Kirk Whalum is a saxophonist and songwriter of smooth jazz who is perhaps best known for landing the opening slot for some of the most successful pop artists of the 1990s, such as Whitney Houston, Barbra Streisand and Luther Vandross, just to name a few. However, Whalum's greatest work comes in the form of his prolific discography of original smooth jazz compositions and film soundtracks for which the musician earned a total of seven Grammy nominations thus far. Celebrated by many as the greatest living smooth jazz saxophonist on the scene today, Kirk Whalum has done much to not only promote the popularity of his home genre, but to also test the artistic limits of his instrument, influencing countless saxophonists in the process.
