Wayne Escoffery
Born in London, Wayne and his mother Patricia Escoffery emigrated to the United States and settled in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1986. He attended ACES Educational Center for the Arts high school.
At age eleven, Escoffery joined the New Haven Trinity Boys Choir and began taking saxophone lessons from Malcolm Dickinson. At sixteen, he left the choir and began a more intensive study of the saxophone, attending the Jazzmobile in New York City, the Neighborhood Music School in New Haven, and the ACES Educational Center for the Arts in New Haven. During his senior year in high school, he attended the Artists Collective, Inc. in Hartford, Connecticut. He met Jackie McLean, a well-known alto saxophonist active in Hartford's jazz scene, and the founder of the jazz program at The Hartt School.
Escoffery was awarded a full scholarship to attend The Hartt School, where he studied with McLean for four years, and earned a bachelor's degree in Jazz Performance summa cum laude in 1997. He then attended the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Performance at the New England Conservatory in Boston from 1997 to 1999. During this time, he toured with Herbie Hancock and performed and studied with several jazz greats. In 1999, he graduated with a master's degree and moved to New York to begin his professional career.
Born in London, Wayne and his mother Patricia Escoffery emigrated to the United States and settled in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1986. He attended ACES Educational Center for the Arts high school.
At age eleven, Escoffery joined the New Haven Trinity Boys Choir and began taking saxophone lessons from Malcolm Dickinson. At sixteen, he left the choir and began a more intensive study of the saxophone, attending the Jazzmobile in New York City, the Neighborhood Music School in New Haven, and the ACES Educational Center for the Arts in New Haven. During his senior year in high school, he attended the Artists Collective, Inc. in Hartford, Connecticut. He met Jackie McLean, a well-known alto saxophonist active in Hartford's jazz scene, and the founder of the jazz program at The Hartt School.
Escoffery was awarded a full scholarship to attend The Hartt School, where he studied with McLean for four years, and earned a bachelor's degree in Jazz Performance summa cum laude in 1997. He then attended the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Performance at the New England Conservatory in Boston from 1997 to 1999. During this time, he toured with Herbie Hancock and performed and studied with several jazz greats. In 1999, he graduated with a master's degree and moved to New York to begin his professional career.