Jonah Parzen-Johnson

Who is Jonah Parzen-Johnson?

Jonah Parzen-Johnson is a baritone saxophonist based in Brooklyn, New York. He was born in Chicago, Illinois and grew up on Chicago's South Side. He completed a Bachelor's of Music in jazz studies at New York University in 2010, and a Masters of Music in jazz saxophone at Manhattan School of Music in 2012. In Chicago, Parzen-Johnson studied under members of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians including Mwata Bowden.

He is a member of Zongo Junction, a Brooklyn Afrobeat ensemble, for which he performs and composes. Jonah Parzen-Johnson performs regularly as a solo saxophonist and his music for solo baritone saxophone and analog synthesizer, which often references the town of Michiana Shores Indiana, balances simple melodic passages with extended techniques including circular breathing, multiphonics, and overtones. Parzen-Johnson's solo music explores his interest in folk music and avant-jazz.

Since 2013, Parzen-Johnson has performed with an analog synthesizer built around a Moog Synthesizer VCO, and Dave Smith Instruments Mopho Module. His self-assembled synthesizer is built to follow the volume of his saxophone and a set of pedals he plays with his feet.