Johannes Enders

Johannes Enders, a saxophonist recognized for his broad range and singular approach, has joined forces with figures spanning Donald Byrd, Roy Hargrove, Lester Bowie, and the post-rock outfit the Notwist.

Hailing from a modest town outside Munich, he first took up the saxophone at age 14 and later enrolled in classical studies at the Munich Conservatory. Completing that program in 1988, he moved on to further training with Dave Liebman and Jerry Bergonzi at the Jazz Institute of Graz in Austria. During those years he claimed first prize at the International Jazz Competition in both 1989 and 1991. A recommendation in 1992 brought him a scholarship to New York’s New School, where he studied jazz with Branford Marsalis and Jimmy Cobb among others.

In the same stretch he began laying down tracks alongside Joe Baudisch, Peter O’Mara, Joe Locke, and Harry Pepl, while issuing his first leader date, Reflections of South Africa, recorded in Capetown in 1992. Discoveries, released in 1993, marked his debut on Enja Records, which later issued Bright Nights in 1998 and Home Ground in 1999.