Internationaler Jazz-Workshop Chodziez
Piotr Baron
Piotr Baron, born in Wroclaw, Poland in 1961 made his professional jazz debut as a teenager in 1977. In 1978 he was acknowledged as a soloist at the Jazz nad Odra festival in his home town and received a second prize at that festival in 1980. Four years later in 1984 Piotr won a Grand Prix as a soloist at the San Sebastian festival "Jazz Aldia" in Spain. Mr. Baron has earned a Master of Fine Arts degree at the Karol Lipinski Academy of Music in Wroclaw. Throughout his successful career Piotr Baron has collaborated with all accomplished jazz musicians from Poland and most of the European countries. Some of the names include Zbigniew Namyslowski, Tomasz Stanko, Henryk Majewski, Henryk Miskiewicz, Jaroslaw Smietana, Wojciech Karolak, Zbigniew Lewandowski, Krzesimir Debski, Janusz Muniak, Tomasz Szukalski, Darek "Oles" Oleszkiewicz, Piotr Wojtasik, Jan Ptaszyn Wróblewski, Bo Stief, Jasper Van't Hof. In 1998 Piotr was featured as a concert master (first alto saxophonist) with the European Broadcasting Union International Big Band 1998 in Stockholm. He has performed with many jazz stars from USA such as: Ray Charles, Art Farmer, Al Porcino, Billy Harper, David Murray, Kevin Mahogany, Victor Lewis, Roy McCurdy, John Hicks, Jon Mayer, Eddie Henderson, Marvin "Smitty" Smith, Carter Jefferson, Bobby Watson, Kei Akagi, Larry Koonse, Joe LaBarbera, Charlie Shoemake, Mark Soskin, Kevin Hays, Billy Hart, Harvie Swartz, David Friesen, Clarence Seay, Ed Schuller, John Betsch, Wadada Leo Smith, Ronnie Burrage, Greg Bandy, Malcolm Pinson, Skip Hadden, Wayne Bartlett, Carlos Johnson, and Karen Edwards. Besides his jazz touring, Piotr performs occasionally with symphonic and chamber orchestras conducted by Jacek Niedziela (soprano saxophone soloist in a symphonic poem "Scenes of Macondo"), Jan Walczynski, Bohdan Jarmolowicz in jazz, pop, classical and contemporary repertoire, a.o. on "Monada" series by Cezary Duchnowski, or on Krzysztof Herdzin's symphonic poem "Looking for Balance". Piotr Baron is featured as a sideman on more than 80 albums. Some of his own recordings include jazz legends as Art Farmer, Eddie Henderson, Wadada Leo Smith, John Hicks, Victor Lewis and Marvin Smitty Smith. He was also a co-founder and a co-leader of Traveling Birds Quintet along with Piotr Wojtasik, Darek Oleszkiewicz, Kuba Stankiewicz and Cezary Konrad. This cult band recorded two CDs: "Traveling Birds Quintet" (1994) and "Return To the Nest" (1995). As a leader of his own projects, Piotr Baron has released eight CDs. "Take One" (1995), "Tango" (1996), "Blue Rain" (1997), "Bogurodzica" (2000), "Reference" (2004), "Salve Regina" (2007), "Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus" (2008) and the newest "Kaddish" (2011). For the last 20 years Piotr maintains the highest rankings in the Jazz Forum magazine readers poll as the best tenor and soprano saxophonist, and highly regarded as alto and baritone saxophonist, mentioned as flutist and clarinetist. He was nominated to prestigious "Fryderyk Awards" as the musician of the year in 2000 and 2004. His solo CD projects "Bogurodzica" and "Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus" was nominated to Fryderyk Awards as best jazz album (2000 and 2008). In honor of his established position at the European music scene, Mr. Baron has been chosen as an endorsee for companies such as "Henri Selmer Paris" (saxophones and clarinets) and "Rico" (reeds and accessories). For 30th anniversary of his artistic activity Piotr Baron was decorated with Bronze Medal "Meritorious to the Culture - Gloria Artis" and a Honor Distinction "Golden Badge" of Polish Jazz Society. Piotr Baron has been working as an educator, teaching saxophone, jazz harmony and improvisation at the State Higher Vocational School in Nysa, Wroclaw School of Jazz and Popular Music and at the University of Zielona Gora. He has conducted various jazz workshops in the United States at University Of California Irvine, California Institute Of The Arts in Valencia, at the Ankara Bilkent University in Turkey, in Prague - Czech Republic, in Lwow - Ukraine and annual summer workshop programs in various cities in Poland. Since 1994 untill 2011 Piotr used to host his own weekly radio jazz show at the Polish Radio Wroclaw, from 2012 started continue his radio activity again at the radioJAZZ.fm. He has been freelancing as a reviewer and publicist for Jazz Forum European Magazine and Diapazon.pl. At the present time, Piotr performs extensively in Europe with his own quintet and as a featured sideman with top Polish and European bands.
Homepage: www.baron.cba.pl
