Ted Nash (saxophonist, born 1960)
Ted Nash (born December 28, 1960) is an American jazz saxophonist, flutist and composer. Born into a musical family, his uncle was saxophonist Ted Nash and his father is trombonist Dick Nash, both prominent jazz soloists and first call Hollywood studio musicians. Nash is a member of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra directed by Wynton Marsalis. He is one of the founders of the Jazz Composers Collective. Music career. Nash grew up in Los Angeles. His father is trombonist Dick Nash and his uncle was saxophonist Ted Nash. Both were big band veterans, jazz  soloists and session musicians who worked regularly with Henry Mancini and Les Brown. The younger Nash began his career on piano when he was seven, clarinet when he was 12, and alto saxophone at 13. When he was 16, he played for one week with Lionel Hampton and the following year was playing saxophone with Quincy Jones, Louis Bellson, and Don Ellis. When he was 18, he moved to New York City and became a member of the Gerry Mulligan Big Band. During the same year, he released his debut album, "Conception" (Concord Jazz, 1978). In the 1980s, he worked  with vibraphonist Charlie Shoemake, who had been one of his teachers. He was a member of the Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra, for whom he played saxophone and wrote arrangements. In 1990s, he performed and recorded as sideman with Wynton Marsalis, Joe Lovano, and Ben Allison. After Allison's invitation, he joined the Herbie Nichols Project, a band which played the music of pianist Nichols. Nash has been a composer, arranger, producer, conductor, and writer of liner notes. As a performer, he is a multireedist who has recorded on soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, clarinet, bass clarinet, flute, and piccolo . Compositions. "Portrait in Seven Shades" is a seven-movement suite dedicated to seven modern painters: Claude Monet, Salvador Dalí, Henri Matisse, Pablo Picasso, Vincent van Gogh, Marc Chagall, and Jackson Pollock. The album was nominated for a Grammy Award. Nash's album "" (Motéma, 2016) consists of Nash's compositions interwoven with historic political speeches by Winston Churchill, Ronald Reagan, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Lyndon Johnson, John F. Kennedy, Nelson Mandela, Jawaharlal Nehru, and Aung San Suu Kyi. The speeches are read by Sam Waterston, Wynton Marsalis, Joe Lieberman, and Glenn Close. In 2017, "Presidential Suite" won the Grammy Award for Best  Large Jazz Ensemble Album. Discography. As sideman. With Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra With Wynton Marsalis With Louie Bellson With Ben Allison With The Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra With The Herbie Nichols Project With Wycliffe Gordon With Don Ellis With Jimmy Heath With Freddie Hubbard With others