Rob Brown (Saxophone)

Rob Brown was born and raised in Hampton VA. At a young age, he was introduced to the music of Charlie Parker and Eric Dolphy and began performing with traveling jazz-blues bands by age 16.

Rob moved to New York in 1984 and established the musical relationships that came to define his career : pianist Matthew Shipp whom he met in Boston in 1982  and in 1984 he met William Parker. In 1989 they recorded a cd for Silkheart and Rob’s trio that included Denis Charles.

Rob quickly became an important member of William Parker’s many ensembles in a relationship that has continued for almost 30 years, touring Europe and the US and recording at least 20 albums. The most prolific and steadily working of those groups is Parker’s quartets and quintets. Rob is also a key member of William Parker’s Little Huey Creative Music Orchestra since its inception in the early 1990’s. Rob and drummer Whit Dickey started playing together in the late eighties which led to a trio with guitarist Joe Morris and others.

Recent collaborators include cellist Daniel Levin, Kenny Warren, Satoshi Takeshi, and Juan P Carletti. In the 2011 Rob toured Europe with the recently deceased revolutionary poet with Amiri Baraka.

Rob Brown is a 2001 CalArts/Alpert/ Ucross Residency Prize winner and has received many Meet The Composer Fund grants. In 2006 Rob was awarded a Chamber Music America New Works grant.

Rob Brown is a founding Vision Core Artist which not only exemplifies Vision’s aesthetics but is also tasked with the responsibility to maintain the idéals and aesthetics that has made Vision Great and long lasting.