Jon Faddis is considered to be the complete and consummate musician, with the skills of conductor, composer, and educator. He had earned accolades from his close friend and mentor John Birks “Dizzy” Gillespie, who declared of Faddis, “He's the best ever, including me!” Faddis possesses an unparalleled range with a full command of his instrument. Time Out New York (2003) has praised Faddis as “the world's greatest trumpeter … brash soloistic logic and breathtaking technical acuity.” According to the The Wall Street Journal, Faddis is “a trumpet player of prodigious lyrical force”.
Faddis began playing the trumpet at age eight and was inspired by an appearance by Louis Armstrong on the Ed Sullivan Show on television. He met Dizzy Gillespie at age 15 and the meeting proved to be the start of a unique friendship that spanned over thirty years. Shortly after his 18th birthday, Faddis joined Lionel Hampton's band and moved from California to New York. He also worked as lead trumpet for the Thad Jones/Mel Lewis Orchestra at the Village Vanguard and eventually formed his own quartet. Soon he began directing other orchestras which have included the Grammy-winning United Nation Orchestra, the Dizzy Gillespie 70th Birthday Big Band, the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band, and the Jon Faddis Jazz Orchestra of New York. Faddis has also served as guest conductor and featured guest with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, the Newport Jazz Festival 40th Anniversary Tour and the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra.
Jon's distinctive trumpet voice has been heard on albums by numerous legendary performers including Duke Ellington, the Rolling Stones, Frank Sinatra, Kool and the Gang, Luther Vandross, Quincy Jones, Billy Joel and Stanley Clarke, to name a few. His horn was heard on the theme of "The Cosby Show," on the soundtrack of Clint Eastwood's films "The Gauntlet" and "Bird," and on many commercials. Jon Faddis had become one of the most in-demand session musicians in New York.
His discography includes the following albums as a leader under his own name: Hornucopia and Into the Faddisphere, on the Epic label; Legacy (Concord Jazz); Youngblood (Pablo); and Good and Plenty (Buddha). He was co-billed with Oscar Peterson on Oscar Peterson & Jon Faddis (Pablo); with saxophonist Billy Harper on Jon & Billy and with Clark Terry on Take Double (Phonogram/Japan). He is a featured sideman and soloist on Charles Mingus & Friends (Columbia); Milt Jackson's Bebop (Atlantic); the Illinois Jacquet Big Band's Jacquet's Got It (Atlantic); and Dizzy Gillespie's Montreux (Pablo).
Faddis regularly leads master classes and clinics worldwide, and also teaches as a full-time faculty member at the Conservatory of Music, Purchase College-SUNY (where he is Artist-in-Residence, Professor & Director of Jazz Performance) and as guest lecturer at Columbia College Chicago.
Jon Faddis, the Jon Faddis Quartet, and the Jon Faddis Jazz Orchestra of New York (JFJONY) are trademarks of Jon Faddis.
