Jeremy Udden

Jeremy Udden stands out as an innovative saxophonist and instructor whose harmonically rich playing fuses elements of folk, rock, and post-bop. Emerging during the 2000s, he collaborated with trumpeter John McNeil and the Either/Orchestra while releasing distinctive recordings such as the 2011 album If the Past Seems So Bright and the 2015 Belleville Project alongside bassist Nicolas Moreaux.

Born in 1978 in Plainville, Massachusetts, Udden took up the saxophone during elementary school and matured into a skilled musician by his teenage years. Throughout high school he participated in multiple band and orchestra settings along with his own jazz and ska ensembles, earning selection in his final year for both the All-Eastern Jazz Ensemble and the Grammy Band. He later pursued jazz performance studies at the New England Conservatory, receiving private instruction from Jerry Bergonzi, George Garzone, Allan Chase, and additional mentors.

Following his 2000 graduation, Udden maintained an active schedule across several groups, among them the Either/Orchestra, his own Plainville project that blends folk, jazz, and rock, and the Hush Point trio featuring John McNeil on trumpet, bassist Aryeh Kobrinsky, and drummer Anthony Pinciotti. His first album as a leader, Torchsongs, appeared on Fresh Sound New Talent in 2006, after which Plainville issued its self-titled debut in 2009 and followed with If the Past Seems So Bright two years later.

Alongside performance work, Udden has taught at numerous schools, including the New England Conservatory of Music, the University of Rhode Island, the Longy School of Music, Emerson College, and Brooklyn’s Packer Collegiate Institute. In 2012 he released his second solo recording, Folk Art, which included Plainville associates such as banjoist Brandon Seabrook, bassist Jeremy Stratton, drummer Kenny Wollesen, and keyboardist Pete Rende. He subsequently partnered with Nicolas Moreaux on Belleville Project, rejoined McNeil for the 2017 album Hush Point, Vol. 3, and delivered Three in Paris in 2019, again with Moreaux and added drummer John Betsch.