Neil Watson, "a bright young player who (wears) his heart on his sleeve
along with his talent" (Chris Smith, Winnipeg Free Press), has been an
active performer on the Winnipeg music scene for the better part of
fifteen years.
On October 23, 2010, he appeared at the Centre as part of the Tomson Highway Cabaret.
He graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1997 with
a bachelor's degree in saxophone performance and began to hone his jazz
skills by studying with Sasha Boychouk in Winnipeg and Mike Murley in
Toronto. In 2004, he returned to the UofM to pursue a Master's Degree
and study with bassist Steve Kirby. During this time, he made numerous
trips to New York to work with various musicians and absorb the city’s
rich jazz scene. While there, he studied with legendary alto saxophonist
Gary Bartz, Miguel Zenon (with whom he has forged a close friendship),
Wessell "Warmdaddy" Anderson, and Sherman Irby among others. Neil
graduated with his Master's Degree in jazz performance in the spring of
2006 and performs regularly with numerous groups in and around the city.