Terry, "Sweet" Sue

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“Sweet” Sue Terry began her professional playing career at the age of sixteen, playing for church performances and musical theater. She began playing Jazz gigs while attending the Hartt School, the Hartford, Connecticut music conservatory. Though she was accepted as a Classical clarinetist, her secret agenda was to study with the late Jazz legend Jackie McLean, which she did for five years. The Hartt School named her Alumna of the Year in 2001.

She first heard Jazz music as a child growing up in Connecticut, where her father had an extensive record collection and she listened to legendary Jazz station WRVR FM non-stop. As a teenager studying with legendary pianist and educator John Mehegan, Sue decided to try writing a big band arrangement for her high school Jazz Ensemble. Mehegan bet her an ice cream cone that she couldn’t do it. She won.

Sweet Sue has played and recorded with a variety of notable Jazz artists including Dr. Billy Taylor, Clark Terry, Charli Persip, Clifford Jordan, Melba Liston, Hilton Ruiz, Howard Johnson, Walter Bishop, Jr., Jaki Byard, Luiz Simas, Derwyn Holder, Peggy Stern and Judi Silvano. She’s been a Jazz soloist with the National Symphony, the Brooklyn Philharmonic and the New York Pops, and has performed worldwide. Her discography currently contains over forty commercially released CDs. She’s the author of several music instruction books, and has received a number of grants and awards for her songwriting. Catch her regular column in Jazz Improv Magazine.

Sue’s other passion is for the martial arts---she’s a longtime practitioner (and tournament champion) of Taiji Quan and Qi Gong.

Her website is www.sueterry.net, where you may download music, read the blog, see photos and video, and more. When you visit, be sure to drop a line in the Guestbook. We’d love to hear from you!

Sandy Payson Qi Note Records

Sue Terry is a Yamaha artist. She uses Jody Jazz mouthpieces, Consoli ligatures, NeoTech straps, Fibracell reeds, and SaxRax horn stands. Affiliations: AFM, NMPA, NARAS (Grammy Awards, voting member), BMI composer & publisher.

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