Saxophonist Owen Broder and his stellar quintet of DC all-stars present Hodges: Front and Center, a vibrant tribute to alto saxophone legend Johnny Hodges.
While Hodges is most often celebrated through his association with Duke Ellington, Broder shifts the spotlight to “Rabbit” — the nickname Hodges earned early in his career — as a bandleader and creative force in his own right. The program features a thoughtfully curated mix of works from the Ellington canon alongside gems from Hodges’s often-overlooked catalogue of small group recordings.
Described by The New York Jazz Record as “a heartfelt tribute without ever aping the object of his affection or straying too far from the path… a perfect balance,” Broder’s performance brings both reverence and originality to this iconic music.
Beyond Hodges: Front and Center, Broder is a member of the GRAMMY®-nominated Anat Cohen Tentet and has performed with renowned ensembles including Ryan Truesdell’s Gil Evans Project, Miho Hazama’s m_unit, the Ulysses Owens, Jr. Big Band, and the viral sensation Postmodern Jukebox. Named NPR’s Francis Davis 2018 Debut Artist of the Year, Broder has also appeared on DownBeat Magazine’s Critics Poll as a Rising Star Alto Saxophonist in both 2023 and 2024. His six albums as a bandleader have received national acclaim.
An award-winning composer and arranger, Broder has been commissioned by the U.S. Air Force Band in Europe, the Airmen of Note, two Off-Broadway productions, the Winchester Symphonic Winds, and the internationally acclaimed woodwind quintet WindSync.
Recently relocated to Washington, D.C., Broder previously spent four years in Portland, OR, where he served as Director of Jazz at Reed College and taught jazz courses at Portland State University and saxophone lessons at Pacific University.
Owen Broder is a saxophonist based in New York City. He runs in a variety of musical circles, leading his own groups and participating in others. Broder’s American Roots Project’s album Heritage (2018) is a featured project on ArtistShare®, and earned him a 2018 Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composer Award. The album was praised by DownBeat Magazine as a “transcendental work of art,” and listed as #5 among the Best Music of 2018 [Francis Davis, NPR]. His quintet, Cowboys & Frenchmen, has enjoyed multiple US tours, seen success in international competitions, and received critical acclaim for their recordings, including a four-star review from DownBeat Magazine for their latest release, Bluer Than You Think (2017).
Broder is a member of the Anat Cohen Tentet, and has performed with internationally respected artists such as Ryan Truesdell’s Gil Evans Project, Trio Globo, and YouTube sensation Postmodern Jukebox. In musical theater, he was a member of the pit orchestras for the German tour of Grease and off-Broadway production For the Last Time, appeared with the band in David Bowie’s Lazarus, and originated the woodwind chair in the U.S. Premier tour of The Bodyguard the Musical.
Broder grew up in Jacksonville, FL, and also has hometown ties to Detroit, MI, and Washington, D.C. He holds a Bachelor’s degree from the Eastman School of Music, and a Master’s from the Manhattan School of Music.
