Charles Thomas Turner
Lecturer
Music and Art
EMAIL: jdelucia@bmcc.cuny.edu
Office:
Office Hours: Thurs. 4:30-5:30 PM
Phone:
Jon De Lucia is a Brooklyn-based saxophonist, clarinetist and composer. Originally from Quincy, MA, he moved to New York City in 2005. His teachers included Lee Konitz, George Garzone, Greg Osby, Bill Pierce, Joe Lovano, Steve Wilson and Andrew Sterman. He has performed internationally at the Burlington Discover Jazz Fest, the Tanglewood Jazz Festival, Tamana-shi Jazz Festival and jazz clubs like the Blue Note (NYC), Smalls, Birdland, and outside NYC at the Regattabar, Body and Soul, Jazz INN Lovely, Alexanderplatz, Gregory’s and more.
In New York he has regularly performed alongside Putter Smith, Ray Gallon, Michael Kanan, Steve Little, Bill Crow, Maeve Gilchrist, Joe Hunt, Greg Ruggiero, Nir Felder, Leo Genovese, Kris Davis and more. He leads the Jon De Lucia Group on two albums: Face no Face (2006) and As The River Sings (2017); the baroque improvising Luce Trio, Pieces Vol. 1 (2012) and And the stars were still shining(2023); and the Jon De Lucia Octet + Ted Brown Live at The Drawing Room (2018).
He has recorded woodwinds for numerous movies and television shows, including The Last Black Man in San Francisco, Random Acts of Flyness and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. He is the author of the Bach Shapes series, 8 books for saxophone and all instruments focusing on the music of J.S. Bach. He continues to compose, arrange, perform and as of 2022 is a Full-time Lecturer at BMCC, Borough of Manhattan Community College in Tribeca, NYC.
Expertise
Jazz, Woodwind Pedagogy, Jazz Arranging, Songwriting, History of Jazz, Ear Training, Composition, Music Business, Publishing
Degrees
- Current PhD student in Musicology at the CUNY Graduate Center, to be completed 2027.
- MA in Jazz Studies, City College of New York 2016
- BM in Contemporary Writing and Arranging and Performance, Berklee College of Music, 2002
Courses Taught
- MUS109 explores the music of Bebop and Hip-Hop, their social relevance, global influence and popularity, along with societal interpretation and criticism. From Louis Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker to Mos Def, Tupac and Jay-Z and beyond, MUS109 demonstrates that while each of these genres of music is distinct, possessing its own conventions, performance practices, and formal qualities, they are also grounded in similar techniques and conceptual frameworks identified with African American musical traditions. Credit will be granted for only MUS109, or 122, or MUS104.
- MUS114 is an introduction to the modem-day music industry. The course explores aspects of the music business including: branding, marketing and publicity, social networks, music licensing, publishing, copyright, royalties, and performing rights associations, philanthropic organizations and grant writing, electronic press kit creation, crowd funding, the online subscription models, music in film, TV and games, and job searching strategies, all as it relates to current industry trends.
- The first level of jazz and popular music aural skills, MUS138 introduces the syntax of Western popular music through rhythm, singing, sight-singing, and dictation exercises. Although emphasis is given to North American and European popular music genres from the 1950s to the present, a wide variety of global practices will be considered, as well as the application of
theoretical knowledge to practical musicianship skills.
Prerequisites: MUS 105 or departmental approval - MUS122 traces the creation and evolution of Hip-Hop Culture from the 1970s to the present. The transition of rap music from counter-culture, to sub-culture, to mainstream culture will be explored. Hip-Hop cultural elements including, but not limited to, graffiti, breakdancing (rockin’ and pop-lockin’), fashion, sexism/misogyny, racism, immigration, poverty, politics, urban planning, media, gender, and American foreign relations will inform the exploration of the world of Hip-Hop. Credit will be granted for MUS109 or MUS122 but not both.
- This introductory survey explores the musical and social histories of jazz from its American origins to its global present. Its focus encompasses jazz's development in the United States, its impact around the world, and the contributions of musicians who have shaped its creative and cultural significance. Requiring no prior knowledge of music, students will develop the analytical listening skills required to identify both the music's defining stylistic features and its leading figures. In addition to the music itself this course will examine the meanings jazz has acquired in its diverse geographical, social and historical contexts. Credit will be granted for MUS109 or MUS104 but not both.
- This course is the first level of a four-semester sequence in woodwind performance skills. In this course students will study their woodwind instrument of specialty. Concepts and skills covered in the class include techniques of tone production, technical facility, and a survey of the solo and ensemble repertoire. Juries and recitals of solo performances will be required. All applied studies for music majors include a weekly one-hour individual lesson and two-hour studio lab.
Prerequisite: Permission of the department and admission is by audition
Corequisite: MUS 501, MUS 502, MUS 503, MUS 504 or departmental permission
Research and Projects
- RF Cuny Enhanced Grant Cycle 54, The Music of the Dave Brubeck Octets, Restored and Reimagined, 2024
Publications
- De Lucia, J. P. (2018). Lester Leaps In: The improvisational devices of Lester Young. Jazz Research Journal, 11(2), 153-176. https://doi.org/10.1558/jazz.31107
Honors, Awards and Affiliations
- ELIC Award Spring 2023
- ELIC Award Fall 2023
- RF CUNY Enhanced Grant Cycle 54 2023-2024
- Member of American Musicological Society
- Member of North American Saxophone Alliance
- Member of College Music Society
- Member of Chamber Music America
- Member of Trout Unlimited
