Jon Raskin

by Joslyn LayneSaxophonist Jon Raskin was born in 1954 in Heppner, OR. He studied composition with Dr. Barney Childs and Allaudin Mathieu and saxophone with John Handy, and in the '70s, helped found San Francisco's alternative art spaces the Blue Dolphin and the Farm. Raskin was music director of the Tumbleweed Dance Company from 1974 to 1977, then left to co-found Rova, the renowned saxophone quartet in which he plays baritone and alto saxophones. Along with his activity in Rova, Raskin has composed extensively for theater, dance companies, and for the film Just Another Weekend. He has also received grants from Meet the Composer and the NEA.