Jay Barnet Beckenstein (born May 14, 1951) is an American saxophonist, composer, producer, and the co-founder of the band Spyro Gyra. He owned BearTracks Studios in Suffern, New York.

Music career

Beckenstein was born in

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

, New York, to a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family. His mother, Lorraine, was an opera singer and his father, Leonard, loved

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

and introduced him to

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz Saxophone, saxophonist, bandleader, and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of beb ...

and

Lester Young Lester Willis Young (August 27, 1909 – March 15, 1959), nicknamed "Pres" or "Prez", was an American jazz tenor saxophonist and occasional clarinetist. Coming to prominence while a member of Count Basie's orchestra, Young was one of the most i ...

when he was a baby. He started playing the piano at age five when he moved to Farmingdale, New York. He was given his first saxophone at the age of seven. In his senior year of high school, he and his family moved to Germany. He attended and graduated from Nurnberg American High School in 1969. He has said that being Jewish in Germany was positive at the time. However, he has recalled that he once saw an old photo of an elderly neighbor in his SS Nazi uniform while visiting him and he never went back. He received a college degree in music from the

University at Buffalo The State University of New York at Buffalo (commonly referred to as UB, University at Buffalo, and sometimes SUNY Buffalo) is a public university, public research university in Buffalo, New York, Buffalo and Amherst, New York, United States. ...

in 1973. Trumpeter

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie ( ; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improvisation, improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy El ...

once played with the college band while Beckenstein was a band member. They soon recruited 16-year-old keyboardist Tom Schuman and recorded their debut album. However, due to lack of funds, the record was going to be their last album until they gave it away and sold 100,000 copies. From there, they got a deal and released their next album in 1979. In 2000, Beckenstein released his first solo album, ''Eye Contact'', which charted No. 23 on the Top Contemporary Jazz Albums. Beckenstein played the saxophone solo on American

progressive metal Progressive metal (often shortened to prog metal) is a broad fusion music genre melding heavy metal music, heavy metal and progressive rock, combining the loud "aggression" and amplified electric guitar, guitar-driven sound of the former with t ...

band Dream Theater's " Another Day", from the album '' Images and Words'', and single version of song "Through her Eyes", from the album '' Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory''. He also played a solo part in "Take Away My Pain" on the live album '' Once in a Livetime'' as well as "Another Day" during the performance of '' Metropolis 2000: Scenes from New York''.

Personal life

In 1984, Beckenstein married Jennifer Johnson from Portland, Oregon; with whom he has three children (daughters Claire, Alexandra and Isabel). At the time he also had two German Shepherds, three cats and two guinea pigs. Most of his life is filled with his love for painting, gardening, hiking and all things outdoors. After marriage years, Beckenstein is divorced in 2003.

Discography

Solo *2000: '' Eye Contact'' ( Windham Hill) With Bob James * 1981 ''All Around the Town'' * 1981 ''Sign of the Times'' * 1982 ''Hands Down'' With Dream Theater * 1992 ''Images and Words'' * 1993 ''Live at the Marquee'' * 1998 ''Once in a LIVEtime'' * 2000 ''Through Her Eyes'' * 2001 ''Live Scenes from New York'' With Jason Miles * 1996 ''Mr. X'' * 2000 ''A Love Affair: The Music of Ivan Lins'' * 2000 ''Celebrating the Music of Weather Report'' * 2002 ''Brazilian Nights'' * 2002 ''To Grover, With Love'' * 2006 ''What's Going On?'' With others * 1980 ''Orleans'', Orleans * 1989 ''Away from Home'', David Broza * 1990 ''Extremities'', Tom Schuman * 1991 ''Natural Selection'', Dave Samuels * 1995 ''Basia on Broadway'', Basia * 1995 ''David Broza'', David Broza * 1997 ''Deep in the Night'', Rick Rhodes * 1999 ''Listen'', Chuck Loeb * 1999 ''Somewhere in the Night'', Mercedes Hall * 2001 ''Butterfly'', Special EFX * 2002 ''Urban Life'', The V.I.P. Club * 2003 ''In the Name of Love'', Freddy Cole * 2012 ''The Fusion Syndicate'', The Fusion Syndicate

References

External links

February, 2003 Biography (archived)

March, 2003 Biography (archived)

Official website
(archived)
Spyro Gyra official website

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Beckenstein, Jay People from Long Island Living people 1951 births American jazz soprano saxophonists American jazz tenor saxophonists American male saxophonists American jazz alto saxophonists Jazz fusion saxophonists Jewish American musicians University at Buffalo alumni Jewish jazz musicians 21st-century American saxophonists 21st-century American male musicians American male jazz musicians Spyro Gyra members 21st-century American Jews