Fraser Jackson has been the contrabassoonist and utility bassoonist of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra since 1990. He has also performed and toured with such groups as the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, the New York Philharmonic, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He has founded two chamber groups, The Caliban Quartet and Musica Franca, whose recordings on the BIS, ATMA, and MSR Classics labels are known the world over for their inventive programming, their virtuosity, and their stylistic variety. Also in great demand as a bassoonist, he is a regular member of Toronto’s premier new music ensembles, New Music Concerts and Soundstreams, and was a long-time guest of the Ottawa International Chamber Music Festival. As one of only a few players who perform on period contrabassoons, he has performed and recorded with The Aradia Ensemble, the Montreal Baroque Band, and Toronto’s Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra, and he was a featured performer at the 2006 Grand River Baroque Festival.

Fraser teaches bassoon at the University of Toronto and at the Glenn Gould School of the Royal Conservatory of Music where he was Head of Winds, Brass, and Percussion from 2002 to 2007. Known as a dedicated and innovative teacher, he has taught for many years with such organizations as Le Festival du Domaine Forget, Le Camp Musical des Laurentides, the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra, the Interprovincial Music Camp (Ontario), Cammac, and the National Youth Orchestra of Canada. In 2002 he was the featured guest artist at the 5th International Contrabassoon Festival in Park City, Utah, and has given masterclasses throughout Canada, the USA, and Brazil.

Fraser also enjoys participating in outreach programs run by the TSO; as a member of the TSO Woodwind Trio, he plays for hundreds of schoolchildren every year. As an arranger, he has created over 50 works for bassoon ensembles, two of which have been published commercially. He has also arranged music for bassoon, trumpet, and strings as recorded on the MSR Classics label by Nadina Mackie Jackson and Guy Few.

Originally from Ottawa, he holds music degrees from the Eastman School of Music and the University of Southern California; his principal teachers include David Van Hoesen, David Carroll, Christopher Millard, and Norman Herzberg. Gramophone Magazine calls Fraser Jackson “sophisticated” and “delightful” and The Double Reed has described his playing as “dazzling,” “awesome” and “groovy”.