Jason Sagebiel, Guitarist

Composer and Guitarist Jason Sagebiel (M.A., Aaron Copland School of Music, CUNY; B.M., magna cum laude, Loyola University New Orleans) is an active performer in the New York City area, and resides in Forest Hills, NY. His principal teachers include William Anderson and Stuart LeBlanc on guitar; and James Walsh, Jeff Nichols, and Bruce Saylor in composition.

As a guitarist Jason has had performances at Merkin Hall, the Symphony Space, Brandeis University, Sara Lawrence College, LeFrak Concert Hall, and at Carnegie Hall where he made his debut both as a conductor and guitarist in December 2005, and conducted the Carnegie Hall premiere of Steve Reich's Electric Counterpoint. Jason also gave the world premiere of Milton Babbitt's Danci arranged for one guitar three hands with William Anderson at Babbitt's 80th Birthday Celebration at Merkin Hall. Most recently, Jason gave the preview concert of the Princeton Festival in a solo guitar recital of Spanish music, and served as the musical director for the new play Caravaggio Chiaroscuro at La Mama Experimental Theater Club.

As a composer, Jason has received performances underwritten by Meet the Composer and has been performed by the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra String Quartet, the Second Instrumental Unit, the International Contemporary Ensemble, and the Cygnus Ensemble. He has served in an administrative capacity for many musical organizations and is currently Director of the Queens Guitar Society.Jason is authoring The Iraqi Book, a collection of stories, poetry, photos, and essays about his experiences with the Iraqi people while he served as a USMC Sniper in Operation Iraqi Freedom. During his time in Iraq, Jason studied the ud with Ali-Hussein Jabir and is now collaborating with musicians and poets in Iraq.

A committed teacher, Jason is on the faculty of the Great Neck Arts Center, a Kennedy Center Affiliate, and teaches classical guitar at Queens College through the BAMM program. With an emphasis on pedagogy and clear instruction, Jason is an in-demand guitar instructor, maintaining a bustling studio of around 45 students who come from all over the NYC metro area including Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, and Long Island.