For Borderlands Trio search under “Borderlands Trio”. Stephan Crump, a Memphis-born bassist, is one of the newest players on the NYC Jazz scene. He is a jazz musician who has worked as a sideman for major jazz artists, urban explorers, and singer/songwriters. His acoustic- and electric bass playing has earned him a reputation for his elegance and purposeful groove. He is a unique composer. Stephan is a composer who has overcome the barriers of musical genre. He has recorded and performed across the US with a variety of musicians, including Motown legends Ashford, Simpson, Portishead’s Dave McDonald and The Violent Femmes’ Gordon Gano. Stephan is a member of the Vijay Iyer Quartet and the Liberty Ellman Quartet. He also sings with Joel Harrison’s Harbor and Jen Chapin’s band. Stephan continues to be a full-time composer and performer, despite his busy schedule, which includes studio work for television and film. His compositions can also be heard on Miramax and HBO, Showtime and Bravo, Granada America and Simple Focus Films. He has also released three albums as a leader, Poems and Other Things and Rosetta. The latter two have had a strong impact on jazz radio playlists throughout the country, and received great critical acclaim. Stephan is a writer, arranger, and producer of his own music. He has also been collaborating with Jen Chapin (singer/songwriter) for many years, beginning with Linger and Ready Hybrid Recordings, and then continuing with Light of Mine. Stephan was raised in music. His mother was a Paris-born amateur pianist and his Memphis-born father was an architect and jazz drummer. They had a home rich in both their Southern and French cultures. Stephan began studying classical piano and the alto saxophone for two years. He soon picked up the bass guitar when he was thirteen years old and was playing in many groups, festivals and touring the U.S. by the time he graduated high school. His own jazz/rock band was performing and recording his original compositions. Stephan earned his Bachelor of Music from Amherst College. He studied with Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Lewis Spratlin, and was awarded Sundquist Prizes for composition and performance. He began to study the acoustic basse while at Amherst. His focus was on classical training, which culminated in a year spent studying abroad in Paris with Patrick Hardouineau. Stephan studied jazz at Amherst, where he worked with jazz legends Max Roach and Frank Foster. After leaving Amherst he traveled the U.S. with the Tommy Dorsey band before moving to New York. Stephan continued his studies in New York with Michael Moore, a bass virtuoso. From stephancrump.com
