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Jay Beckenstein

 
Artist: Jay Beckenstein
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Jay Beckenstein

Similar Artists:

Bakithi Kumalo, Chieli Minucci, Marcus Miller, Jason Miles, Chuck Loeb, Will Lee, John Patitucci, Jeff Beal, Mark Egan

Worked With:

Gerardo Velez, Larry Swist, Dave Samuels, Richie Morales, Eli Konikoff, Julio Fernandez, Chet Catallo, Tom Schuman, Jeremy Wall

Formal Connection With:

Spyro Gyra
  • Born: May 14, 1951
  • Active: 2000s
  • Genres: Jazz
  • Instrument: Producer, Saxophone Representative Album: "Eye Contact"

Biography

Alto (and sometimes soprano) saxophonist Jay Beckenstein founded the highly successful crossover jazz outfit Spyro Gyra in 1974 and led the group throughout more than a quarter-century tenure. Beckenstein grew up in a musical family -- his mother was an opera singer, his father a jazz buff -- and began playing the saxophone at age seven, joining school bands and playing both jazz and R&B. After graduating high school, Beckenstein and his friend, keyboardist Jeremy Wall, moved to Buffalo, where Beckenstein studied music at SUNY-Buffalo. Beckenstein and Wall began to headline their own gigs around the city and that collaboration evolved into Spyro Gyra, which went on to a long, prolific, and successful career. In 2000, Beckenstein finally issued his very first solo album, a guest-studded affair titled Eye Contact. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide
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Wikipedia: Jay Beckenstein
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Jay Beckenstein

Beckenstein at Gulfstream Park in Hallandale, Florida
Background information
Born May 14, 1951(1951-05-14)
Brooklyn, New York
United States
Genres Smooth jazz, Jazz fusion
Occupations Musician
Instruments Saxophone
Labels BearTracks Studios
Website Jay Beckenstein.com

Jay Beckenstein (born May 14, 1951 in Brooklyn, New York) is a saxophone player, smooth jazz artist and together with Jeremy Wall founded Spyro Gyra. He also owned a studio in New York that was called BearTracks Studios.

He also played the saxophone solo on American progressive metal 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.

Contents

Biography

Jay's mother was an opera singer and his father's love of jazz introduced him to Charlie Parker and Lester Young when he was a baby. He started playing the piano at age 5 when he moved to Farmingdale, LI. He was given his first saxophone at the age of 7.

Jay Beckenstein also has three daughters Claire, Alexandra and Isabel.

Discography

With Spyro Gyra

Beckenstein has played on all Spyro Gyra albums.

With others

Images and Words
Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a Memory

Solo Efforts

Wiki letter w.svg This section requires expansion.

Eye Contact (2000)

Instruments

Beckenstein plays alto, soprano and tenor saxophone. In the early years of Spyro Gyra he played a Selmer Mark VI alto saxophone, before changing to Yamaha sometime during the 1980s. Until the late 1990s he played a Yamaha YAS-62 alto (Beechler White Diamond S6S mouthpiece and Vandoren #3 1/2 reeds) and YSS-62 (Selmer C* mouthpiece) soprano saxophones [1]. However, he subsequently switched to instruments made by LA Sax. His current alto is the "Chicago Jazz" model by LA Sax [2], fitted with a Beechler White Diamond S6S mouthpiece and Vandoren Traditional #3 Reeds. His soprano is a Keilwerth SX90 with a black-nickel finish and gold hardware, fitted with a Selmer C* mouthpiece and Vandoren Traditional #3 reeds. His "burnished brass" finish tenor is also made by LA Sax.[3]

References

  1. ^ http://www.spyrogyra.com/discography.php?num=23
  2. ^ http://www.lasaxophones.com/artists.htm
  3. ^ http://www.lasaxophones.com/artists.htm


External links

Stub icon This article about an American musician is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
v • d • e
Spyro Gyra
Jay Beckenstein · Tom Schuman · Julio Fernandez · Scott Ambush · Bonny Bonaparte
Jeremy Wall · John Tropea · Dave Samuels · Anthony Gorruso · Rubens Bassini  · Will Lee · Randy Brecker · John Clark · Michael Brecker
Barry Rogers · Rob Mounsey · David Darling · Steve Gadd · Manolo Badrena · Eddie Gomez  · Jay Azzolina
Howard Levy · Dave Charles
Studio albums
Spyro Gyra · Morning Dance · Catching the Sun · Carnaval · Freetime · Incognito · City Kids · Alternating Currents · Breakout · Stories Without Words · Rites of Summer · Point of View · Fast Forward · Three Wishes · Dreams Beyond Control · Love and Other Obsessions · Heart of the Night · 20/20 · Got the Magic · In Modern Times · Original Cinema · The Deep End · Wrapped In a Dream · Good to Go-Go · A Night Before Chirstmas · Down the Wire
Live albums
Access All Areas · Road Scholars
Compilations
Collection · 1977-1987 · The Best of the First Ten Years · The Very Best of Spyro Gyra
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Artist. Copyright © 2009 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.  Read more
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