Ron Aprea is a very accomplished professional for someone who was just starting out with saxophones. You read that right, Ron Aprea was a talented saxophone player who thought he would be playing clarinet. Ron was raised in Astoria, NY. He clearly recalls watching Pete Fountain play the clarinet live on television. Ron was inspired to play and went to Mr. Cahill, his elementary school band director. He asked Ron to play the saxophone, which he believed to be Pete’s instrument. That’s what the school gave Ron. This little error has made Jazz a world-class genre. Ron continued to play through his school years and at 16 he bought his first alto saxophone. He began lessons in a studio just across the street from Radio City Music Hall. Ron also frequented the Birdland Jazz Club in Broadway during this period. He spent a lot time at the club, listening to the Big Band and Jazz legends such as Blakey’s Jazz Messengers and Count Basie. They would be huge influences on Ron’s life. Ron met Frank Foster at Birdland, where he played with and arranged music for Count Basie. The two would become lifelong friends. Ron has many treasured possessions, including a collection original arrangements Frank wrote for Basie’s band. Frank then gave Ron copies to his band. Ron spent many years honing his musical skills. He has played with legendary musicians like Woody Herman and Tito Puente. He was able to record a performance at Smithsonian Institute while playing with Hamp. Ron’s solos were recorded and placed in their Archives. Ron was part of an All-Star group that performed at the 2001 Charlie Parker Birthday Tribute. He was also featured at the Paramount Theatre as well as the Apollo Theatre. Ron performed extensively in 1998. He was featured at the University of Idaho’s Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival and as a special guest with Hamp’s Big Band, performing for thousands at the Planting Fields Arboretum, New York. His wife Angela DeNiro, a jazz singer, received a standing ovation during the event. 1998 saw Ron receive 8 GRAMMY nominations for his production of Angela’s album “Swingin’ With Legends”. Angela and Ron’s collaboration was a success on more than a personal level. Angela frequently hears Ron’s arrangements, compositions and production skills on her CDs. The couple won BET-TV’s 2001 “Jazz Discovery Contest” and were judged by Chick Corea, a jazz legend. For two years, they hosted a weekly jazz radio program called “Rush Hour Rendezvous” (WSHR) on WSHR (New York). Angela and Ron headlined the Les Nuits du Jazz Festival in Nantes France, where their son Matt was a guest violinist. Ron was always in demand to arrange and perform on numerous albums throughout his career. He finally released his own album in June 2013 in tribute to Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers. Ron was inspired by the “in your face” Blakey style from his Birdland days to create the album. The album’s title is “Ron Aprea Quartet – Remembering Blakey”. The album includes two of his original songs: “Sophia”, which he wrote for his granddaughter, and “For Pete’s Sake”, which he wrote for Pete Chivily, his close friend and bassist. Ron Aprea’s latest project is a tribute to the next level. Ron Aprea was invited to a New York session by Steve Madaio (Stevie Wonder/Rolling Stones trumpet player). It turned out that Ron was working on John Lennon’s “Walls and Bridges”, and Ron joined the “Little Big Horns” horn section. Ron enjoyed working with the Beatle and his music. Ron and John Lennon became friends during the project, and Ron still has many fond memories of the experience. Later in his career Ron was invited to perform for Ginger Broderick’s weekly television show, which airs live from New York every Friday. Ron was aware that Ginger loved the Beatles and decided to “jazz up” a few Lennon songs. Ginger was so overwhelmed that Ron decided it was time to create his own versions of Lennon songs. Ron searched the Beatles catalogue and created a long-overdue tribute to John Lennon in 2014.
