“LaRochelle plays...with spontaneity and musicality.”
Jeff LaRochelle is a saxophonist and clarinetist, composer, and educator who has become a mainstay in the Toronto and Canadian music scenes. He has studied under musicians such as Don Palmer, Mark Promane, Pat LaBarbera, Bruce Cassidy, and Jim Lewis. Jeff attended the Banff Centre's Creative Music Workshop in 2011 where he was able to work with artists such as Dave Douglas, Donny McCaslin, Steve Lehman, and the contemporary jazz group Kneebody, and has been a Musician-in-Residence there in 2013 and 2015.
Jeff has performed throughout Canada including in festivals such as the Toronto Jazz Festival, the Montreal Jazz Festival, and the Ottawa Jazz Festival. Internationally, he has performed throughout Europe and in South Korea. He has had the chance to work with many renowned musicians including Chris Potter, Terence Blanchard, Danilo Perez, Brian Blade, John Patitucci, Pat LaBarbera, David Occhipinti, Geoff Young, and Roberto Occhipinti among many others. Jeff is currently working on many projects as a performer and composer in Toronto, including the improvisational jazz trio Autobahn and his own quartet, among many other groups as a collaborator and a sideman.
As an educator, Jeff has over 10 years of experience holding a full studio of woodwind students of all ages in Toronto. He has been an instructor and/or clinician for the University of Toronto, Humber College, Bayview Glen, Cardinal Carter Academy for the Arts, Upper Canada College, University of Toronto Schools, Cosmo Music, The Music Studio, and the Simcoe County District School Board. His passion is to teach students the foundations of the instruments while giving them an outlet to discover their own musical interests, whether it be classical, jazz, popular music, and music from around the world.
““Multi- reedman Jeff LaRochelle has a big, brawny sound, and...emotive soloing on tenor...””