Mark Gross BLACKSIDE

MUSICIANS
Mark Gross - Alto & Soprano Saxophones
Freddie Hendrix - Trumpet & Flugelhorn
Cyrus Chestnut - Piano
Yotam - Guitars
Dezron Douglas - Bass
Greg Hutchinson - Drums
Vanderlei Pereira - Percussion

Produced by: John Lee
Executive Producer: Lisa Broderick

Release: 2015
Price: $10.00

BLACKSIDE. Another jazz geography lesson: What city has incubated such talents as Billy Eckstein, Gary Bartz, Antonio Hart, and the Harper Brothers? Why, Baltimore, naturally, and not-so-coincidentally alto and soprano saxophonist Mark Gross bedsides. After leaving his mark (no pun intended…really) on over 80 jazz recordings, Gross passes another milestone, his third, most ambitious, and perhaps best album thus far, Blackside.

Born 1966, Mark Gross was literally baptized in music—the sanctified sounds of gospel reverberated through the Gross household. His father was the Pastor of his hometown church Mt. Zion C.O.G.I.C. up until his passing February 1, 2007. While his father gave the young Mark a grounding in the classic tenor tradition—Ben Webster, Dexter Gordon, Coleman Hawkins—brother-trumpeter Vincent helped him to the post bop sounds of Lee Morgan and brother Norwood Jr. to the sleek, vibrant funk of the Brothers Johnson, Curtis Mayfield, and Kool & the Gang. After developing his interests in classical music at the Baltimore School for the Arts, Mark studied four years at Berklee College of Music and got his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Music Performance.