Fred Lipsius

Fred Lipsius (born 19 November 1943, The Bronx, New York, U.S.) was the original saxophonist and arranger for the jazz-rock band, Blood, Sweat and Tears,^[1] for which he played alto saxophone and piano. He was with the band from 1967 to 1971.

Before Blood, Sweat and Tears, Lipsius played with the Ronn Metcalfe Orchestra.

Lipsius has performed with Simon & Garfunkel, Janis Joplin, and jazz greats Cannonball Adderley, Thelonious Monk, Zoot Sims, Eddie Gomez, Al Foster, George Mraz, Larry Willis, Randy Brecker, Rodney Jones and many others. He has written music for and performed on over 30 CDs as both a leader and sideman. He has authored six books/CDs on jazz improvisation and jazz reading.

Lipsius now teaches at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.^[1]

Biography

Born in the Bronx, New York City on November 19, 1943, Lipsius began playing the clarinet at age 9, alto and tenor saxophones in Junior High School, and the piano at Music and Art High School in Manhattan. He continued his studies at Berklee School of Music (1961–62).

Fred Lipsius was the original saxophonist, arranger and conductor with Blood, Sweat & Tears from 1967 to 1971. He also doubled on keyboards. While with the band, he won nine Gold Records plus a Grammy Award for his arrangement of "Spinning Wheel".^[1] Fred also arranged and co-arranged, respectively, the hit singles "Hi-De-Ho" and "You've Made Me So Very Happy". In both the Down Beat and Playboy jazz polls he placed in the top ten of the alto sax category. Fred has composed, arranged and produced radio and TV commercials, including 2 CBS TV logos- themes introducing the season's upcoming shows. In the spring of 1982, he toured in Japan and Europe with Simon and Garfunkel.

Lipsius has authored six books/CDs on jazz improvisation and jazz reading. He has performed with Cannonball Adderley, Thelonious Monk, Zoot Sims, Eddie Gomez, Al Foster, George Mraz, Larry Willis, Randy Brecker, Rodney Jones and many others. He has written music for and performed on over 30 CDs as both a leader and sideman. Lipsius is an Associate Professor at Berklee College of Music in Boston,^[1] where he has taught full-time since 1984.