Biography

 

Grammy winner Trevor Ware is well recognized as one of the most supportive bassists in jazz.  His style, reminiscent of Paul Chambers, Sam Jones and Charles Mingus, focuses not only on producing a supportive bass tone with impeccable intonation, but also features long, creative, well developed bass lines.  One of the most in-demand bassists in Los Angeles, Ware is regularly featured with a number of bands, but most often forms strong bonds with drummers.  Developing his love for music at The World Stage Performance Gallery, Ware had the opportunity to hone the craft of swing under the tutelage of master drummer Billy Higgins (still the most recorded jazz drummer in history).  After being offered his first professional gig by legendary pianist and composer Horace Tapscott & New York saxophonist Sonny Fortune, Ware developed a sense of musical adventure playing in Tapscott’s quartet and Pan Afrikan People’s Arkestra.  Ware later developed a strong bond with drummers Tootie Heath, Alphonse Mouzon, Clayton Cameron and Sherman Ferguson.  Having appeared on over 100 recordings, Ware’s current musical associations include Kenny Burrell, Crystal Lewis, The Highland Park House Band & The Count Basie Orchestra.

Trevor Ware was nominated for a 2019 Grammy Award for his contribution to All About That Basie and a 2022 Grammy Award for his contribution to Live at Birdland by The Count Basie Orchestra. Both recordings were nominated as Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album. In 2024 The Count Basie Orchestra won the Grammy for their recording Basie Swings the Blues. Ware played acoustic & electric bass on the Grammy winning recording.

In 2024 Ware formed the band Trevor Ware & Positive People to perform many of Ware’s original compositions. Compositions include Degnan Nocturne & Pheeling Pharoah. Trevor Ware & Positive People are currently booking club & festival performances.

Mr. Ware’s international festival performances include the North Sea, Monaco, Jazzaldia, JazzAspen, Concord Jazz Festival, Monterey, Toronto, Joy of Jazz, New Orleans Jazz Fest, Playboy Jazz & Montreux Jazz Festivals. His film credits include the Dreamworks film release Collateral starring Tom Cruise and Jamie Fox, the CBS series Smith starring Ray Liotta, and most recently a recurring role in Key & Peele comedy sketches.

Trevor Ware is an active member of the Screen Actor’s Guild and the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences. He serves on the Board of Directors of the California Jazz Foundation.

Ware has earned degrees from Cerritos College & University of Southern California, in addition to a graduate degree from University of California, Los Angeles.  He serves as Professor of Acoustic & Electric Bass at California State University, Dominguez Hills.

Mr. Ware continues to travel internationally including:

Moscow, Amsterdam, Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Rotterdam, Lisbon, Geneva, Stockholm, Barcelona, San Sebastian, Oviedo, Monaco, London, Oslo, Den Haag, Brussels, Prague, Helsinki, Pilsen. Milan, Hamburg, Helsinki, Tampere, Hobart, Istanbul, Tel Aviv, Seoul, Johannesburg, Strasbourg, Frankfurt, Osaka, Nagoya, Tokyo, Fukuoka, Sydney, Perth, Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, Paris, Caen, Lima, Buenos Aires, Calgary, Toronto, and more.

During his career he has performed and recorded with many notable musicians including:

  • Lizz Wright - Vocals

  • Jazzmeia Horn - Vocals

  • Dee Dee Bridgewater - Vocals

  • Joey DeFrancesco - Organ

  • Kurt Elling - Vocals

  • Nnenna Freelon - Vocals

  • Crystal Lewis - Vocals

  • Billy Higgins – Drums

  • Theo Croker - Trumpet

  • Pharoah Sanders – Sax

  • Mary Stallings - Vocals

  • Nicholas Payton – Trumpet

  • Sonny Fortune – Sax

  • Terreon Gully - Drums

  • Horace Silver – Piano

  • Ravi Coltrane – Sax

  • Terell Stafford – Trumpet

  • Diane Schuur - Vocals

  • Jimmy Heath – Sax

  • Barry Harris – Piano

  • New York Voices - Vocals

  • Christian McBride - Bass

  • Eric Reed – Piano

  • Patti Austin - Vocals

  • Horace Tapscott – Piano

  • Marvin “Smitty” Smith – Drums

  • Bennie Wallace – Sax

  • Jamison Ross - Drums

  • Barbara Morrison – Vocalist

  • Carl Burnett – Drums

  • Clint Holmes - Vocals

  • Ndugu Chanceler – Drums

  • Myungo Jackson – Percussion

  • Niki Haris – Vocals

  • John Beasley – Piano

  • Alphonse Mouzon – Drums

  • Ledisi - Vocals

  • Steve Wilson – Sax

  • Kamau Daaood – Poet

  • Hubert Laws – Flute

  • Dale Fielder – Sax

  • Justo Almario – Sax

  • Patrice Rushen - Piano

  • Roy McCurdy – Drums

  • Kenny Burrell – Guitar

  • Tootie Heath – Drums

  • Benny Green – Piano

  • Carmen Bradford - Vocals

  • Wycliffe Gordon – Trombone

  • Phil Upchurch – Guitar

  • George Benson - Guitar

  • Ernie Watts – Sax

  • Billy Childs – Piano

  • Willie Jones III – Drums

  • Dwight Trible – Vocals

  • Ernie Andrews – Vocals

  • Charles Owens – Sax

  • Spanky Wilson – Vocals

  • Jamision Ross - Drums

  • Jessye Norman – Vocals

  • James Moody – Sax

  • Sherman Ferguson – Drums

  • Herlin Riley – Drums

  • Steve Turre – Trombone

  • Clayton Cameron – Drums

  • Nat Adderley Jr. – Piano

  • Azar Lawrence – Sax

  • Molly Ringwald - Vocals

  • Freddie Hendrix - Trumpet

  • Obba Babatunde – Vocals

  • Carmen Lundy – Vocals

  • Bennie Maupin – Sax

  • Kevin Toney – Piano

  • We McDonald - Vocals

  • Brian Nova - Guitar

  • Jeff Goldblum - Piano/Vocals

  • Mark DeClive-Lowe – Piano

  • Larry Koonse - Guitar

  • Stevie Wonder - Harmonica

  • Take 6 - Vocals

  • Vincent Herring – Sax

  • Shelly Berg - Piano