Byron Asher
Jazz Clarinetist, Saxophonist, Composer, & Improviser
Recipient Information
Location
New Orleans, Louisiana
Medium
Jazz Clarinet, Saxophone, & Composition
Project Title
Skrontch Music
Year of Award
2020
Grant or Fellowship
Jazz Road Tours Grant
Grant Amount
$8,000
Performances
- University of Mississippi Center for the Study of Southern Culture. March 5, 2020. Oxford MS
- AND Gallery. March 6, 2020. Jackson MS
- Church of the Sacred Ear at Electric Magnolia Studios. March 7, 2020. Grand Coteau LA
About the Artist
Byron Asher is a clarinetist and saxophonist, composer and improviser based in New Orleans.
Raised in Maryland, he has performed across Europe and the US. Festivals include the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival and French Quarter Festival, the Montreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland, Jazz a Vienne, France, and the Karlovy Vary Jazz Festival, Czech Republic. He has also played shows and festivals in Germany, Poland, and Slovakia and performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC.
As a composer, Byron’s work has been supported by the MacDowell Colony, A Studio In The Woods (New Orleans), the Jazz And Heritage Foundation (New Orleans), the Foundation for Contemporary Arts (NYC), the Marigny Opera Ballet (New Orleans), and the Puffin Foundation (Teaneck, NJ).
Byron holds an M.M. in jazz studies from the University of New Orleans and can be seen regularly performing in New Orleans. He is one-third of Nutria, a trio dedicated to original instrumental music and named in honor of the swamp rat, and leads ensembles large and small.
