SongVault Artist Profile

Mark
 DeJong
 is 
 a
 multi-instrumentalist,
 composer
 and
 band
 leader,
 and
 is
 also
 a
 founding
 member
 of
 the
 Outer
 Bridge
 Ensemble.
 He
 has 
 performed
 throughout 
 the
 United
 States,
 Canada,
 Europe
 and
 Japan
 and
 has
 shared
 the
 stage
 with
 such
 luminaries
 as
 Ray
 Charles,
 Rob
 McConnell,
 Lenny 
 Pickett,
 Hugh
 Fraser,
 Kenny 
 Wheeler 
 and
 Sean
 Jones.
 He
 has 
 participated
 in
 the
 renowned
 Banff 
 Jazz
 Orchestra
 Workshop,
 and
 is 
 active
 as
 a
 performer internationally and across North America.

“The Unknown” features pianist Steve Hudson, bassist Mike Norrdzy, drummer Jerome Jennings and percussionist David Freeman, and reached number 2 on the Canadian campus and community radio top 20 jazz albums for 2008!

Here's what some people are saying about "The Unknown"

"Mr. Dejong congratulations on a stunning cd. Swinging jazz at its best indeed, delivered with style and panache from a wonderful outfit led by your virtuoso saxophone playing. Stunning reed sir, stunning. Your compositions are electric and engaging. The tempo and delivery is faultless. Will it get air-play here on the leading jazz show? Yes it will, and then the listeners will hear what l have had the absolute pleasure of listening to! Congratulations on an absolute gem of a cd..."

Peter Merrett PBS 106-7 FM Melbourne, Australia

“...The Unknown” focuses on the power of Mark’s tenor saxophone, whose sound remains in the foreground during the epic creations on the album. The piano and wurlitzer provide roundness and a gloomy, hidden feeling, while the solid rhythm section drives through occasional deconstruction and dramatic switches. What makes this album so good is it’s capacity to innovate while remaining accessible, and to produce a sound that goes well with standards while sounding like an album composed and produced today".

François-Samuel Fortin, Jazz Director CHYZ 94.3 - Université Laval, Quebec

..."It's been a pleasure to receive your CD,to know and to promote your music, so full of energy and poetry. It isnt a simple exhibition of good technic, but a communication of sincere "feeling" that arrives directly to the sensible listener.

Bruno Pollacci, AnimaJazz, Puntoradio FM, Italy

Recorded at Peter Karl Studios in Brooklyn, NY,“The Unknown” features six of DeJong’s original compositions as well as two well-known standards. The tunes demonstrate a compelling mix of funky bass lines with odd-meter arranging, infectious grooves and hard-hitting yet cohesive solos.
Produced by DeJong, the mixing was done by engineer Wayne Giesbrecht, and the mastering was completed by Greg Calbi at Sterling Sound in New York.