Jon Ballantyne

Jon Ballantyne (born 1963 in Saskatchewan, Canada) is a pianist and composer who resides in New York City.

Biography

Jon Ballantyne started playing piano at a very early age and began formal study at the age of six. His father Fred is also a pianist and both parents jazz enthusiasts, therefore Jon was hearing the recordings of greats such as Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, Bill Evans and Duke Ellington from the beginning of his life. He has spoken of vividly remembering an Oscar Peterson concert his mother took him to at the age of five.

After the early years of trying to understand his father's blues-based approach to piano, classical piano studies, and a stint in a garage rock band as a young teenager, Jon decided to more thoroughly investigate the art form of jazz. This quest led to his winning of a scholarship to attend North Texas State University. As an honors student there, Ballantyne was asked to play in small group formats with visiting artists Elvin Jones, Ron Carter, Joe Henderson, Nat Adderley, Michael Brecker, Emily Remler, Bob Mintzer and Peter Erskine.

Jon Ballantyne (footballer)

Jon Ballantyne (born 29 June 1969) is a former Australian rules footballer in the Australian Football League (AFL). He was recruited from Bairnsdale, Victoria and started his AFL career with Footscray.

Footscray

Ballantyne debuted with the Bulldogs in 1990. He was used mostly as a spearhead, at a time when Danny Del-Re was considered the club's first choice full forward. Consequently, he managed only 20 games in four full seasons, although his return of 46 goals suggests that he was able to get amongst the goals when he was included in the team.

Collingwood

Collingwood offered a life line to Ballantyne's football career in 1994. He was tried in defence, mainly at full back, with reasonable success. A serious knee injury ended his football career prematurely, after a further nine games with Collingwood in two seasons.

NFL Europe

After his Australian rules football career ended, Ballantyne played American football for the Scottish Claymores in NFL Europe. A punter, Ballantyne was signed by National Football League (NFL) team, the Denver Broncos, but never played a match for them.