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John Clayton |
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John Clayton began seriously studying the bass at 13 with Ray Brown. At 19, the Grammy winner and four-time Grammy nominee became the bassist for Henry Mancini’s “The Mancini Generation.” After receiving a Bachelor of Music degree in double bass in 1975 from the University of Indiana, John toured with Monty Alexander and the Count Basie Orchestra. He moved to Amsterdam and was principal bassist in the Amsterdam Philharmonic for five years. John’s work as a composer and arranger has been guided by, among others, Robert Farnon, Count Basie, Johnny Mandel, Mancini, Marty Paich and Frank Foster. He has written and arranged music for Diana Krall, Dee Dee Bridgewater (including her Grammy-winning “Dear Ella”), Natalie Cole, Regina Carter, Milt Jackson, Nancy Wilson, Quincy Jones, George Benson and Dr. John. He has received commissions from the Northwest Chamber Orchestra, the American Jazz Philharmonic, the Iceland Symphony, the Metropole Orchestra, the Carnegie Hall Big Band, the Richmond Symphony and the Amsterdam Philharmonic, among others. He is co-leader of the Clayton Hamilton Jazz Orchestra and the Clayton Brothers Quintet. He is president of the International Bassist Association and artistic director of the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival and Centrum Jazz Workshop. John is Director of Education and a Board member of the Vail Jazz Foundation and Director of the Vail Jazz Workshop for the past 14 years. |