BIO

Three-time Downbeat Magazine Student Music Award winner, Gabe Condon, is a guitarist, composer, and educator. Gabe served as the Instructor of Jazz and Classical Guitar at Washington State University (WSU) from 2019–2021. He is currently pursuing a DMA in Jazz and Contemporary Improvisation at the University of Michigan.

Gabe is passionate about developing a critical jazz pedagogy curriculum which supports students of all identities. In the summer of 2022, he will collaborate with the European Roma Institute for Arts and Culture (ERIAC) in Berlin, Germany to research the pedagogy methods of Sinti jazz musicians. He will also work closely with the leadership team at ERIAC to assist them in their mission of combatting discrimination against Roma communities through arts education.

While working at WSU, he developed novel ways to engage students through remote learning. In an effort to foster a community of songwriters from the broader WSU community, he led Songwriters Roundtable sessions on Zoom in the Spring of 2020. These events were recognized by the WSU College of Arts and Sciences and the WSU Daily Evergreen student newspaper.

Prior to his appointment at WSU, Gabe was a Lecturer of Jazz Studies at Ithaca College from 2017–2019. Gabe also taught at the Eastman Community Music School in Rochester, New York, and in the Dominican Republic at FEDUJAZZ and Sociedad Cultural Renovación.

In addition to teaching, he continues to compose, present, and perform nationally. Gabe’s pieces have been performed by the Rochester Chamber Music Society, the Eastman Jazz Ensemble, and the Eastman Studio Orchestra. He has arranged orchestral pieces featuring guest artists including Michael Dease, Jeff Coffin, Eddie Daniels, Andrés Forero, Christian Howes, and Jane Monheit.

Gabe led a clinic entitled “Jazz Improvisation Using Motivic Development” at the national Jazz Education Network Conference (JEN) in 2019, and offered a research presentation on "Charlie Parker’ Connection to Hip-Hop” at the 2020 JEN Conference.

In 2014, he won first place in the Wilson Center International Guitar Competition in the Jazz Division. In 2017 and 2018, he accompanied the U.S. Presidential Scholars for performances at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C.. He has performed at the Rochester International Jazz Festival, and in New York City at venues such as Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, St. Peter’s "Jazz" Church, and The Bitter End.

Gabe holds a Bachelor’s of Music in Jazz and Contemporary Media (Performance) and a Master’s of Music in Jazz and Contemporary Media (Composition and Arranging) from the Eastman School of Music.