| Jason Reolon | |
| Birth Date: | 2 November 1976 |
| Instrument: | Piano |
| Genre: | Jazz |
| Years Active: | 1999–present |
| Associated Acts: | Breakfast Included, Reality Radio |
Jason Reolon is a South African pianist and son of jazz drummer Bobby Gien (who was a drummer in Ronnie Scott's Trio) and jazz singer Josie Gien. Reolon was winner of the Southern African Music Rights Organisation (SAMRO) National Overseas Scholarship for best Jazz Pianist in 2001,[1] the scholarship for which he took up in New York City in 2004. With his jazz band Breakfast Included, he is a 2 times winner of the Old Mutual Jazz Encounters competition.Reolon performed at the Cape Town International Jazz Festival 2004,[2] a spin-off of the North Sea Jazz Festival held in The Netherlands.
Reolon graduated from the University of Cape Town's College of Music with a Bachelor of Music degree in jazz performance and composition in 2001, where he has worked as a part-time lecturer since.[3]
Reolon is one of four founding members of jazz quartet Breakfast Included in 1999, together with drummer Shaun Michau, Dominic Peters on double bass and David Poole on saxophone. In 2001 they released their self-titled first album, which was followed up by Night Work Ahead in 2004.Breakfast Included won the "Old Mutual Jazz Encounters" competition in both 2000 and 2001.Peters and Poole have since left the ensemble and the current members of Breakfast Included (now a quintet) are Reolon on Piano, Melanie Schultz on vocals, Buddy Wells on saxophone, and Wesley Rustin on double bass.
The Restless Natives is a contemporary quintet, consisting of Kesivan Naidoo on drums, Jason Reolon on piano, Chris Engel on alto and baritone saxophone, Shane Cooper on double bass and Lee Thomson on trumpet and flugelhorn.
The Jason Reolon Trio is an ensemble that, besides Reolon, consists of Heinrich Goosen on drums and Wesley Rustin on double bass. The trio have released their first album, called Off the Record, in 2008, which is a live recording of the ensemble performing at the Nassau Auditorium in Cape Town, on 4 February 2007.
CD - Breakfast Included - Breakfast Included (2001) (BICD01)Best of Passion Jazz Volume 2 (2002) - Track: I Thought About YouUniversal Music - The Jazz Lounge (2002) - Track: I Thought About YouCD - Breakfast Included - Night Work Ahead (2005) (BICD05)Palace Lounge - Cafe d’Afrique II, Va Va Voom Edition (2005) - Track: Burnt ToastUCT Jazz - Full Spectrum (2006) - Track: Burnt ToastCD - Jason Reolon Trio - Off the Record (2007) (DIR001)Goldfish - Caught in the Loop (2005) - Tracks: The Real Deal, Dream,Times May Change You, Wait a MinuteBreathe Sunshine Volume 2 (2005) - Track: DreamCafe d’Afrique Volume 2 (2006) - Track: DreamBreathe Sunshine Volume 3 (2006) - Track: The Real DealBest of Cafe d’Afrique (2007) - Track: The Real DealCafe d’Afrique Volume 3 (2007) - Track: Times May Change YouPure Pacha (2008) - Track: The Real DealCD - Restless Natives - Restless Natives (2010)DVD - Jason Reolon Trio - Double Standards (2010)UCT Jazz Compilation (2010) - Track: Fat AlbertsMen's Health Chill Compilation (2010) Track: To BeCD – Jason Reolon Trio - Outline (2011) (JRT02)Feature Film - Restless Natives - Visa Vie (2011) Track: Mirror Mirror + Various