He plays trumpet and/or flugelhorn on all tracks of “Saxify”.
I met Gary Winters in 2009 when I was playing a few concerts with Fred Wesley & The New J.B.’s in Europe. Fred’s saxophone player Ernie Fields jr. had to go back to the States for other performances, so they needed a sub and thy thought of me. I just released “On Track” featuring Fred Wesley. Performing with them was a great experience, the whole band consists of incredible musicians.
Gary is one of the most versatile trumpet players I know and a very down to earth person as well. Always really interested in music, always focusing on getting the best possible result. Whether it’s soloing or playing in the horn section, he’s the trumpet player you want in your team. He was born in Dayton and lived in Wilder, Kentucky, both places are situated on the southern riverside of river Ohio which is just 10 minutes away from Cincinatti, Ohio.
During the last years he has been playing with Fred Wesley, Bootsy Collins and Pee Wee Ellis. Also, he has been spending a lot of time in Germany where he’s involved in several bands like “Fette Hupe” and “Tommy Schneller”. Gary Winters performing with my band during Elbjazz Festival, Hamburg, in 2012.
Here’s what Gary writes about himself on his website: “My goal has been and is to be a versatile trumpet/flugelhorn player and play many styles very well. I started playing professionally in nightclubs when I was 13 years old and am still pushing myself musically by accepting musically challenging offers. I have been fortunate to perform throughout the United States, Europe, Australia, Japan, Israel, Turkey, and Russia with many great artists. Whether playing in the lead chair, solos, or section, I adapt my style of playing to enhance the musical performance that I am placed. In addition to playing with many groups I am involved in recording sessions, arranging, as a musical contractor, and clinician for educational institutions. “ Visit his website Gary Winters, Susanne Alt, Fred Wesley at Fendal Sound during the recordings of "Saxify".
By the way, in Dayton there’s a funk museum, The Funk Music Hall Of Fame & Exhibition Center. A lot of great funk music comes from Dayton: Zapp & Roger Troutman, Ohio Players (with a.o. Junie Morrison), Sun, Slave, Faze-O.. and not to mention Cincinatti: Bootsy Collins, The Isley Brothers...
Susanne Alt & Band, Elbjazz (2012)
with Fred Wesley & The New J.B.'s in St. Nazaire, France (2009)
This is the title track called Dark Horse. Just as in the album version it features sax and piano solos. It's a pretty wild performance, matching today's start of the Chinese New Year: THE YEAR OF THE FIRE HORSE!Live at Bimhuis, we added a drum solo. Afterwards, I decided to seperate it from the song and post it as an extra video below. Why not in one video?Because the video would become very very long and experience shows that people will not stick around for longer that 6-7 minutes. Yoràn's free drum solo is actually really great and in this seperate video, the true drum lovers can watch and learn from his drum story telling. Sometimes people ask me; What are drummers doing in their solos? To give you an idea of what Yoràn is doing in his solo: He starts with a pattern, an idea. He keeps the pattern going and plays variations over it. Then he combines it with soloing over it with call and reponse phrases and slides in new patterns. Technically it's interesting because he demonstrates a lot of independence and speed, as well as dynamics and sound colours, while telling a story, which means in musical context that the solo has certain elements which can be recognized by the (trained) listener. Many people in the Western part of the world miss the melodic and harmonic context during a free drum solo. It's fair to say a free drum solo without any accompaniment is like an abstract painting. Within the given context you can hear and see what you can manage, depending on your own frame of reference and expectations. In the end, it's about: does it resonate with you? Because both, the painting and the free drum solo, they lack a clear subject (no lyrics, no recognizable image), both forms are highly subjective and open to the interpretation of the audience. They function as a conversation between the artist's feeling and the viewer's/listener's perception.But you also can listen to it with a pure analytical drum ear and try to follow the patterns and phrases. As a musician and human I (try to) do both :-) Enjoy!More info:Susanne Alt: sax, Matthijs Geerts and Ike van Bergen: keys, Thomas Pol: bass, Yoràn Vroom: drums, Helene Jank: percussion Performed at 16th of January 2026 at Bimhuis, Amsterdam, Recorded by Onno Prillwitz Filmed by Robert Glass and Albert Nooij. - He plays trumpet and/or flugelhorn on all tracks of “Saxify”.I met Gary Winters in 2009 when I was playing a few concerts with Fred Wesley & The New J.B.’s in Europe. Fred’s saxophone player Ernie Fields jr. had to go back to the States for other performances, so they needed a sub and thy thought of me. I just released “On Track” featuring Fred Wesley. Performing with them was a great experience, the whole band consists of incredible musicians.Gary is one of the most versatile trumpet players I know and a very down to earth person as well. Always really interested in music, always focusing on getting the best possible result. Whether it’s soloing or playing in the horn section, he’s the trumpet player you want in your team. He was born in Dayton and lived in Wilder, Kentucky, both places are situated on the southern riverside of river Ohio which is just 10 minutes away from Cincinatti, Ohio. During the last years he has been playing with Fred Wesley, Bootsy Collins and Pee Wee Ellis. Also, he has been spending a lot of time in Germany where he’s involved in several bands like “Fette Hupe” and “Tommy Schneller”.Gary Winters performing with my band during Elbjazz Festival, Hamburg, in 2012.Here’s what Gary writes about himself on his website:“My goal has been and is to be a versatile trumpet/flugelhorn player and play many styles very well. I started playing professionally in nightclubs when I was 13 years old and am still pushing myself musically by accepting musically challenging offers. I have been fortunate to perform throughout the United States, Europe, Australia, Japan, Israel, Turkey, and Russia with many great artists. Whether playing in the lead chair, solos, or section, I adapt my style of playing to enhance the musical performance that I am placed. In addition to playing with many groups I am involved in recording sessions, arranging, as a musical contractor, and clinician for educational institutions. “ Visit his websiteGary Winters, Susanne Alt, Fred Wesley at Fendal Sound during the recordings of Saxify.By the way, in Dayton there’s a funk museum, The Funk Music Hall Of Fame & Exhibition Center. A lot of great funk music comes from Dayton: Zapp & Roger Troutman, Ohio Players (with a.o. Junie Morrison), Sun, Slave, Faze-O.. and not to mention Cincinatti: Bootsy Collins, The Isley Brothers...Susanne Alt & Band, Elbjazz (2012)with Fred Wesley & The New J.B.'s in St. Nazaire, France (2009)
