Jon Metzger

Biography

'A star vibist” and 'a flawless vibist,” as he has been trumpeted by Jazztimes and Cadence respectively, Jon Metzger has achieved an international presence through extensive touring, recording, and lecturing. A winner of a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship Grant for Performance, he has appeared throughout the United States and Europe and has served as a jazz ambassador in more than 25 foreign countries in the Near East, Northern and Sub-Saharan Africa, and Central America under the auspices of the United States Information Agency's Arts America Program. A Musser endorsee and clinician for 28 years and a three-time Grammy nominee, Metzger has appeared on more than 35 recordings for the VSOP, Soul Note, Jazz Karma, Summit, Brown Boulevard, and Elon Improvibes labels with artists Fred Hersch, Marc Johnson, Joey Baron, Harvie Swartz, Ron Elliston, Ronnie Wells, Phil Markowitz, Jack Wilkins, Allison Miller, Cyrus Chestnut, Herlin Riley, Vincent Gardner, Tom Brantley, Danny Gottlieb, Neena Freelon, and Tony Martucci, among many others. The author of The Art and Language of Jazz Vibes (now in its second edition) and an active composer with more than 50 published compositions to his credit, he has served as the Associate Editor of the International Association of Jazz Educators Journal and currently is the Artist in Residence at Elon University, where he was presented with the University Distinguished Scholar Award for 2005. A recipient of the North Carolina Miles Davis Jazz Education Service Award, Metzger's signature vibraphone mallet was released recently by the Pro-Mark Corporation, and he also recently served as a Cultural Envoy for the US Department of State assisting Haceteppe State University in Ankara, Turkey on the formation of their new Jazz Studies Program. Metzger has been named to the Jazz Times Critics' Poll and the Downbeat Magazine Readers' Poll and Critics Poll in the vibes category.

Research Interest

Percussion, Jazz Studies