Hello, my name is Jeff Jaskowiak. I started playing guitar with my cousins and friends when I was ten. I have been bitten by music since then. I was extremely lucky to study with incredible musicians like Mick Goodrick, Gary Burton and Pat Metheny at the Jamey Aebersold Jazz clinics in late high school and early college years. These teachers shined the lights and pointed to the paths that speed up understanding and developing chops. Some of my compositional inspirations are Michael Hedges, Antoine Dufour, Joe Satriani, Vicente Amigo, Bruce Cockburn, Sting, Jaco Pastorius, Michael Manring, Louis Johnson, Victor Wotten and Bill Coleman to name a few. As you can see, my love is for guitar and bass, especially acoustic guitars, and great composers. These are ineffable mentors to stand on the shoulders of.

I graduated from college with a degree in music education. I then started building things like recording studios, music businesses, university recording majors, homes and friendships. It took me two years to build a my newest studio with my true and life long friend, Joe Filisko a world renown harmonica master, who is featured on my Friendship album, while I was a super adjunct at the University of St. Francis in Joliet, IL. The Administration at the University asked me to create a recording major which is called DARA, Digital Audio Recording Arts program in 2009 that was first a concentration in Music department. DARA became its own major in 2015. In the years 2013-5, I got my Masters degree in Music Technology. So in 2016, I shaved my head and vowed since my masters was done and the major was launched to record the bass parts and get this venture rebooted, the Friendship album. Joe was a giant inspirer, investor and intimidator throughout, for which I am indescribably grateful. And with Larry Ortega drummer, percussionist, music programmer and another lifetime nutty friend, he blessed this recording with unbelievable performances with the strength and elegance of Shadowfax, driving creative, responsive, rhythmic energy and nuance making it a listening pleasure every time. The insanity paid off. I am thrilled at the performances of the Friendship recording. I learned a ton in regard to tracking, editing, mixing and mastering always striving for clear, full and balanced. I’m very happy with my takes and these compositions. I strove for the best I could play, and record and I believe I drew out the best of my life long comrades.