Jean Toussaint

Toussaint on tenor saxophone

Jean Toussaint (born July 27, 1960) is a jazz tenor saxophonist. He was born in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands.

Toussaint learned to play calypso as a child, and attended the Berklee College of Music in the late 1970s. In 1979 he played with Wallace Roney, and from 1982 to 1986 he was a member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, for which he is best known. Since 1987 he has lived in London, where he has taught at Guildhall School of Music and Drama and performed with many local musicians, in addition to internationally known jazz players such as Wynton Marsalis, McCoy Tyner, and the Gil Evans Orchestra. He has also taught at Trinity College of Music and the Birmingham Conservatory.

Discography

• Impressions of Coltrane
• What Goes Around, (World Circuit, 1991)
• Whose Blues
• Life I Want with Darren Abraham, Wayne Batchelor, Ciyo Brown, Winston Clifford, Mark Mondesir, Jean-Michel Pilc, Jason Rebello, Tony Remy, Dennis Rollins, Nana Tsiboe, Karl Van Den Bossche, Cleveland Watkiss (New Note, 1996)
• Back To Back
• Nazaire Who's Blues with Nick Cohen, Julian Joseph, Jason Rebello, Tony Remym, Karl Van Den Bossche, Steve Washington (Jazz House, 1996)
• The Street Above The Underground (BMG, 2000)
• Blue Black with Anga Diaz, Robert Hurst, Mulgrew Miller, Bill Mobley, Jeff "Tain" Watts (Blue Geodesics, 2002)
• Continuum 'Act One' with Gary Bartz, Donald Brown, Bill Mobley, Billy Kilson, Esiet Esiet

References

• Scott Yanow, Jean Toussaint at Allmusic