Congratulations to University of Connecticut student Michael Farina for winning the Downbeat Student Music Award for Undergraduate College Outstanding Performance on tenor saxophone. Michael is a freshman studying under John Mastroianni in the Jazz Studies program at UCONN.

The DownBeat awards are considered among the most coveted honors in the music industry. Entries are judged on the basis of ability as demonstrated on the candidate’s recordings. Among the criteria considered are musicianship, creativity, improvisation, technique and excitement. The judges are all respected professional musicians and educators. All entries are judged “blind” (no student, group or school names identified).

I reached out to Michael Farina to learn more about his background, interest in jazz music and plans for the future. This is what he had to say:

HJS: Where did you begin your jazz education and what were your earliest influences that formed your interest in pursuing music?

Michael: I got into jazz (and into music more seriously in general) because of my two wonderful band directors at Scarsdale Middle School (Scarsdale, NY) Mr. Nick Lieto and Dr. Jessica Slotwinski. Their passion for music was infectious and when Mr. Lieto encouraged me to join the school’s jazz band in 7th grade, he began introducing me to the recordings of Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, Dizzy Gillespie, etc. I remember playing an arrangement of Sonny Rollins’ “St. Thomas” and finding Rollins’ inventive solo on the recording to be incredibly captivating and exciting to listen to.

HJS: Which artists and recordings were most influential in developing your own playing style and direction on the tenor saxophone?

Michael: Early on, I began listening to some famous recordings, like Blue Train, Giant Steps, Kind of Blue, Go, and Somethin’ Else. Those albums were hugely influential in helping develop my love of this music. That is also where I discovered my musical idol and favorite musician of all-time, John Coltrane. The passion, energy, and inventiveness with which he plays are unmatched, and there is an indescribable beauty and honesty in his music. That magical quality had a profound effect on me on a deeply personal level as well as a musical one.  

HJS: Currently, how are your studies going at UCONN, and in what direction do you see for the future of your education and career?

Michael: As of right now, I have just finished my freshman year at the University of Connecticut studying under John Mastroianni, where I am enrolled in the school’s BM in Jazz Studies. I have also recently completed an article about John Coltrane’s blues playing that is pending review for publication in CMEA’s magazine. As for my plans for the future, I would like to start finding more ways and places to perform outside just of school and camps, and I would like to find further opportunities to write about the music.