Bio

Stylistically, Seguine's compositions went all over the map: "Amor Apasionado" was a divine bossa that evoked Jobim without resorting to cheesy strings; the closer "Departures" echoed the soaring stuff Maria Schneider has been gracing us with; and "A Quaint Acquaintance" was Old School Big Band made genuine by some classic sounds from the woodwind section.  (J Hunter, Albanyjazz.com).

Then the pace slows again with ‘C Minor Waltz.’ Its combination of a lightly swinging motion and distinctly minor-key atmosphere is unusual—sweet and sour like some good Szechuan dishes. (Ron Bierman, JazzReview.com)

Versatility is an innate trait that composer, arranger, and pianist Erica Seguine possesses. Her works include bossa novas, traditional and modern big band charts, waltzes, ballads, arrangements of standards, a Middle-Eastern tinged studio orchestra work, “legit” works, and compositions for short films. Her works have been performed in the Eastman Theatre, Kilbourn Hall, JazzClub Moods, the Dryden Theatre (at George Eastman House), the WAMC Performing Arts Studio, the Schenectady Muddy Cup inside the Proctor’s Arcade, and the Juliet J. Rosch Recital Hall. They have been performed by the Eastman Jazz Ensemble, the Eastman Studio Orchestra, Astral artists Doug O’Connor and Jose French Ballester, Dr. Sylvie Beaudette, the Weapons of Jazz Destruction, the newly formed Community of the Spirit, of which she's a member of and her own groups, the Erica Seguine Jazz Orchestra.

Most recently, Erica won first place in the first Zurich Jazz Orchestra Composer Competition (2009), open internationally to composers 30 and under. In 2008, Erica’s tune “C Minor Waltz” was one of seven compositions selected to be included on Todd Coolman’s Perfect Strangers album, which received radio airplay throughout the United States. In 2009, Erica’s big band work “Departures” was commended for Honorable Mention in the ASCAP Foundation Young Jazz Composer Awards. She has also been a participant in the Women in Music Festival in Rochester, NY for three years as composer/pianist/conductor, and her arrangement of “Sweet Georgia Brown” was played at the Rochester International Jazz Festival Scholarship Concert in June 2007.

As a pianist, Erica has performed with the Nick Venti Quartet, which included a performance at the Clinton Art and Music Festival. She has also performed as an accompanist for several musicians, including with flutist Caryn Freitag for a gala reception preceding a Philadelphia Orchestra concert. She has been a rehearsal accompanist/pianist/assistant musical director for several shows, including assistant musical director/pianist/accompanist for Our Own ProductionS version of Sweeney Todd, and musical director/pianist for Staging Youth's Future production of Hairspray.

Erica has also worked as a copyist/orchestrator for the NYMF production of Plagued- A Love Story, written by Casey Filliaci and Vynnie Meli, and she has worked as a transcriber for The Temptations Review feat. Dennis Edwards. She has done on-demand arranging work as well; she recently contributed string arrangements for pianist/producer Greg Dokes, and arranged Bernie William's "Ritmo de Otono" and "Moving Forward" for big band.

Erica recently completed her BM in Jazz Studies and Contemporary Media- writing (composition) concentration at the Eastman School of Music, graduating with high distinction. While at Eastman she studied jazz composition with Bill Dobbins and jazz piano with Harold Danko. She has taken individual lessons/master classes with Fred Hersch, David Berger, John Clayton, Paul Ferguson, Maria Schneider, and Jeff Beal. She is continuing her studies at William Paterson University, persuing an Masters in Jazz Arranging/Composition, studying with Rich DeRosa, Jim McNeely, and is also studying Film Scoring with Dean Raymond Torres-Santos.