Mossman, Michael
Mossman, Michael
Mossman, Michael, jazz trumpeter, trombonist, composer; b. Philadelphia, Pa., Oct. 12, 1959. His father was a Theremin player; Mossman studied at Oberlin, and then privately with Vincent Cichowicz of the Chicago Symphony. He left Chicago to get his masters at Rutgers Univ. in the mid-1970s, studying arranging with Don Sebesky. His first recordings (1978–83) were with Anthony Braxton, Leo Smith, and Roscoe Mitchell. He lived in Chicago from 1982–83, working in jazz groups and with the Chicago Chamber Orch. as a classical soloist. In 1983, he settled in N.Y., and has since worked with a wide variety of groups, both jazz and classical. From 1984–90, he was a featured member of Out of the Blue, Blue Note Records’ attempt at a “house” combo. He has played numerous big bands, including stints with Michael Camillo (from 1985 on), Toshiko Akiyoshi (from 1987), Horace Silver (from 1989), and Chico O’Farrill (during the 1990s). In the 1980s and 1990s, he taught part-time at Rutgers, directing the jazz ensemble there, and in fall 1997 was named head of the Jazz Dept. at Queens Coll.
Discography
Granulate (1990).
—Michael Fitzgerald/Lewis Porter