Biography
A specialist in low brass instruments, Jennifer Wharton has earned recognition as a bass trombonist whose career began in the mid-2000s with engagements in Broadway productions and big band performances throughout the Bay Area. Her first recording under her own name, Bonegasm, appeared in 2019.
Born in California, Wharton took up tenor trombone during middle school before moving to the bass instrument. While in high school she set music aside for a time to pursue cheerleading, yet she later returned to the band program and added tuba to her studies. Following graduation she pursued formal training at Los Medanos College in Pittsburg, California, then continued at the New England Conservatory and the Manhattan School of Music. She established herself in San Francisco, where freelance theater and musical work became her primary focus, before moving to New York City. There she performed in numerous Broadway shows, among them King Kong: Alive on Broadway, Beautiful, The Carole King Musical, Jekyll & Hyde, and Curtains. She has also taught bass trombone at Montclair State University in New Jersey.
Beyond theater, Wharton maintains an active role in jazz as a member of Darcy James Argue's Secret Society and the Alan Ferber Big Band. Additional credits include appearances with the Village Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, DIVA Jazz Orchestra, Birdland Big Band, and artists such as Ken Peplowski, Arturo O'Farrill, and John Yao. Her 2019 leader debut Bonegasm included fellow trombonists John Fedchock, Alan Ferber, and Nate Mayland.
Born in California, Wharton took up tenor trombone during middle school before moving to the bass instrument. While in high school she set music aside for a time to pursue cheerleading, yet she later returned to the band program and added tuba to her studies. Following graduation she pursued formal training at Los Medanos College in Pittsburg, California, then continued at the New England Conservatory and the Manhattan School of Music. She established herself in San Francisco, where freelance theater and musical work became her primary focus, before moving to New York City. There she performed in numerous Broadway shows, among them King Kong: Alive on Broadway, Beautiful, The Carole King Musical, Jekyll & Hyde, and Curtains. She has also taught bass trombone at Montclair State University in New Jersey.
Beyond theater, Wharton maintains an active role in jazz as a member of Darcy James Argue's Secret Society and the Alan Ferber Big Band. Additional credits include appearances with the Village Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, DIVA Jazz Orchestra, Birdland Big Band, and artists such as Ken Peplowski, Arturo O'Farrill, and John Yao. Her 2019 leader debut Bonegasm included fellow trombonists John Fedchock, Alan Ferber, and Nate Mayland.
Albums
