Damien Masterson Jazz Ensemble performs at the Jazz Station in Eugene
Heavily steeped in Jazz, Latin and African styles, Masterson's music is an amalgamation of these different genres.
- Damien Masterson chromatic harmonica, saxophones, and vocals
- Robert Bohall keyboards
- Eli Hansen bass
- Nik Barber drums
At the age of 14, inspired by Blues masters Sonny Boy Williamson, Little Walter and Sonny Terry, Damien Masterson started playing diatonic harmonica. At 16, he received as a gift an alto saxophone, and applied the theory learned through sax lessons to another recent gift, the chromatic harmonica. Around that same time he was introduced to Altaneze Taylor, the founder of Bright Moments Music Lovers Club. Through her organization, he met and studied with professional musicians and learned about Jazz history and culture. As an adult he entered Laney College and studied with Ed Kelly. He later participated in an exchange program (aka “Intercambio”) in Sao Paulo, Brazil, where he lived, studied, and played for the next two years.
Upon returning from Brazil he was soon playing in the Bay Area’s top clubs with the area’s best Brazilian and Jazz musicians, resulting in the 1996 debut CD release, “Intercambio,” inspired by his overseas adventures. In 1997, after nine consecutive visits to Havana, Cuba, Damien produced “Cubacambio,” taking his passion for World Music, Jazz and Pop and melding them into one vision. “Cubacambio” is one of the first recordings featuring chromatic harmonica in an authentic Cuban setting.
