Frank Wagner
Musician / Educator / Composer
ABOUT ME
Frank Wagner was born in Levittown, New York. Graduating in 1980, Frank attended Berklee College of Music in Boston, studying jazz bass with Steve Swallow and Ron McClure as well as classical music with William Curtis from the Boston Philharmonic and Walter Botti of the New York Philharmonic. During the following two years, he began his professional career while studying brass and percussion instruments at Hofstra University. He has performed all over the world in a host of musical settings including all star jazz bands, Broadway shows, national tours, recording sessions, cabaret, society bands, and classical orchestras. Some of the big bands Frank has toured with are: Buddy Rich, Larry Elgart's Manhattan Swing Orchestra, Glenn Miller and Clem Derosa's All Stars.
Mr. Wagner has played numerous Broadway shows, jingle sessions, society orchestras and classical chamber groups. He has taught music throughout his career in a variety of capacities. Mr. Wagner served as a faculty member at the Rudolf Steiner School in New York City. He has played in many small jazz band settings including: Tiny Grimes, Milt Jackson, Ray Nance, Gary Smulyan, Earth Kitt, Bobby Sanabria, Joe Puma, Johnny Ray, Eddie Fisher, and Carrie Smith to name a few. In 1989, Mr. Wagner returned to formal study and entered the City College of New York as an art major with a minor in psychology. While at City College Frank studied with Ron Carter privately and played in his bass ensemble. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1993, Magna Cum Laude and was admitted into Phi Beta Kappa.
In 1995, Mr. Wagner was accepted into NYU’s Music Therapy program and in 1997 graduated with a Master’s Degree in Art. For the past 20 years, he has been practicing music therapy at Brooklyn's Woodhull Hospital in Inpatient Psychiatry and Chemical Dependency department. He is an adjunct professor at Queensborough Community College and a Visiting professor at Pratt Institute, teaching composition, jazz theory and music therapy.
For the past 12 years Mr. Wagner can be heard on many cd's of Eugene Marlow's Heritage Jazz Ensemble at eugenemarlow.com/the-heritage-ensemble/. This ensemble specializes in playing Israeli folk tunes in an African Cuban genre. Under the management of Ann Braithwaite, Frank's past album with his group Primary Colours, "Past, Present and Future" on Jazzheads Records received acclaimed recognition winning Herb Wong's Blue Chip CD award. Mr. Wagner's latest recording entitled, "Floating Holiday" on meii records has also received stellar reviews.
UPCOMING GIGS
Sat June 22,2024/Elkhart Jazz Festival 1:00-2:15 Lerner Theater/Emily Cavanagh Trio
Thurs June 20,2024/Shubas Tavern Chicago 3159 N Southport Ave/Emily Cavanagh Trio
Mon June 17,2024/ Lee Glantz Trio/Yale Club Library Concert/7:00-8:00PM/ Music of Cole Porter
Sat June 8,2024 / Cole Porter Festival Peru Indiana / Lee Glantz Trio
Sat Feb 17,2024 / Darrow School New lebanon New York / Master Class with Bruce cox, Sirena Bach
Fri 16, 2024 / Darrow School New lebanon New York / Master Class with Bruce cox, Sirena Bach
Sun Feb 11,2024/ Recording session @ Benny’s Wash’n Dry/ Emily Cavanagh
Sun Jan. 14,2024/ Lee Glantz Duo Jericho Library / The music of Burt Bacharach
Sun Dec 31,2023 / NYE @ Junoon 19 West 24th Street Rich Jenkins duo 7:00 to 12:00PM
Thursday Dec. 14,2023 / Rich Jenkins Duo/River Club
Oct 30, 2023 / Emily Cavanagh & KJ Denhert / Hill Country 30 West 26 NYC
Oct 28, 2023 / Recording session with Emily Cavanagh at Benny’s Wash N’Dry Brooklyn NY
Tues Oct 24, 2023 / An Evening of Cabaret with Sandra Benee / Players Club 16 Gramercy Park NYC / Chris Coogan piano
Sat Sept.30,2023 / Thursday Morning Poets with 100 Thousand Poets for Change / 91st St. Community Garden in Riverside Park UWS / Music by Lee Glantz Duo
Tues Sept.05,2023 / Yale Club Dixie Stompers/Yale Club Library Concert/Dan Block,CJ Everett,John Cantrell/NYC
Fri June 09, 2023 / Lee Glantz Duo playing Cole Porter His Life His Songs/ National Opera Center NYC
Fri June 23, 2023 / Emily Cavanagh Trio / Elkhart Jazz Festival. Elkhart, Indiana
Sat June 24, 2023 / Emily Cavanagh Trio / Elkhart Jazz Festival. Elkhart, Indiana
Thu April 13, 2023 / Emily Cavanagh / Rockwood Music Hall. Stage 3. New York City
Sat Feb 18, 2023 / Frank Wagner Quintet featuring Gerard D’Angelo and Kathy Farmer / Bayside Historical Society
Mon Feb 13, 2023 / Alan Bates Trio featuring Ray Mac / Horace Mann School, Riverdale, NY
PAST GIGS
Sat Dec 31, 2022 / Rich Jenkins duo-New Year’s Eve / Junoon 19 W. 24th St. New York, NY
Sun Dec 18, 2022 / Kurt Wieting duo / Private party NYC
Mon Dec 12, 2022 / Lee Glantz duo / Union Club NYC
Fri June 2, 2022 / Debra Kaye composer with Dan Block, Steve Sandberg and David Meade / Recording of Colossus 1067 at Oktaven Audio Mt. Vernon NY
Fri March 20, 2020 / Kurt Wieting Trio / Harvard Club, New York City
Fri June 19, 2020 / Emily Cavanagh Trio / Elkhart Jazz Festival. Elkhart, Indiana
Sat June 20, 2020 / Emily Cavanagh Trio / Elkhart Jazz Festival. Elkhart, Indiana
Sun June 21, 2020 / Emily Cavanagh Trio / Elkhart Jazz Festival. Elkhart, Indiana
Mon June 22, 2020 / Emily Cavanagh Trio / Elkhart Jazz Festival. Elkhart, Indiana
Tues June 23, 2020 / Emily Cavanagh Trio / Elkhart Jazz Festival. Elkhart, Indiana
Wed Mar 11, 2020 12pm / St. Peters Mid-day Jazz 619 Lexington Ave 54/55th Streets, New York City
Fri Jan 31, 2020 8:30pm-12:30am / Junoon 27 W 24th Street, New York City
Fri Jan 10, 2020 / Kurt Wieting Trio / Harvard Club, New York City
Fri June 21, 2019 5pm / Emily Cavanagh / Elkhart Jazz Fest - Elkhart, Indiana
Sat June 22, 2019 1pm / Emily Cavanagh / Elkhart Jazz Fest - Elkhart, Indiana
Sat June 22, 2019 4:30pm / Emily Cavanagh / Elkhart Jazz Fest - Elkhart, Indiana
Sun June 23, 2019 11:30am / Emily Cavanagh / Elkhart Jazz Fest - Elkhart, Indiana
Fri July 12, 2019 6pm / Heritage Jazz Ensemble / Pierre Hotel, New York City
Fri July 19, 2019 8-12pm / Steve Sandberg Trio / Cleopatra's Needle, New York City
Fri July 28, 2019 / Frank Wagner Trio Recording / Benny's Wash N' Dry, Brooklyn, New York
Sun Aug 9, 2019 8-12pm / Steve Sandberg Trio / Cleopatra's Needle, New York City
Fri Aug 16, 2019 6:30-9:30pm / Kurt Wieting Trio / Harvard Club, New York City
Mon Sept 12, 2019 4:30pm / Heritage Jazz Ensemble (duo) / Baruch College, New York City
Thurs Sept 15, 2019 6-9pm / Kurt Wieting Trio / La Grenoville, New York City
Mon Sept 19, 2019 8-12am / Dave Meade Trio / Cleopatra's Needle, New York City
Sun Sept 29, 2019 11:30-2:30pm / Alan Bates Quartet / Valleries, New York City
Sat Oct 5, 2019 / Heritage Jazz Ensemble / Filomen M. D'Agostino Greenberg Music School at 92 st Y, New York City
Mon Oct 7, 2019 12:30-2:30pm / Heritage Jazz Ensemble (Duo) / "Music That Heals" / NYU Langone Medical Center, New York City
Sun Oct 13, 2019 11:30-2:30pm / Alan Bates vibes, Dave Meade drums / Valerie restaurant Jazz brunch, 45 West 45th st., New York City
Thurs Oct 24, 2019 7pm / Jackie Draper "Repeal The Blues" / Laurie Beechman Theatre / New York City
Sat Nov 9, 2019 / Private affair: Jewish Hora Band / Brooklyn, New York
Fri Nov 15, 2019 6:30pm / Kurt Wieting Trio / Harvard Club, New York City
Nov 17, 2019 11:30-2:30pm / Valerie restaurant Jazz brunch, 45 West 45th st., New York City
Sat Dec 7, 2019 6:30pm / Private affair: Emily Cavanagh Trio / West Orange, New Jersey
Sun Dec 15, 2019 1pm / Heritage Jazz Ensemble / Temple Beth, Jersey City, NJ
Sun Dec 20, 2019 6:30-9:30pm / Kurt Weiting piano, Alan Bates drums / Harvard Club, New York City
Sun Dec 23, 2019 / Heritage Jazz Ensemble (Duo) Gene Marlow piano / NYU Langone Medical Center, New York City
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