Faculty Profile for Joel David Frahm

Biography Section

Biography and Education

Joel Frahm, Saxophones

Born in Racine, WI in 1969, saxophonist Joel Frahm studied classical piano and
bassoon before taking up the tenor saxophone when he was 14 years old. In 1985, his
family moved to Hartford, CT where he attended the jazz program at the high
school. It was here that he and pianist Brad Mehldau first crossed paths and became colleagues.

After graduating high school, Frahm went to Mason Gross School
for the Arts at Rutgers University, subsequently transferring and earning his B.A. in Jazz Performance at Manhattan School of Music.

His natural and advanced ability for his age quickly led to a strong
presence that attracted attention in New York City and beyond. Initially, he worked with various blues and jazz bands, meeting a coterie of like-minded musicians who were already established: drummer Matt Wilson and pianist David Berkman, among many others. He worked and recorded with Wilson and Berkman on numerous occasions.
A player with varied musical sensibility and both traditional and modern leanings,
Frahm began working with a wide variety of jazz mainstays – both well-known elders in jazz music as well as a number of peers and colleagues closer to his own age. Frahm worked with icons such as Maynard Ferguson, Betty Carter, Dewey Redman, Lee Konitz, Pat Martino and Andrew Hill. He also worked with contemporaries such as Matt Wilson, Larry Goldings, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Ben Allison, Ingrid Jensen, Dena Derose and Kyle Eastwood.
He also developed a reputation as a saxophonist who can accompany and work with
singers – an ability that he continues to employ currently. In addition to working with the
aforementioned pianist-vocalist DeRose and Diane Schuur, a quick
check of the Frahm discography underscores the point. Among the vocalists he has
shared the bandstand and the studio with are: Kurt Elling, Jazzmeia Horn, Jon Hendricks, Anne Hampton Callaway, Cyrille Aimee, Lainie Cooke, Jane Monheit, Janis Siegel, Lauren Kinhan, Peter Eldridge, Tessa Souter and Joan Stiles.
In 2004, Frahm, collaborated with Brad Mehldau and released Don’t Explain, which had been recorded in December of 2001 for Palmetto Records. At the time, Thomas Conrad, the veteran critic writing for Jazz Times, said in part: “…Frahm and Mehldau are notably
successful in avoiding the primary risk of saxophone and piano duo recordings, which is
their tendency to become austere, non-swinging recitals between contrapuntists. They
conduct unhurried conversations over songs, closely listening and responding, like on
‘East of the Sun.’ But they also provoke, like on ‘Oleo,’ where they push one another so
far from their starting point that their joint exercise in free thinking is conducted among
faint shadows of Sonny Rollins' idea. And the hook-up between these two classmates is
deep: On Ornette Coleman's ‘Turnaround,’ they function in and out of one another's
thoughts.
In the decade-plus, since, Frahm has become one of the more in-demand
saxophonists – certainly standing among the top-tier players in New York as well as
globally. He’s since released a number of recordings under his own name – mostly for
the Palmetto, Anzic and Smalls labels. Additionally, his contributions to others’
recordings now exceed the 100-title mark. In 2018, Joel was a part of two Grammy-
nominated CDs, Freddy Cole’s My Mood Is You, and Dafnis Prieto’s Back To The
Sunset, which won the Grammy for Best Latin Jazz Ensemble recording. In 2020, Brad
Mehldau’s “Finding Gabriel” won the Grammy for Best Jazz Recording, on which Joel
was a featured soloist. Joel is also a highly sought after educator who has been an artist
in residence at universities and jazz workshops around the world. Joel recently joined the faculty at the Texas State University jazz program and hopes to grow his saxophone studio into a desired place of study for aspiring improvisers.

Teaching Interests

In addition to his duties at Texas State, Joel recently was a guest at the Midwest Clinic music festival with the award winning Bradley Middle School band of San Antonio, under the direction of Karlos Elizondo.

Research Interests

The Joel Frahm trio also released their second critically acclaimed CD in 2024, entitled Lumination.