Johnny Alegre
| Johnny Alegre | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Juan Bautista Alegre |
| Born |
June 4, 1955 Manila, Philippines |
| Genres | Jazz, world fusion |
| Occupation(s) | Musician |
| Instruments | Guitar |
| Labels | Candid, MCA |
| Associated acts | Johnny Alegre Affinity, HUMANFOLK, Absolute Zero, U.P. Jazz Ensemble |
| Website | www |
Juan Bautista H. Alegre (III) (born June 4, 1955), known professionally as Johnny Alegre, is a jazz guitarist and composer from Manila, Philippines. He leads the jazz group Johnny Alegre AFFINITY and the world music group HUMANFOLK.
Johnny Alegre attended the University of the Philippines College of Music in the latter 1970s, where he studied composition and was a founding member of the U.P. Jazz Ensemble. He studied with the jazz educator Dr. Joseph Howard and pianist Fred Robles, and participated in creative workshops by musicologist-composer Erhard Karkoschka, guitarist Ike Isaacs and composer-scholar Chou Wen-chung.
Alegre's involvement in bands and studio recording sessions, both as a musician and record producer, spans more than thirty years of Philippine jazz and popular music history and discography. In May 2002, Johnny Alegre formed the Johnny Alegre AFFINITY, with bassist Colby de la Calzada, drummer Koko Bermejo, pianist Elhmir Saison and saxophonist Tots Tolentino. Their first recorded work, "Stones Of Intramuros", written by Alegre, was included in the limited edition Philippine jazz anthology CD, Adobo Jazz Vol.1, which caught the attention of the U.K.-based jazz record company, Candid Records. Subsequently, the self-titled album, Johnny Alegre AFFINITY was released in the Philippines in mid-2005 and was re-released in England for global distribution as Jazzhound, capped by two sold-out engagements in London's PizzaExpress Jazz Club with guest saxophonist, Dimitri Vassilakis.
The greater part of 2006 and early 2007 Alegre and AFFINITY developed Eastern Skies, an album of original compositions, set to the symphonic backdrop of the Global Studio Orchestra conducted by Gerard Salonga. The project was released in 2008 by Candid Records (Philippines).
In 2009, a trio recording, in which the Alegre was joined by American jazz musicians, Billy Hart (drums) and Ron McClure (bass), was released by MCA Music (Universal Music Group), entitled Johnny Alegre 3. The album also marked Alegre's induction into the MCA roster as its first jazz artist from the Philippines.
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