Cornish College of the Arts announces the appointment of jazz French hornist Tom Varner to the position of Assistant Professor of Jazz Performance.
Mr. Varner is internationally known as the foremost jazz French horn player of his generation as well as a gifted composer. As well as performing and recording with his own groups, Varner has worked with such illustrious artists as George Gruntz, Steve Lacy, Reggie Workman, Bobby Previte, John Zorn, Gil Evans, the Mingus Orchestra, Jane Ira Bloom, La Monte Young, Jim McNeeley, George Schuller, Butch Morris, McCoy Tyner, Quincy Jones, and Miles Davis. He can also be heard on over 70 CDs.
“I’m thrilled that Tom will be joining the Cornish faculty this fall,” said Music Department Chair Kent Devereaux. “The passion and enthusiasm that Tom brings to both his teaching and his playing is unparalleled. He’s an ideal fit with Cornish’s culture that emphasizes both technical mastery and innovative creativity.”
Mr. Varner joins over twenty other talented artists on Cornish’s jazz faculty including composers Jim Knapp, Jovino Santos Neto, and Wayne Horvitz, vocalist Johnaye Kendrick, pianist Randy Halberstadt, and bassist Chuck Deardorf.
Founded in 1974, the Cornish jazz program is one of the oldest and most prestigious jazz programs in the nation and boasts such distinguished alumni as Myra Melford, Eyvind Kang, Briggan Krauss, Brad Shepik, and Dawn Clement.
Cornish has a storied tradition of attracting ground-breaking artists to teach in the jazz program over the years including Gil Evans, Gary Peacock, Jay Clayton, Michael White, Anthony Braxton, Jerry Granelli, Carter Jefferson, and Art Lande. More recently this has also included visiting artist residencies by Rudresh Mahanthappa, Butch Morris, John Hollenbeck, Allison Miller, and JD Allen.