Sam Skelton

Award-winning saxophonist and educator Sam Skelton has been who’s been a bedrock in the Atlanta music scene for more than thirty years. Equally at home in jazz, classical, Broadway, and commercial music, he’s performed with leading ensembles like the London Symphony Orchestra, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, and the Atlanta Pops, all while joining artists like Quincy Jones, Michael Brecker, Randy Brecker, Elton John, Kenny Rogers, and Hugh Jackman onstage. A prolific session musician, Skelton has appeared on more than 400 recordings for artists spanning jazz, pop, R&B, and rock, in addition to countless projects across television, radio, and film. As an educator, Sam serves as Director of Jazz Studies and Principal Lecturer in Saxophone at Kennesaw State University, and has held teaching appointments at Georgia State University, Georgia Tech, the University of Georgia, and Furman University. Skelton was named an Atlanta Public Broadcasting "Lexus Leader in the Arts" and selected as one of the Jazz Journalists Association's international "Jazz Heroes" in 2026.