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Behind the Scenes: Tim Warfield
Tim Warfield BEHIND THE SCENES
Saxophonist, recording artist, and educator Tim Warfield is a member of the Jazz Orchestra of Philadelphia, which recently became part of The Philly POPS, under the direction of Terell Stafford, an internationally known trumpeter, POPS Artistic Director for Jazz, and Chair of the Department of Instrumental Studies at Temple University. Tim Is a longtime collaborator of Terell’s.
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Tim has been playing saxophone since age nine, won numerous awards in high school, and began leading bands while in college. Along with four fellow tenor saxophonists, his “Tough Young Tenors” recording was named one of the top ten recordings of the year by The New York Times and rose to number five on the Billboard Top 100 Jazz chart.
In 1991, Tim was also selected to be a member of Jazz Futures, a world-touring group showcasing some of the world’s brightest young stars in jazz. That same year, Tim placed third in the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Saxophone Competition.
His recording and performing career has included performing alongside such artists as Donald Byrd, Michelle Rosewoman, Marcus Miller, James Williams, Dizzy Gillespie, Isaac Hayes, Peter Nero, Shirley Scott, Jimmy Smith, Trudy Pitts, Billy Paul, Kenny Barron, Charles Fambrough, Eric Reed, George Cables, Carl Allen, Orrin Evans, the Newport Millennium All Stars, Joey Defrancesco, and many others. He’s also had longtime associations in bands led by Christian McBride, Nicholas Payton, Stefon Harris, and Terell Stafford.
Tim has appeared on several GRAMMY-nominated recordings such as Stefon Harris’ “The Grand Unification Theory” as well as “Dear Louis” and “Sonic Trance,” both under the leadership of trumpeter and New Orleans native, Nicholas Payton.
Tim is currently an Artist in Residence at Messiah College in Mechanicsburg, PA. He is also the Assistant Professor and Coordinator of the Jazz Masters of Music, Graduate Program at Temple University in Philadelphia.
As a leader, Tim has recorded a total of 11 albums, all to critical acclaim. His current release “Jazzland,” on the Criss Cross Jazz label, features Terell Stafford, organist Pat Bianchi, drummer Byron Landham, and percussionist Daniel Sadownick. The recording was listed in the Sirius XM’s “Real Jazz” year end review, ranking #7, in its “Top 10 New Album Requests and Inquiries” for 2018.
