Saxophonist & Teacher
Efrain Ribeiro Photography
“…large sound and free flowing style…”
Downbeat Magazine 2022
Baltimore-native Derrick Michaels is a tenor saxophonist and improviser with a deep sound and a bold, imaginative presence in the creative music community.
With roots in both the lyrical and exploratory branches of the creative saxophone tradition, his wide expressive palette brings a soulful, melodic sincerity to a wide range of musical environments.
He has been described by Jazz Weekly as a “thick-toned tenorist”, and by Downbeat magazine as wielding a “large sound and free flowing style”. The Baltimore Jazz Alliance says: “Derrick Michaels' saxophone playing comes right out of his soul; the instrument sounds like a human voice.”
(Born From Silence in Baltimore at the Hargrove) Efrain Ribeiro Photography
Blood Moon Quintet by Efrain Ribeiro
Odd Men Out at 2640 Space (Ballou, Michaels, Formanek, Kuhl) Efrain Ribeiro Photography
Erin Connelly Quartet Efrain Ribeiro
(Phil Cunneff Trio Cat’s Eye Pub in Baltimore) Tom Williams Photography
(Trio Xolo at Zissimo’s in Baltimore) Efrain Ribeiro Photography