John Wasson
John Wasson
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As an instrumentalist, john has been a bass trombone performer with the Woody Herman and Stan Kenton Orchestras, the Dallas Symphony and Dallas Opera Orchestras, and the Dallas Brass. He has worked with such notable artists as Michael Bolton, Tony Bennett, Bill Conti, Cab Calloway, Reba McIntyre, Liza Minnelli, Frank Sinatra, Jr., Richard Stolzman, and Joe Williams.
In 1976 Wasson transferred to the University of North Texas. After a brief interruption of school to tour as a Bass Trombone and Tuba performer with the Stan Kenton Orchestra over the summer of 1977, he graduated in 1980 with a degree in Music Theory. Continuing as a graduate student, he became a Teaching Fellow in Jazz Arranging under Paris Rutherford, and studied composition with William Latham, while earning his Masters Degree in Trombone Performance. While at North Texas he played for 3 years with the prestigious One O'clock Lab Band, touring the United States and Europe, and playing on 4 album releases under Leon Breeden and Neil Slater. During these years he began what was to become a long-term association as a founding member of the newly-formed Dallas Brass. He also had the opportunity to perform with the Woody Herman Orchestra during their 50th Anniversary tour.
After leaving UNT, Wasson moved to Dallas and began working as a composer-arranger, low brass performer, and music copyist. He became a staff arranger for the Dallas Cowboys stadium band; he also worked as a staff arranger for Buffalo Sound Productions in Ft. Worth, where he contributed music to national ad campaigns including Radio Shack, Stop N Go, Kern's Nectars, and many others. In 1987 Wasson formed a production company with his wife Gail, and together they created film and television soundtracks for Electronic Data Systems, the Salvation Army and Zola Levitt Ministries.
Wasson has composed and arranged several works for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, two of which appear on their Delos International CD release Dallas Christmas Gala. He has composed and contributed original music for the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts Foundation's campaign to build a new Theatre and Opera House for the city of Dallas. he has continued as a composer and arranger for the Dallas Brass, having contributed works to each of their five CD releases, and producing two. Most recently he has joined forces as orchestrator and arranger with praisecharts.com, an online publisher of contemporary worship music. He has also contributed arrangements and compositions to the orchestral shows of various performing artists including the The Gatlin Bros., the Dallas Brass, Charles Lazarus, Danny Wright, Gary P. Nunn, and Dave Alexander's Big Texas Swing Band.
Mr. Wasson has composed numerous original works under commission from various ensembles and educational institutions, including the Virginia Beach Symphony, the U. S. Air Force Academy Band, and many middle- and high-school bands across the country. His numerous published works for band, orchestra and jazz ensemble are found in the catalogs of Alfred Music, Hal Leonard Corporation, Word Music, and Virgo Music. He has arranged and designed shows for numerous marching bands and drum corps, including 17 years as a staff arranger for the Purdue All-American Marching Band.
As an active low-brass performer, Wasson performs regularly with his own Strata Big Band (for which he has written or adapted nearly all the arrangements and compositions), and is a charter member of "Them Bones," a Dallas-based Jazz Trombone ensemble for over 25 years. He currently holds the position of Worship Director at a local church in the Dallas area, and continues to create music for various church settings. Wasson is a member of ASCAP, the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. He currently resides in the Dallas area with his wife Gail and their three children.
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Engaging, relevant, and specific worship arrangements made for choral groups and ensembles. These arrangements can easily show up at your door by using our print-on-demand option. Find even more songs for the worship-leading choir here.
With fully transcribed piano parts to help your pianist accompany the entire worship band, and vocal parts written out so that your lead singers are not guessing at what to sing, our charts will help eliminate the guesswork. Download piano/vocal sheet music for worship songs and hymns available for free. Find more recently added piano/vocal sheets available here.