Composers & Arrangers - Michael Johancsik

Michael Johancsik is a Calgary-born saxophonist, multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger and teacher, living in Montreal, Quebec. When he was 11 years old, he was given his first saxophone by his grandfather, whose deep love for the jazz tradition, especially big-toned swing tenor players like Coleman Hawkins and Chu Berry, would be a lasting influence and inspiration.

Michael’s own music is an expression of his love for jazz, particularly the idiosyncratic sounds of Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn and Charles Mingus, and its ability to incorporate stylistic and sonic elements from the music of other cultures. It is this desire to search for new sounds within the jazz idiom that led Michael to form his new septet, featuring the unique instrumentation of saxophone, trumpet, flute/voice, cello, piano, bass, and drums. The ensemble, formed in early 2019, has recorded a full-length debut album set to be released in 2021.

He is currently active as a freelance performer, writer, and teacher in Montreal. He is a permanent member of many different musical groups, including the Laura Anglade Quintet, l’Ensemble Alex Le Blanc, The Oops Kitchen, the Taylor Donaldson Octet and Big Band as a performer as well as contributing composer & arranger, and leading his own small groups.