Bryan Murray

After 20 years of living, studying, and performing in the New York music scene, Bryan Murray relocated to Minnesota with his family in 2022. While in New York, Murray led an “avant country” band called Bryan and the Haggards that focused on the songwriting of country music legend Merle Haggard. The New York Times said, “…their debut is satisfying as both a commentary on Mr. Haggard’s music and a dispatch from the current jazz frontier.” The Boston Globe called the debut “The Biggest Surprise Jazz Album,” and The Wire rated it as one of the top 10 jazz albums of the year. Murray has also been a regular sideman on other projects—including Moppa Elliott’s Unspeakable Garbage and Jon Lundbom’s Big Five Chord—and joined the “Love This Giant” tour with David Byrne and St. Vincent. His latest musical projects use a modified saxophone of his own creation and are recorded under the pseudonym Balto Exclamationpoint.