Colin Stetson
Biography
Colin Stetson (born March 3, 1975) is an American saxophonist, multi-instrumentalist and composer based in Montreal, Quebec. He is known for his collaborations with musical acts including Arcade Fire, Bon Iver, Bell Orchestre and Ex Eye. In addition to the saxophone, he plays the clarinet, bass clarinet, French horn, flute and cornet. His solo discography includes the "New History Warfare" trilogy, the collaborative album "Never Were the Way She Was" (2015), "Sorrow: A Reimagining of Henryk Górecki's 3rd Symphony" (2016), "All This I Do for Glory" (2017), "Chimæra I" (2022), "When We Were That What Wept for the Sea" (2023) and "The Love It Took to Leave You" (2024). Since 2013, he has composed music for several films and television series.
Stetson was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and began taking music lessons at the age of 15. He attended the University of Michigan School of Music on a full scholarship, where he joined Transmission Trio. He also performed with the groups Boostamonte and the People's Bizarre.
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Throughout his career, Stetson has performed and recorded with numerous musicians and bands, including Tom Waits, Arcade Fire, TV on the Radio, Feist and Bon Iver. His saxophone playing incorporates extended techniques such as circular breathing, multiphonics, altissimo, microtones, vocalizations, percussive valve work, key clicking and growling. These techniques have contributed to the distinctive sound of his recordings and film scores. Reviewing the score for the film "Hereditary", The New Yorker's Anthony Lane described its sound as seemingly "scored for violins, percussion, a humpback whale, and bats."
Stetson released his debut solo album, "New History Warfare Vol. 1", in 2008. His second album, "New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges", was released by Constellation Records in 2011. The album was named to the longlist for the 2011 Polaris Music Prize in June and was subsequently shortlisted in July. In December 2011, Stetson performed at the All Tomorrow's Parties festival in Minehead, England, following an invitation from Neutral Milk Hotel frontman Jeff Mangum, who curated that edition of the festival.
The third album in the "New History Warfare" series, "New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light", was released by Constellation Records in April 2013 and was named to the longlist for the 2013 Polaris Music Prize.
In April 2015, Stetson released "Never Were the Way She Was", a collaborative album with violinist Sarah Neufeld, his then wife and longtime musical collaborator. In 2016, he released "Sorrow: A Reimagining of Henryk Górecki's 3rd Symphony", an interpretation of Henryk Górecki's Symphony No. 3. His album "All This I Do for Glory" followed on April 28, 2017.
In 2022, Stetson released "Chimæra I", an album influenced by drone music. In 2023, he released the minimalist album "When We Were That What Wept for the Sea". His album "The Love It Took to Leave You" was released in September 2024.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colin_Stetson
Biography text from Last.fm, available under CC BY-SA.