ABOUT

With a tone that “sets its compass outward, but remains firmly rooted within the post-hard bop-blues praxis,” alto saxophonist and composer Nick Mazzarella’s work has been described as “continuing the approach taken by like-minded trailblazing altoists Eric Dolphy, Ornette Coleman, Henry Threadgill, Oliver Lake, and Gary Bartz [by] seeking to embody the history of [jazz] music while pushing it forward into new realms.” (All About Jazz) He has been a consistent presence in Chicago's underground music scene since the early 2000s, and has made an aesthetically unique contribution to the city’s rich culture of jazz and improvised music as both a performer and a presenter. His numerous trio projects and eponymous quintet have served as the primary vehicles for his endeavors as an improviser, composer, and bandleader, while as a collaborator or sideman he has performed and recorded with such artists as Joshua Abrams, Geof Bradfield, Ari Brown, Hamid Drake, Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, Dana Hall, Rob Mazurek, Makaya McCraven, Avreeayl Ra, Mike Reed, Tomeka Reid, Clark Sommers, and Ken Vandermark. To date Mazzarella has appeared on over forty albums, including a dozen as a leader. Recordings of his original music have been released by Nessa, Astral Spirits, Clean Feed, International Anthem, and Out of Your Head, and he has performed throughout the United States and Europe, as well as in Africa and the Middle East.

In addition to his work as a saxophonist, Mazzarella curated over seven hundred jazz and improvised music concerts between 2008 and 2023 on two long-running concert series in Chicago: the Ratchet Series (2008-2023), and the Anagram Series (2015-2023). He completed an apprenticeship in woodwind instrument repair from 2011 to 2018, and is currently the fabrication tech for acclaimed high-end guitar pickup company Duneland Labs. He also builds functional wood articles of his own design, and has exhibited original photographic work in Chicago.