Tell us about yourself.
Sarah Jane Cion caresses the piano with sensitivity and love, and the colors she uses demonstrate her gift and vision. —McCoy Tyner Sarah Jane Cion was the 1st Place Winner of the internationally acclaimed 17th Annual Great American Jazz Piano Competition held in Jacksonville Florida on November 11th, 1999, judged by Horace Silver, Kenny Barron, Benny Green, Bill Charlap and Ellis Marsalis. Ms. Cion’s trio performed in Japan at the Fukuoka Blue Note in 2000, followed by an appearance on the nationally syndicated NPR radio show “Piano Jazz” with Marian McPartland. Sarah Jane Cion is a heavyweight. —Johnny Mandel Sarah has performed with jazz legends such as Clark Terry, Etta Jones, Della Griffin, Anita O’Day, Carmen Leggio, Bucky Pizzarelli, Ralph LaLama, Allan Harris, James McBride, and many others. Her debut CD, Indeed! features alto saxophonist Antonio Hart and drummer Tony Reedus. Her second release Moon Song, on the Naxos Jazz label, features tenorman Chris Potter and Billy Hart on drums. Her third CD, Summer Night, features saxophone giant Michael Brecker. Sarah is a marvelous, marvelous, marvelous jazz piano player. She is young, talented, creative and imaginative. Watch out! —Clark Terry Cion’s articles and transcriptions have been published in Piano Today magazine, and she is a contributor to the Steinway Library of Piano Music: Jazz Piano-Pieces To Grow On, sharing the roster with Bill Dobbins, Dick Hyman, Andy LaVerne and many others. Her original song “It’s Christmas Time, Once Again” was a finalist in the internationally-acclaimed John Lennon Songwriting Contest and her music was a staple on the long-running WABC TV soap All My Children. Her original “Golden Song” was featured in Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Thor: The Dark World and Clint Eastwood included Cion’s “Cat in the Hat” in The Mule—released by Warner Bros. Pictures in 2018. The music of Sarah Jane Cion is unapologetically pretty. It proceeds from her poetic vision, warm and elegiac, and her right hand takes us with her as it climbs. —Thomas Conrad, DOWNBEAT A lifetime student, teacher, and jazz educator, Sarah has also penned, Lara’s Lullabies: Studies for the Intermediate/Advanced, A Baker’s Dozen: 13 Contemporary Etudes for the Intermediate/advanced and the Pianist’s Jammin’ Handbook: Studies and Etudes for the Modern Jazz Pianist, Modern Jazz Piano Revealed and her latest release, THE ULTIMATE PLAY BY EAR PIANO METHOD: Learn Chords, Scales, Voicings and Technique Through Easy Exercises and Simple Solos: 21 Insider Secrets for Beginners and Beyond. Critical, radio and peer respect has established Cion as a premier jazz pianist. This young talent from New York exhibits a rare sense of melody and rhythm. —Ernie Rideout, KEYBOARD There should be little surprise that Cion has earned her place in distinguished company. Summer Night expresses Cion's sensitive and inventive approach to jazz piano in multiple ways. On an original composition such as the tumbling, free-like “Psychic Warrior,” her dizzying improvisations seem to challenge tonality, while her melody “The Safflower,” is built on chords that befit the Great American Songbook—with layered harmonies that suggest Bill Evans. —Drew Wheeler, CDNow.com Cion graduated from the New England Conservatory in 1990 with honors and distinction in composition and performance, and currently lives in Riverdale, NY with her two children. Cion’s latest project is co-founding a Big Band with award winning trombonist Dave Levitt and Nancy Marron, president of the Yonkers Public Library. You don't have to listen to pianist Sarah Jane Cion for long before words like “warm” and “elegant” come to mind. Her playing is so assured and consistent, and she also possesses a unique talent for composition; her compositions are as refined and mature as her playing. —John Frederick Moore, JAZZIZ Magazine Sarah’s 2022 CD It’s Time is released on the That Jazz Show label featuring Alec Safy on bass and Mike Camacho on drums. Sarah Jane Cion is consistent in the tremendously high level of her playing and composing. She is a pianist very much in the tradition of Bill Evans, Alan Broadbent, and Fred Hersch, with a bit of Erroll Garner and Kenny Barron thrown in. Her music is sumptuously melodic, cleverly harmonic, and intelligently lyrical. This is music of the highest caliber. —C. Michael Baily, AllAboutJazz.com
Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?
I grew up in the Boston area
What is the best advice you have ever been given?
You can ask for anything you want as long as you’re willing to hear no for an answer.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
What has inspired you and your writing style?
My students inspire me and teach me what I need to write every day.
What are you working on now?
I’m currently working on a book called impress the parents, eight diverse piano gyms for the beginner pianist
What is your favorite method for promoting your work?
Leaving in the hands of professionals like yours, yours yourselves!
What's next for you as a writer?
My next project will Probably be geared towards making interesting and readable arrangements of jazz standards for adults.
How well do you work under pressure?
I do my best work under pressure !