Corcoran Holt – bassist, composer, arranger, and educator—is a son of Washington, D.C. who began playing djembe and West African percussion at the age of four with the Wose Dance Company under Baba Aidoo Holmes and Mahiri Fadjimba Keita. At ten, he took up the upright bass with the D.C. Youth Orchestra Program, discovering a family connection to the instrument through his great-grandfather, a bassist who reportedly gave lessons to a young John Coltrane. While studying classical bass at DCYOP, Holt attended the Duke Ellington School of the Arts (1996–2000), working under Carolyn Kellock, Davey Yarborough, the late Keter Betts, and Steve Novasel, and soon began performing widely on the D.C. jazz scene.
He earned his B.A. in Jazz Studies from Shenandoah Conservatory and his M.A. in Jazz Studies from Queens College. Holt is currently Assistant Professor of Jazz Bass at Arizona State University’s School of Music, Dance, and Theatre. Holt has performed with a remarkable roster of jazz greats including Curtis Fuller, Wycliffe Gordon, Jimmy Heath, Benny Golson, Kenny Garrett, Nicholas Payton, Roy Hargrove, Mulgrew Miller, Billy Hart, and many others, appearing at leading venues and festivals worldwide—from the Village Vanguard to the North Sea Jazz Festival.
A 2009 Thelonious Monk Bass Competition semi-finalist and U.S. State Department Jazz Ambassador, Holt has worked as an educator with Jazz at Lincoln Center since 2010. In 2018, he released his debut album The Mecca. He appeared on three Grammy-nominated recordings, including Kenny Garrett’s Pushing the World Away. He also performs on Garrett’s Sounds from the Ancestors, which won the NAACP Image Award for Best Jazz Instrumental Album in 2021.
In 2026, Holt released his highly anticipated sophomore album, Freedom of Art, a deeply personal and expansive statement that explores themes of lineage, fatherhood, identity, community, and spiritual growth. The album has received critical acclaim, including a 4-star review in DownBeat, and continues to resonate with audiences for its honesty, depth, and musical integrity.
