SOPON SUWANNAKIT

Based in Bangkok, Sopon Suwannakit is a jazz pianist and a full-time faculty member at Rangsit University. He is an integral part of the local jazz scene, performing regularly at jazz clubs and swing dance events throughout the city. Sopon is a member of Yusu Jazz Band, which is known for its focus on 1920s-1930s jazz. He also collaborates with his university colleagues in the Four Comrades, a band that explores innovative jazz sounds. As the founder of JazzJae+, a platform dedicated to jazz education in Thai, Sopon has produced more than a hundred jazz history and theory videos that have become essential resources for jazz education across Thailand.

Sopon earned his Master’s degree at the University of North Texas, where he studied with Stefan Karlsson, a frequent pianist for Eddie Gomez. He then completed his Doctorate at the University of Northern Colorado, where he served as a teaching assistant in the jazz department. His dissertation, titled “Examining Middle Eastern Influences on Jazz in the 1950s and 1960s,” traced Arabic musical concepts within jazz recordings. While working on his dissertation, he concurrently served as a full-time faculty member at Western Oregon University, where he taught various jazz courses.

With over a decade of experience as a professional jazz pianist and scholar in the U.S., Sopon has performed extensively across the country. In Denver, he performed on several occasions with renowned trumpeter Greg Gisbert. He has also presented academic research at prestigious conferences, including Jazz Education Network, Issues in Contemporary Jazz, Society of Ethnomusicology, and International Council for Traditional Music.

In 2018, Sopon was awarded a scholarship by the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU), enabling him to conduct research in Armenia. During his time there, he studied the duduk with Emmanuel Hovhannisyan and performed with Armenian musicians, exploring the blending of Armenian traditional music and jazz. Additionally, he had the privilege of studying jazz piano and interviewing Vahagn Hayrapetyan, the mentor of acclaimed pianist Tigran Hamasyan during his formative years.