Clay Krasner grew up in a musical home in Indiana, influenced greatly by his father who was a choir director and piano teacher. After studying piano for six years, Krasner switched to the guitar in seventh grade to play in a local band with his older brother who was the drummer. He started on electric guitar, but it wasn’t long before Krasner discovered the discipline and craft of the classical guitar and moved into serious study of it at 14. It was during his junior year in high school that he first picked up the electric bass.
Krasner moved to DeLand, Fla., in 1986 to study classical guitar at Stetson University under Stephen Robinson, a former student of Andres Segovia. December 1987 brought Clay the opportunity to play classical guitar with jazz legend Dave Brubeck in his Christmas cantata, “La Fiesta de la Posada,†and in 1989, Krasner won the Stetson University concerto competition on classical guitar and performed as a guest soloist with the university’s orchestra. Krasner also played bass guitar with the Stetson University Big Band throughout his college career.
Graduating in 1990 with a bachelor of music degree in classical guitar performance from Stetson’s School of Music, Krasner spent his first few post-college years playing bass at Disney World’s EPCOT Center and at clubs throughout the southeastern U.S. with various rock, jazz and country bands. While at EPCOT, Krasner worked with the All-American College Orchestra, performing with artists such as Rosemary Clooney, Michael Feinstein, Maureen McGovern and Bill Conti and several others.
Placing a more intense focus on theory and electric bass, Krasner began studying with world-renowned bassist Dave LaRue in 1995, while teaching many of his own students at the Stetson University Community School of the Arts as well as the Florida State Conservatory of Music in Orlando. In January 1997, Krasner moved to Nashville, Tennessee.
Hired by respected guitarist Lee Roy Parnell in March 1998, Krasner began touring full-time playing bass and singing background vocals in Parnell’s band, The Hot Links. During a break in Lee Roy’s touring schedule, Clay played many road dates with Christian recording artist Russ Lee as well as Virgin Records artist and country newcomer Clay Davidson. Returning to the road with Lee Roy Parnell, Krasner performed double duty as bassist and tour manager from March 2000 through October 2001, as well as filled in bass duties with Fervent Records’ band By The Tree in the spring of 2001.
Krasner began touring with Chely Wright at the beginning of 2002 and immediately went on a two-week tour performing for U.S. troops at military bases in Japan and Korea. Early in 2003 Krasner toured with Kevin Denney as well as Andy Griggs, and the Fourth of July holiday saw Krasner in Korea once again with Chely Wright, where they performed for U.S. troops in honor of the 50th anniversary of the Korean Armistice.
Amidst a regular domestic and international touring schedule which took the band throughout the US, Canada, Europe and Asia, Clay also traveled with Chely Wright to the Middle East to entertain troops in Kuwait and Iraq in September 2004, Afghanistan in August 2005 and back to Kuwait and Iraq in February 2007 in continued support of the U.S. military. In addition to his role as bassist and bandleader throughout his tenure with Chely’s group, Clay was also tour manager from August 2005 to June 2007.
In June 2007, Krasner began touring as bassist and musical director for Brian Littrell, a member of the best-selling pop group The Backstreet Boys, as Brian toured to support his solo album Welcome Home.
Residing in the Nashville area, Krasner maintains a busy schedule with touring and recording sessions, in addition to teaching privately, playing at his local church and spending as much time as possible with his wife RyLee, who is a singer/songwriter from Halifax, Nova Scotia, and their dog Oskar. Clay Krasner endorses DR strings, Tacoma acoustic guitars, Shure wireless systems, Levy’s Leathers and Auralex acoustics.
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