly on Fender Rhodes), guitar Nir Felder, bassist Matthew Parish, and drummer Rudy Royston, makes an organic fusion that ignores the boundaries that supposedly separate jazz, rock, pop, and R&B". His 2015 album ''The Deep Below'' was described by ''The New York Times'' as "a sonic register: low and deep, Mr. Landrus's natural range on baritone saxophone, bass saxophone, bass flute and bass clarinet".

Discography

As leader

* ''Red List'' (Palmetto, 2022) * ''For Now'' (BlueLand, 2020) * ''Generations'' (BlueLand, 2017) * ''The Deep Below''( Palmetto/BlueLand, 2015) * ''Mirage'' (BlueLand, 2013) * ''Capsule'' (BlueLand, 2011) * ''Traverse'' (BlueLand, 2010) * ''Everlasting'' (

CIMP Creative Improvised Music Projects, usually abbreviated CIMP or C.I.M.P., is an American jazz record company and label. It is associated with ''Cadence'' magazine and Cadence Jazz Records. The label is noted for its minimal use of electronic pr ...

, 2009) * ''Forward'' ( Cadence Jazz, 2008)

As sideman

Ken Schaphorst Ken Schaphorst (born May 24, 1960 in Abington, Pennsylvania) is a composer, performer, and educator. Career Schaphorst served as Director of Jazz Studies at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin for ten years, before returning to Boston to be ...

, ''How to Say Goodbye'' (JCA) *

Nicholas Urie Nicholas Urie (born July 29, 1985 in Los Angeles, California) is an American composer of jazz and classical music. Urie teaches jazz composition at the Berklee College of Music. Urie was a recipient of the first annual ASCAP Young Jazz Composer's ...

, ''My Garden'' (Red Piano) Main source:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Landrus, Brian 1978 births Living people Jazz baritone saxophonists American jazz saxophonists American male saxophonists Bass clarinetists American jazz flautists American jazz composers American male jazz composers American jazz bass clarinetists 21st-century American saxophonists 21st-century American clarinetists 21st-century American male musicians 21st-century American multi-instrumentalists The Delphian Jazz Orchestra members 21st-century American flautists