Rising saxophonist Mike Casey is bringing jazz to mainstream audiences through a mix of blazing talent, stealth marketing skills, and lots of heart. In the first two years of his recording career, Mike’s music passed 2 million streams and has been featured on Spotify’s most popular jazz playlist, “State of Jazz.”
After discovering the saxophone in 5th grade, Mike pursued his craft and studied at the Hartt School of Music at the University of Hartford. Before graduating in 2015, he was one of 24 young composers chosen from a worldwide talent pool to participate in the Betty Carter Jazz Ahead Program at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. He has since continued his tutelage through collaborations with musicians like Benito Gonzalez, Justin Faulkner, and Marc Cary.
In 2016, Mike’s crowdfunding campaign for his debut album, The Sound of Surprise, was funded by 124%. After releasing that album in 2017, he followed it up with 2018’s Stay Surprising. His music and thought leadership have since been sought after and featured in the Huffington Post, Forbes, Apple Music, Soundcloud, and many more.
“One lifetime is not nearly enough to master music,” Mike recently told Songtrust. “Pay attention to nuance. This is what separates the OK from the good, and the good from the great. Another key thing I wish I realized when I was younger: You sound like you today, the process is working on sounding like a better you.”
Recently, Mike has continued his “Surprise” remix project, collaborating with producers from around the world to reimagine his past work by way of electronic soundscape. On June 14th, he released the Wyldephyre remix of his take on John Coltrane’s song, “Miles Mode.” The original Coltrane composition features a 12 tone row, meaning it uses all 12 notes on the chromatic scale in one musical line.
Check out the remix below:
Keep up with Mike:
- Website: http://www.mikecaseyjazz.com/
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/mikecasey
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mikecaseyjazz/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/mikecaseyjazz
