Jonathan Saraga Trio at Bar Next Door

At 24, trumpeter and composer Jonathan Saraga was said by All About Jazz to play "with the wisdom and maturity of veterans more than twice his age", and that "his chops, lust for musical life and don't-box-me-into-a-stylistic-corner mentality make him seem like the musical offspring of trumpeters Dave Douglas and Ambrose Akinmusire."

Saraga won the International Trumpet Guild Jazz Solo Competition in 2007, and competed as one of five finalists in the 2009 Carmine Caruso International Jazz Trumpet Competition. He was also one of two trumpeters selected from an international pool to participate in the 2010 School for Improvisational Music Intensive Program, one of two trumpeters considered for the 2014 Juilliard Artist Diploma program and was one of four trumpeters selected to participate in the 2015 Banff International Workshop in Jazz and Creative Music....

read more

At 24, trumpeter and composer Jonathan Saraga was said by All About Jazz to play "with the wisdom and maturity of veterans more than twice his age", and that "his chops, lust for musical life and don't-box-me-into-a-stylistic-corner mentality make him seem like the musical offspring of trumpeters Dave Douglas and Ambrose Akinmusire."

Saraga won the International Trumpet Guild Jazz Solo Competition in 2007, and competed as one of five finalists in the 2009 Carmine Caruso International Jazz Trumpet Competition. He was also one of two trumpeters selected from an international pool to participate in the 2010 School for Improvisational Music Intensive Program, one of two trumpeters considered for the 2014 Juilliard Artist Diploma program and was one of four trumpeters selected to participate in the 2015 Banff International Workshop in Jazz and Creative Music.

Over the past 6 years, since graduating with a Master’s degree in Jazz Studies from SUNY Purchase, Jonathan has been performing as a trumpeter throughout Europe, Asia, Haiti, the Caribbean, and across the U.S. He has played in ensembles led by highly acclaimed and/or Grammy-winning artists such as Steve Coleman, Henry Cole, Darcy James Argue, Orrin Evans, Josh Evans, Jimmy Greene, Tyshawn Sorey, Eric Bergen and the Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra.

Most recently, Jonathan’s new release, 'Journey to a New World' (Fresh Sound New Talent/2017), which has been said to feature “astonishing maturity” (Jazz Magazine, France), “a deft compositional approach and some first-rate musicianship” (All About Jazz, US), has received numerous awards: the 2016 Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composer Award (ASCAP Foundation), 1 semi-finalist nominations in the 2016 International Songwriting Competition, and 2 semi-finalist/1 finalist nomination in the 2017 International Songwriting Competition. Jonathan is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Colorado, Boulder, where he performs and teaches internationally.

show less