Jon Hamar, an assistant professor in the School of Music, has been invited to tour part time with a well-known jazz trio and jazz orchestra.
“Drummer Jeff Hamilton, who is a household name in the jazz world, has asked me to fill in for his bassist in his very high-profile trio,” Hamar said. “I will be playing with him on some select weekends in the fall and playing some rather high-profile gigs around the country. He has also asked me to join him in Europe, including linking up with the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra.”
The Jeff Hamilton Trio will start in Denmark playing three nights in Copenhagen and two in Aarhus then join the Clayton Hamilton Jazz Orchestra to visit France, Switzerland, Germany, Russia, Serbia, Italy, Sweden, and Austria.
“These guys could have anyone on the planet play bass for them, and on top of that I will be playing bass in the one of the greatest big bands in the world, the Clayton-Hamilton Jazz Orchestra, run by one of the greatest bassists alive, John Clayton.”
Clayton, who played in the Count Basie Orchestra under the direction of Basie and later Thad Jones, also worked as a studio musician and has toured with a number of notable musicians including Joe Cocker, B.B. King, Ray Charles, Monty Alexander, and Natalie Cole.
Hamar came to UT in 2015. Before that, he was a freelance bassist, had a private studio, and taught at Central Washington University.
He has a bachelor’s degree in classical double bass performance from Eastern Washington Universityand a master’s degree in jazz and contemporary media from the Eastman School of Music.
In addition to performing with an array of notable musicians, Hamar has recorded on soundtracks for movies including Stealth, Georgia Rule, House of Wax, Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Prequel, The Blind Side, and The Great Buck Howard, and video games including Halo, World of Warcraft, Gears of War, Uncharted, and Prince of Persia.
—
CONTACTS:
Amy Blakely (865-974-5034, ablakely@utk.edu)
Landin Lynd (865-974-8935, llynd@utk.edu)