Ira John Rapson, III

Ira John Rapson, III (b. Gary, February 4, 1953 - ) – Trombonist, composer, and academician. After growing up in various Midwestern cities, John Rapson moved to Santa Barbara, California, with his family at age around age eleven. While still living In Santa Barbara, he earned a bachelor’s degree at Westmont College (B.A., 1976), where he later taught from 1980 to 1990. He also completed an M.A. in composition at California State University in Northridge. During his California days, he also studied composition with Barney Childs (1982-83), Nobuya Matsuda (1987-88), and Pulitzer-Prize winner Henry Brant (1988-1990). From 1979 to 1990, he played trombone in a Los Angeles group led by Vinny Golia. At that time, he also played with saxophonist Tim Berne, trumpeter Bobby Bradford, and John Carter (a multi-talented woodwind specialist). Concurrently, Rapson also led his own West Coast groups that collectively included pianist Wayne Peet, drummer Alex Cline, bassist Ken Filiano, trumpeter John Fumo, and saxophonist Kim Richmond. After relocating to study ethnomusicology at Wesleyan, he formed alliances with jazz musicians on the east coast and performed with vibraphonist Jay Hoggard, woodwind specialist Anthony Braxton, saxophonist David Murray, trumpeter Doc Cheatham, and drummer Ed Blackwell. Since 1993, he has taught at Iowa University, where he is director of Jazz Studies and the director of a jazz ensemble. His playing activities in the last two decades have included several projects with the late drummer Billy Higgins. Throughout his several-decade career, Rapson has played on nineteen albums, including nine by groups that he has led. He has written 125 jazz compositions, many of which appear on his albums (See the embedded video below of his album Deeba Dah Bwee (1984).