Album Notes

"Technically formidable, he has what music teachers call a "focused" tone: strong and well-defined, moving evenly through fast or emotional passages. His compositions, sweet and mysterious and sometimes hard-charging...." - New York Times

"...what he does is create music that is fresh, innovative and forward-looking without ever losing listenability"
- Bob Karlovits, Pittsburgh Tribune Review

"...wonderful...." - Washington Post

With his thoughtful, passionate improvisations and innovative approach to composition, Jacob Yoffee is a unique new voice on the tenor saxophone. He writes in both classical and jazz genres and has won awards for his compositions. Jacob visited England in 1998 to hear one of his works performed at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, at the Royal Academy of Music and on BBC Radio.

Jacob has had the opportunity to work professionally with Sean Jones, Rusted Root, Poogie Bell, Roger Humphries, Dwayne Dolphin, Gary Thomas, George Colligan, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and Darin Atwater & the Soulful Symphony, touring with both Bell and Jones. Also active in the compositional realm, Jacob scores films and composes works for larger ensembles. Most recently he was commissioned to compose the premiere work for the American Studio Orchestra in Baltimore, Maryland. 

Born in North Carolina in a military family: Jacob Yoffee moved often growing up, and spent his high school years in Okinawa, Japan.  He began studying piano at eight and saxophone at thirteen, although he didn't come to study improvised music until he arrived at the Peabody Conservatory in 1997.  There, he majored in classical composition and jazz performance, studying with Morris Moshe Cotel, Christopher Theofanidis, and the saxophone legend Gary Thomas.

His own groups: Currently Jacob leads his quintet (featured on this release), M.A.J.I. (Murray Avenue Jazz Initiative), a scaled--down big band, and Metaphor, a four-piece electric group.