Born and raised in Austin, Texas, Elias Haslanger is deeply influenced by the profound and powerful heritages of Duke Ellington, John Coltrane, Jimi Hendrix, Charlie Parker, Ricard Strauss, Wayne Shorter, Sonny Rollins, James Brown, Claude Debussy, J [+]Born and raised in Austin, Texas, Elias Haslanger is deeply influenced by the profound and powerful heritages of Duke Ellington, John Coltrane, Jimi Hendrix, Charlie Parker, Ricard Strauss, Wayne Shorter, Sonny Rollins, James Brown, Claude Debussy, Joe Henderson, Jaco Pastorius, Maurice Ravel, Freddie Hubbard, The Beatles, Nat King Cole, Michael Brecker, Herbie Hancock, Stevie Wonder, Gustav Mahler, Pat Metheny, Kenny Dorham, Bob Marley, Stan Getz, Art Blakey, Hector Berlioz, Horace Silver, Led Zepplin, Ella Fitzgerald, Bill Evans, The Roots, Weather Report, Count Basie, Ornette Coleman, Hank Mobley, Sarah Vaughn, Ben Webster, Billy Strayhorn and Miles Davis. Elias embeds the best of these traditions into the foundations of his own playing and into the heart of his own compositions.
Elias is a dynamic, young saxophonist/composer who has played with artists Ellis Marsalis, Maynard Ferguson, Dizzy Gillespie, Harry Connick, Jr., Martin Banks, Wynton Marsalis, Chucho Valdes, Roy Hargrove, Wes Anderson, Lew Soloff, Frank Foster, Clark Terry, Russell Malone, Marvin "Smitty" Smith, Jesse Davis, Steve Turre, Al Grey, Peter Martin, Donald Edwards, Allen Farnham, Roland Guerin, Fred Sanders, Edwin Livingston, JJ Johnson, Brannen Temple, Kirk Whalum, The Temptations, The Four Tops, Joe LoCasio, Tony Campise, Asleep at the Wheel, Mitch Watkins, Bob Meyer, Jae Sinnett, Marvin Stamm, James Polk, and countless others. Elias has opened for the legendary McCoy Tyner and jazz greats Kenny Garrett and Terence Blanchard.
Elias has performed around the United States and Europe at clubs like Snug Harbor in New Orleans, Jazz Alley in Seattle, The Elephant in Austin, and The Blue Note in New York. He has also acted as a guest artist/lecturer at universities around the nation. Mentored by the legendary saxophonists Harvey Pittel and Dick Oatts, Elias began to explore the instrument's vast potential by studying saxophone at the University of Texas and then at the Manhattan School of Music. His interest in writing music culminated in a Master's Degree in Composition at Southwest Texas State University. In 1997, Elias was awarded the Jazz Instrumental Soloist College Outstanding Performance for the 20th Annual Downbeat Student Music Awards and in 1998, Elias was awarded the Mitte
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