Jacob Sacks

Jacob Sacks is a New York City pianist and composer known for a distinctive, exploratory voice that moves between mainstream and creative jazz. Originally from Michigan, he came to New York to study with Garry Dial at the Manhattan School of Music and was a finalist in the 1999 Thelonious Monk International Piano Competition. His playing has been heard with the Mingus Big Band, the Paul Motian Septet and Octet, and David Binney's Balance, and he has led a longstanding trio with bassist Thomas Morgan and drummer Dan Weiss as well as a duo with vocalist Yoon Sun Choi. He has recorded for labels including Pi Recordings and Clean Feed and leads several ensembles of his own. A respected educator, he teaches at the New School and has given masterclasses internationally, drawing on his studies with Sophia Rosoff, Garry Dial, and Mark Kieswetter.