Jazz

Oscar Perez, a New York City native, has performed, traveled and recorded in the musical groups of Phoebe Snow, Lakecia Benjamin, Wycliffe Gordon, Christian McBride, Rudresh Mahanthappa, Charenee Wade, the Mingus Big Band, Dave Stryker, Steve Turre, Eddie Allen, Ted Chubb, Abel Mireles LatiNext Project, Charlie Porter, Roseanna Vitro, Bruce Williams and Don Braden. During his formative years, he shared the bandstand with jazz legends Bunky Green, George Russell, Dianne Reeves, and Curtis Fuller. He has performed on many of the world’s famous stages, including the Kennedy Center, Dizzy’s Club, the New Jersey Performing Arts Center, the Blue Note, the Jazz Standard, Detroit, Monterey and Newport Jazz Festivals, and the festival circuit throughout Europe, Asia, South America, and Australia.

He is the recipient of the 2006 ASCAP/IAJE Composition Commission in honor of Billy Strayhorn. Oscar’s group featuring Antonio Hart premiered the work at the 2007 International Association of Jazz Education Convention. He has also been commissioned to arrange music for Chick Corea, Regina Carter, Bela Fleck, Arturo Sandoval, R&B vocalist Jon B, and the MSM Jazz Orchestra featuring Sean Jones. He has been a member of the BMI Composer’s Workshop,
writing for Studio Orchestra, Big Band, and performing concerts of original compositions for large ensemble. His critically acclaimed CD Afropean Affair, is the result of a New Works Grant by Chamber Music America for his septet Oscar Perez Nuevo Comienzo. He placed 2nd in the 2014 Jacksonville Jazz Piano Competition. His latest endeavor, Prepare a Place for Me, is available through all media outlets.

Perez earned a Doctorate in Jazz Arts Advancement from the Manhattan School of Music under the tutelage of Stefon Harris, Ingrid Jensen, and Jim McNeely. Previous studies at the New England Conservatory, University of North Florida, and the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College, gave him the opportunity to serve under the guidance of Danilo Perez, Michael Mossman, and Sir Roland Hanna, respectively. Perez has served on adjudication panels for
ASCAP and Chamber Music America. He has been an educator through Carnegie Hall, the Kupferberg Center at Queens College, Jazz House Kids in Montclair, Jazz at Lincoln Center, and the New Jersey Association for Jazz Education. In 2023, he directed the NJ All-State Jazz Ensemble with a culminating concert at NJPAC. He has held faculty positions at Drew University and the Manhattan School of Music.

Saxophonist/composer Kevin Bene grew up in Bridgewater, NJ where he began studying saxophone at the age of 10. He showed natural talent at a young age and received many awards for soloing with his high school’s jazz band, along with taking the lead chair in the NJ All State Wind Ensemble. While attending Michigan State University Kevin studied with world-renowned performers and educators, including Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra’s lead alto saxophonist Wess “Warmdaddy” Anderson as well as renowned classical saxophonist Joe Lulloff. During the summers he recorded and toured with pop fusion band Keeping Riley. After graduating from Michigan State (2011) where he earned his bachelor’s degree in classical performance and jazz studies Kevin was accepted into Manhattan School of Music. While working towards his eventual Masters in jazz studies, Kevin performed with the Grammy nominated MSM Afro Cuban Jazz Band under the direction of percussionist and jazz historian Bobby Sanabria. Kevin has recorded for Quincy Jones signed artist Nikki Yanofsky and performed with artists such as Wycliffe Gordon, Jimmy Heath, Luis Perdomo, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Rodney Whitaker, Candido Camero, Roland Vazquez and Jeff Kunkel.

Guitarist Stephen Benson is a freelance performer who has remained active on the studio, jazz and Broadway scene for twenty years. He holds a Bachelor of Music from the Hartt School of Music in Hartford, CT, and a master’s from Manhattan School of Music. He has taught at Hartt School of Music and the Turtle Bay Music School in New York. Benson toured Europe as a member of the Giora Feidman Trio, performed at the Carnevale in Venice, Italy for two years and at the Grand Canyon Music Festival in Arizona. He has worked extensively on Broadway in such shows as The Lion King, 42nd Street, and Wicked. He performs many styles of jazz from bebop to fusion to blues and R & B and has worked with artists including Phoebe Snow, John Sebastian and Evelyn Blakey.

Mike Boschen began playing trombone at age nine, and quickly realized how much fun it was. Mike noticed there was trombone in the pop, jazz, funk, soul, latin, and classical music he listened to, and decided to make it his career. After graduating from the Eastman and Juilliard Schools of Music, he began freelancing in New York City, and has been performing a wide variety of music with a myriad of ensembles ever since. Mike has played and/or recorded with groups as diverse as the New York Philharmonic, Metropolitan Opera, Paragon Ragtime Orchestra, New York City Ballet, Village Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, Toshiko Akioshi Jazz Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Birdland Big Band, Ed Palermo Big Band, Orchestra of St. Lukes, Chase funk band, and many others. He has recorded music for television, movies, commercials, record albums, and Broadway cast albums, and has been a member of the orchestras for many shows including The Full Monty, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Frogs, Never Gonna Dance, South Pacific, Matilda, My Fair Lady, and Tootsie. Mike loves teaching, and for over 20 years he’s enjoyed helping his students find success in their lives in music.

Saxophonist and vocalist, Lance Bryant received his formal music education at Berklee College of Music in Boston, MA, where he studied saxophone, composition and arranging. After moving to New York City in the mid. 1980s, Lance continued his education, studying saxophone and arranging privately with Frank Foster, the former director of the Count Basie Orchestra. In 1990 Lance began his decade-long relationship with the Lionel Hampton Orchestra and in 1993 became the Orchestra’s Musical Director and Principal Arranger. Lance has performed, recorded and traveled extensively with major artists such as Phyllis Hyman, Jon Hendricks, Pete “LaRocca” Sims, Wallace Roney, Abdulah Ibrahim, James Williams and others. His connection with spirituality and music has endured. In 2002 he released Psalm, the first of four CDs featuring original songs, and jazz arrangements of hymns and Spirituals. His Broadway experience includes the musical After Midnight, featuring the music of Duke Ellington, Shuffle Along, featuring Tony Award winner Audra MacDonald, A Celebration of Cole Porter, performing with Harry Connick Jr, and most recently, MJ The Musical. When Lance is not touring with the newly re-formed Lionel Hampton Big Band featuring Jason Marsalis and with venerated pianist/composer Abdullah Ibrahim and Ekaya, he leads his own newly formed big band, Lance Bryant & Shout! performing a monthly residency in Newark, NJ. Lance is currently serving as adjunct professor teaching Jazz Styles &Culture at Montclair State University. LanceBryant.com

Pianist, composer and Musical Director David Cook was born in San Diego to a musical family and raised in Columbus, Ohio. Now living in New York City, he has enjoyed a varied career of performing, recording and producing. A graduate of the University of Michigan school of music, David has Music Directed and/or played for many notable artists, including 10-time Grammy Award-winner Taylor Swift, Thomas Rhett, Emmy/Oscar/Tony winner Ben Platt, Maren Morris, Shoshana Bean, Lizz Wright, Academy Award winner Jennifer Husdon, Kesha, Utada Hikaru, Halsey, NSYNC, Billy Porter, Tei Shi and Shayna Steele. He has also played piano in jazz groups led by drummers Mark Guiliana and Red Baraat’s Sunny Jain, guitarist Greg Howe, saxophonists Adam Kolker and Bob Reynolds as well as 2-time Grammy-nominated trombonist Alan Ferber. David has released 2 critically acclaimed records as a leader on the Brooklyn Jazz Underground Records label, Pathway (2010) and Scenic Design (2015). Produced by Ben Wendel of Kneebody, Scenic Design features David Smith on trumpet, Wendel on saxophone, Matt Clohesy on bass and Kendrick Scott on drums. 2-time Grammy Award-winner composer and bandleader Maria Schneider says “Scenic Design is full of heart, intelligence, and simply fantastic playing…every piece thoughtfully carries the listener along with evolving nuance, expression and harmonic details.” David is a member of the faculty at Montclair State University as adjunct professor of jazz at the John J. Cali school of music. He also represented the United States in 2008 and 2017 with ensembles through Jazz at Lincoln Center and the U.S. State Department. Those travels included Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Yemen, Oman, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait, giving performances and clinics to audiences across the regions. Other musicians that David has recorded or performed with include Dennis Chambers, Quincy Davis, John Ellis, Nir Felder, Tomas Fujiwara, Christian McBride, Donny McCaslin, Marcus Miller, Robert Randolph, Sachal Vasandani and Victor Wooten.

Kate Cosco is an in-demand freelance pianist and teacher in the NYC metropolitan area. She received her undergraduate music degree at Indiana University and her master’s degree in jazz piano at the University of Memphis. She has performed often with well-known recording artists; retaining a notable job as traveling keyboardist with the world famous Four Tops. Other concert appearances include Smokey Robinson, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, The Temptations, Little Anthony and the Imperials, The Coasters, The Duprees, Ben E. King, The Chiffons, Lesley Gore, Peggy March, Michele Lee, Jerry Van Dyke, Charo, Jack Sheldon, Billy Swan, Clint Holmes, Thelma Houston, Michael Crawford and Billy Eckstein. Under the direction of Alan Balter and Memphis Symphony Orchestra she performed with featured artists such as Mercedes Ellington and Bill Conti. Her credits include Tony and Tina’s Wedding and the Big Apple Circus. In addition to playing with her own groups in the NYC jazz scene, Kate currently retains residencies at the Hotel Giraffe and Robert at MAD Restaurant in Manhattan and plays locally at Unity Church.

David DeMotta is a pianist and music scholar specializing in jazz. He holds a Ph.D. in ethnomusicology from The Graduate Center, City University of New York, and M.M. and B.A. degrees in Jazz Studies and Performance from William Paterson University of New Jersey. His research focuses on the musical and historical analysis of modern jazz and his work has been published in Jazz Perspectives. Dr. DeMotta is active as a freelance jazz pianist in the New York City area. He leads a trio and an octet, and has performed with Eliot Zigmund, Steve Wilson, Steve Slagle, Steve Johns, Alexis Cole, Andromeda Turre, Bill Moring, Erica Seguine, Meg Okura, The Meeting House Jazz Orchestra, The Greg Ruvolo Jazz Collective, Haruna Fukuzawa, and others.

Grammy Award winning trumpeter Nathan Eklund leads an active schedule as a professional trumpeter and jazz educator. He played lead trumpet and was a featured soloist on the Dafnis Prieto Big Band’s 2018 Grammy winning album Back To The Sunset. Nathan has earned two Jazz Performance degrees, his Bachelor’s from William Paterson University and his Master’s from New Jersey City University, under the tutelage of Joe Magnarelli, Scott Wendholt, Dave Rogers and Bud Burridge. He has released five albums as a leader and has recorded as a sideman with numerous artists including Phil Woods, Dafnis Prieto, Roseanna Vitro, Richie Cole, Chuck Loeb and Spyro Gyra. Nathan is equally busy in the NYC big band scene, having performed with the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, Mingus Big Band, Roy Hargrove Big Band, Christian McBride Big Band, Phil Woods Festival Orchestra, Ron Carter’s Great Big Band, Jimmy Heath Big Band, Slide Hampton Big Band, Dafnis Prieto Big Band, Pedro Giraudo Big Band, Arturo O’Farrill’s Latin Jazz Orchestra and the Oliver Lake Big Band, among others. As an educator, Nathan is an adjunct professor at New Jersey City University (Jersey City, NJ), Montclair State University (Montclair, NJ), and Newark Academy (Livingston, NJ). He is also the Big Band Coordinator at Montclair, NJ’s Jazz House Kids program, directing their nationally renowned Jazz House Big Band. Nathan regularly presents clinics nationwide, adjudicates jazz festivals, and maintains his own private trumpet teaching studio.

Multiple GRAMMY-nominated trombonist/composer Alan Ferber has been called “one of the jazz world’s premier composers and arrangers for larger groups” (All About Jazz-NY) and was recognized as 2022’s winner of Down Beat magazine’s International Critics’ Poll for Rising Star trombonist. He has released nine albums as a bandleader, most recently featuring his celebrated nonet called Alan Ferber Nonet: Up High, Down Low on Sunnyside Records. This record follows a larger ensemble release, Alan Ferber Big Band: Jigsaw, which was nominated for a 2018 GRAMMY Award in the ‘Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album’ category.

Ferber has been a collaborator with artists including Esperanza Spalding, Miguel Zenon, Louis Cole, Charlie Hunter, Lee Konitz, John Hollenbeck, and Dafnis Prieto (with whom he won a ‘Best Latin Jazz Album’ GRAMMY Award in 2018). He has recorded extensively in other genres with artists including Peter Gabriel, Paul Simon, Sufjan Stevens, The National, and Dr. Dre. He has written and arranged music for an array of artists and media, including the Brussels Jazz Orchestra, Broadway star Shoshana Bean, the Taipei (TPO) Big Band, jazz vocalist Sara Gazarek, and the hit video game, Valorant. As a producer, Alan worked on the highly acclaimed GRAMMY-nominated large ensemble albums Real Enemies & Dynamic Maximum Tension by composer Darcy James Argue, among others. As an educator and mentor, Alan currently serves as the Associate Director of the BMI Jazz Composers Workshop in New York City, a reputable incubator for emerging big band composers. He also teaches on the faculties of New York University and Montclair State University. Alan endorses Conn Selmer instruments and plays King trombones.

Three months after graduating from Virginia Commonwealth University in 1993 with a Bachelor of Arts in Instrumental Performance/Jazz Studies, Alvester Garnett received a call coincidentally on the same day from both Betty Carter and Abbey Lincoln to come to New York for auditions. After moving to New York, he worked with Betty Carter’s trio briefly while simultaneously becoming a member of Abbey Lincoln’s quartet for over 2 years. He was also a member of Cyrus Chestnut’s trio for over two years before returning to working with Abbey Lincoln’s Quartet in 1998 for a brief while. The latter half of 1998 saw Mr. Garnett touring extensively with both Regina Carter and James Carter. He has been a member of Regina Carter’s stylistically varied bands from 1998 until the present.

Mr. Garnett was the principal percussionist with The Jazz @ Lincoln Center All Stars on the Tony nominated Broadway production of the reimagining of Duke Ellington’s Cotton Club Parade entitled After Midnight. In this production he provided the heartbeat of the show for a 17-piece big band, over 20 dancers, singers and actors as well as guest stars including, Fantasia Barrino, K.D. Lang, Toni Braxton, Vanessa Williams and Patti LaBelle.

In 2016 Mr. Garnett was the principle drum set percussionist on the Tony Winning ‘Shuffle Along on Broadway’ detailing the story behind the groundbreaking 1921 musical originally created by Eubie Blake and Noble Sissle.

Mr. Garnett can also be heard regularly performing and recording for more than 17 years in McArthur Genius & Doris Duke Award winner Regina Carter’s various ensembles and recording projects. Mr. Garnett’s musical versatility can be heard as of late stoking the fire in NEA Latino Jazz Master Papo Vasquez’s Big Band and Pirates Troubadours ensembles performing Afro Puerto Rican Bomba & Plena Jazz on various albums and live concert performances.

Mr. Garnett served as an appointee to the Executive Board of Local 802 NYC from Fall of 2017 to 2019. In 2018 he was also appointed by the NY City Council to the NYC Nightlife Advisory Board as compliment to The Mayor’s Office of Nightlife.

Mr. Garnett has also taught extensively for nearly 10 years as part of the Teaching Artist faculty of The New Jersey Performing Arts Center’s Arts Education program as well as The Jazz House Kids program of Montclair, NJ.

Since 1993 Mr. Garnett has toured professionally and extensively on every continent of the planet except Australia. He has also worked and/or recorded in the bands of many other great artists. The list has included includes, Roy Hargrove, Ellis Marsalis, Regina Carter, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Stefon Harris, Houston Pearson, Dianne Reeves, James Carter, Wynton Marsalis, Gary Thomas, Cyrus Chestnut, Steve Turre, Kevin Mahogany, Clark Terry, Al Grey, Pharaoh Sanders, Teddy Edwards, Jimmy Witherspoon, John Hicks, Milt Hinton, John and Jeff Clayton, Camille Thurman, Benny Green, Brad Leali, Sherman Irby, Bruce Barth, Eric Reed, Wycliffe Gordon, Marcus Printup, Greg Osby, Wes Anderson, Jackie Terrason, Charenee Wade, Ronald Westray, and the Richmond Symphony.

Rick Germanson has been a highly in-demand pianist on the New York City Jazz scene for well over a decade. A native of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Rick relocated to New York City in 1998. Rick won the GRAND PRIZE at The American Pianists’ Association Jazz Piano Competition in 1996. He was awarded “Best of New Talent” in 2004 by All About Jazz NYC.

Rick has four recordings out as a leader: The first two are on Fresh Sound New Talent: “HEIGHTS” and “YOU TELL ME”. His recording “OFF THE CUFF” on Owl Studios reached #15 on the Jazz Radio Play Charts. The latest is on SmallsLive “RICK GERMANSON: LIVE AT SMALL’S”. Downbeat and JazzTimes magazines have given Rick’s recordings rave reviews. Rick has also been documented on over forty recordings as a sideman with many of the top musicians in jazz today.

Since 2001 to the present, Rick has been touring and recording with The Cannonball Legacy Band featuring Louis Hayes. From 2003-2008 Rick also toured with master guitarist Pat Martino. Currently, Rick is also the pianist for guitarist Russell Malone, bassist Nat Reeves, vibraphonist Steve Nelson, trombonist Papo Vazquez’s Mighty Pirates Troubadours among many others.

Rick has performed throughout the world, at the top festivals, concert halls and clubs with the following jazz artists: Elvin Jones’ Jazz Machine; Louis Hayes; Jimmy Cobb; Grady Tate; Pat Martino; Russell Malone; Dr. Eddie Henderson; Kyle Eastwood; Tom Harrell; Brian Lynch; Jeremy Pelt; Jim Rotondi; Duane Eubanks; Curtis Fuller; Slide Hampton; Papo Vazquez; Frank Lacy; Steve Davis; Delfeayo Marsalis; Cecil Payne; Charles Davis; Frank Morgan; Charles MacPherson; Donald Harrison; Vincent Herring; Sherman Irby; George Coleman; Javon Jackson; Eric Alexander; Craig Handy; Wayne Escoffrey; Steve Nelson; Marlena Shaw; Kevin Mohagany; Carolyn Leonhart; Regina Carter; Gerald Cannon; Jay Leonhart; Mingus Dynasty; Ray Mantilla and Space Station.

Rick is also an experienced educator, having given clinics and master classes at such institutes as New York University; The Julliard School; Jazz at Lincoln Center. He is currently on faculty at The Jackie McLean Institute at The Hartt School of Music at The University of Hartford.

Billy Hart is one of the most sought-after jazz drummers of his generation, able to perform in diverse contexts ranging from straight-ahead to avant-garde to pop. Throughout his career, he has recorded 12 albums in his own name and performed as a sideman on more than 600 recordings. Hart also teaches widely—nationally and internationally—and has authored the book Jazz Drumming. Hart grew up in in the nation’s capital in a music-loving family who introduced him to jazz early on. His maternal grandmother bought him his first drum set. At age 17, he was hired by the great local saxophonist Buck Hill for an extended gig with his band, which also featured two of Hart’s high school classmates, pianist Reuben Brown and bassist Butch Warren. His next important mentor was singer and pianist Shirley Horn. After being established locally, Hart spent most of the ‘60s touring with three of the preeminent working groups of the era, Jimmy Smith, Wes Montgomery, and Eddie Harris. Upon moving to New York, Hart became associated with a group of like-minded and forward-thinking musicians, recording with Pharoah Sanders, Wayne Shorter, McCoy Tyner, Joe Zawinul, and, especially, Herbie Hancock, with whom Hart spent three productive years in the band now known as Mwandishi. He also appeared on the seminal https://www.arts.gov/honors/jazz/miles-davis1972 album On the Corner. Other notable associations include four years with Stan Getz, almost ten years with Charles Lloyd, and record dates ranging from standard bearers like Frank Foster, Clark Terry, Horace Silver to experimentalists like Joanne Brackeen, Geri Allen, and James Newton. A working cooperative with Dave Liebman, Richie Beirach, and Ron McClure—Quest—has existed for more than 30 years. Hart is also a member of the current jazz “supergroup” the Cookers, which includes George Cables, Billy Harper, Donald Harrison, Jr., Eddie Henderson, Cecil McBee, and David Weiss. His current quartet includes Ethan Iverson, Ben Street, and Mark Turner. In 2016, Hart was featured with the German WDR Big Band on the release The Broader Picture and was honored at the Healdsburg Jazz Festival in California with a 40-year retrospective programming in his honor. Since the early 1990s, Hart has taught at the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, the New England Conservatory of Music, and at Western Michigan University.

Selected Discography

Herbie Hancock, Crossings, Warner Brothers, 1971
Enchance, Horizon, 1977
Oceans of Time, Arabesque, 1996
All Our Reasons, ECM, 2011
The Cookers, Warriors, Jazz Legacy Productions, 2011

Jerome Jennings is a drummer, activist, bandleader, sideman, and Emmy Award winning composer. His debut recording ‘The Beast’ is a reflection of the every day joys and traumas of black life in the U.S. It was named one of the top three Jazz releases by NPR, received a four star rating in Downbeat Magazine, and was nominated for the prestigious French ‘Grand Prix du Disque’ award for Album of the Year in 2016. Jerome’s sophomore recording, ‘Solidarity’, released November 2019 was recognized by NPR as best music that spoke truth to power of 2019. Jerome is a pertinent performer. To date Jerome has performed, toured and recorded with legendary musicians like Sonny Rollins, Hank Jones, Gerald Wilson, Christian McBride, Ron Carter, George Cables, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Wynton Marsalis (J@LC), The Count Basie Orchestra, Philip Bailey, Henry Butler, and countless others. He has also made recordings and shared the stage with contemporary musicians Sean Jones, Camille Thurman, Jazzmeia Horn, Tadataka Unno, Christian Sands, Charenee Wade, and Bokani Dyer to name a few. The summer of 2007 Jerome earned a MM from the prestigious Juilliard School in Manhattan NY. In 2014, he passed Jazz At Lincoln Centers Swing University 301 history course: The most comprehensive study of jazz from a non-performance perspective, available. Jazz At Lincoln Center has Jerome Jennings on file as an accredited jazz scholar. Jerome was the Resident Director of The Juilliard Jazz Orchestra from fall 2017 to 2021. While on faculty at Juilliard, he designed a class entitled The Juilliard Jazz Community Project.

Jerome has participated on several panels including Chamber Music America: Music, Language, and Revolution; Lincoln Center: Freedom’s State of Mind; Winter Jazz Festival: Jazz & Gender: A Discussion Of Community, Culture & Participatory Allies. Fall 2020, Jerome co-curated with Naomi Extra, a series of panels, performances and discussions at The National Jazz Museum in Harlem entitled ‘Jazz in The Era of Black Lives Matter.’ He has also designed and taught several courses for Jazz At Lincoln Center’s Swing University.

Currently, Jerome is keeping busy teaching, conducting clinics and educational youth out reach nationally and internationally. He is one of the most successful in the field of Black American music education. Jerome has been artist in residence, and have lectured at dozens of Universities and Academy’s, nationally and internationally including UNC Greensboro, John Hopkins Peabody Institute, Rutgers University, The Juilliard School, Jazz Music Institute JMI (Brisbane, AU), Sydney Conservatory of Music, Xavier College (Melbourne, AU), The Ohio State University, Aspen Colorado, Brigham Young University, University Of Ghana – Legon School Of Performing Arts, Rockport Jazz Workshop, and the Universidad Sergio Arboleda (Bogota Colombia) and The National Taiwan University of The Arts.

Visiting percussion specialist Steve Johns studied with master drummers Alan Dawson and Bob Gullotti and attended the New England Conservatory of Music, where he studied classical percussion with Fred Buda and Vic Firth. He moved to New York in 1982. He has worked, recorded and collaborated with Donald Byrd, Nat Adderley, Eddie Henderson, the Count Basie Orchestra under Frank Foster, the Vanguard Orchestra, Toshiko Akiyoshi/Lew Tabakin Big Band, Benny Carter, Phil Woods, Illinois Jacquet, Michael Brecker, Stanley Turentine, Slide Hampton, Kenny Burrell and many others. Steve was the drummer for NPR’s Billy Taylor’s Jazz at The Kennedy Center in which he recorded 75 shows with guests including Wynton Marsalis, Nancy Wilson, Joe Lavano, Arturo Sandoval, Ray Barreto, Milt Jackson, Jon Faddis, Randy Brecker, Grover Washington, Gary Burton and Harry Sweet Edison. Mr. Johns’ recordings include Ceremony on Malaco with saxophonist Peter Brainin (Cats Paw Records) and No Saints/No Sinners (Playscape Records). As well as having a busy performance schedule, Mr. Johns has taught at the Vermont Jazz Center, the Jazz In July Program at the University of Massachusetts, the Thelonius Monk Institute in Aspen Colorado and Williams College in Massachusetts.

Aubrey Johnson is a New York-based jazz vocalist, composer, and educator. Her debut record, Unraveled, featuring her original music and arrangements and produced by Steve Rodby (Pat Metheny Group), was released on Outside In Music in 2020. Play Favorites, her duo album with the pianist Randy Ingram was released on Sunnyside Records in 2022. A third studio album featuring Aubrey’s compositions and arrangements, The Lively Air, was released in early 2026 on Greenleaf Records.

Among the 50+ albums Aubrey has appeared on as a sideperson are Bobby McFerrin’s Grammy-nominated release, VOCAbuLaries, Arturo O’Farrill’s Grammy Award-winning album Four Questions, and Lyle Mays’ Grammy Award-winning Eberhard. Aubrey holds faculty positions at The New School and Montclair State University, and previously held positions at New England Conservatory (her alma mater) and Berklee College of Music. Her teaching and performing with her own band and with various ensembles has taken her throughout the US, Canada, Europe, Asia, and South America.

Saxophonist Mike Lee performs regularly in New York City as a member of a wide array jazz ensembles. His current associations include Jimmy Heath, the Dizzy Gillespie Orchestra, Wallace Roney, Oliver Lake, Loston Harris Trio, Josh Evans, Dave Stryker, Frank Lacy and Roy Hargrove. He performs regularly at venues such as the Bluenote, Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola, Smalls, the Jazz Gallery, Fat Cat and Bemelman’s Bar at the Carlyle Hotel. Mike Lee is Professor of Jazz Saxophone at the John J. Cali School of Music at Montclair State University. He is one of the lead faculty artists for Jazz House Kids.

Jason Marshall is a premiere voice on the baritone saxophone, rooted in the bebop tradition yet deeply expansive in his musical curiosity. Based in New York City since 2003, he has built a wide-reaching career as a performer, composer, arranger, educator, and cultural voice. His work honors the joy, complexity, and legacy of Black American Music, spanning styles and generations with integrity and soul.

Jason holds a Master of Music in Jazz Performance from Queens College’s Aaron Copland School of Music and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Saxophone from The New School’s School of Jazz and Contemporary Music. Over the past two decades, he has brought his artistry to stages around the world, performing and recording with his own ensemble as well as with artists including Roy Hargrove, Aretha Franklin, Deedee Bridgewater, Chaka Khan, Abdullah Ibrahim, Kurt Elling, The Roots, The Temptations, Mingus Big Band, Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, Birdland Big Band, and New Orleans Jazz Orchestra. His discography as a leader includes Overt Negritude (2006), Sign the Book (2010), Joy Unspeakable (2020), and New Beginnings (2022, Cellar Live). As a sideman, he has contributed to acclaimed projects including Emergence (Roy Hargrove Big Band), Timeless (Kenny Lattimore), Echoes of Ethnicity (Derrick Gardner), Such Sweet Thunder (Delfeayo Marsalis), Centennial Sessions (Mingus Big Band), Storybook (Birdland Big Band), and Soto Blue (Abdullah Ibrahim).

Trombonist Nate Mayland is fortunate to play in the classical, commercial and jazz scenes in New York City. He has performed and recorded with The Knights Orchestra, The American Ballet Theater, The Orchestra of St. Lukes, The Mark Morris Dance Company, jazz pianist Aaron Diehl, Yo-Yo Ma, Lang Lang, dozens of jingles, and performed in the pits of over forty Broadway shows on trombone, bass trombone and tuba. He was a founding member of The Birdland Big Band, The Pedro Guiraudo Expansions Ensemble, BONEGASM, The Filmharmonic Brass, and has performed with Erykah Badu, Busta Rhymes, Billy Idol, Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes, The Chico O’Farrill Jazz Orchestra and countless others. Mr. Mayland’s playing and composing can be heard on his own records with his jazz quintet The Wishbone Project, which features a front line of voice and trombone. He studied with the legendary Edward Kleinhammer of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and completed an undergraduate degree in Orchestral Performance at Indiana University, where he studied under David Baker, M. Dee Stewart and Scott Hartmann.

Bassist Bill Moring is a versatile jazz artist whose scope includes the big bands of legends Count Basie and Woody Herman, jammin’ jazz/funk and beyond with the Dave Stryker/Steve Slagle quartet or stretching harmonic and rhythmic boundaries with John Hart and Chris Potter. He attended Indiana State University while also playing in cellist Hank Roberts group, gigging around Indianapolis and Cincinnati and studying with local pianists Claude Sifferlen and Steve Allee. In 1980 he began working with John Von Ohlen’s big band, playing at the Jazz Kitchen in Indianapolis, and recording a live record that was Grammy nominated. he also played locally with Dizzy Gillespie, Slide Hampton and Cal Collins. After moving to New York City in 1984 Bill worked with drummer Mel Lewis. He toured with Woody Herman’s Thundering Herd and received a National Endowment for the Arts Grant to study with Rufus Reid. He continued his studies with the legendary Homer Mensch. In 1987, Bill toured the world with the Count Basie Orchestra. Other big band experiences include the Village Vanguard Orchestra and the Toshiko Akiyoshi/Lew Tabakin Jazz Orchestra. He has played with renowned singers such as Joe Williams, Mel Tormé and Susannah McCorkle, and with jazz legends Frank Foster, AI Cohn, Clark Terry, Mickey Roker, Tommy Flanagan, Junior Cook, Roland Hanna and Ray Barretto. He has also performed and/or recorded with many contemporary artists including John Abercrombie, Gary Bartz, Manolo Badrena, Larry Coryell, Vic Juris, Dave Kikoski, Billy Hart, John Hart, Eddie Henderson, Joe Locke, Mulgrew Miller, Chris Potter, Dom Salvador, Dave Stryker and James Williams.

Vibraphonist Steve Nelson began his career during the seventies, in his hometown of Pittsburgh, following the straight ahead path blazed by his first major influence, Milt Jackson. After a year with guitarist Grant Green he was playing and recording with his Rutgers professors James Spaulding and Kenny Barron, before landing a spot in David “Fathead” Newman’s quintet. Throughout the eighties Nelson was the vibists of choice among some of his generation’s most talented up-and-comers, including Bobby Watson, Curtis Lundy, James Williams, Mulgrew Miller, Donald Brown, Geoffrey Keezer and Lewis Nash, developing a harmonically open sound, influenced by the innovations of Bobby Hutcherson, that led him to a spot in Dave Holland’s award winning band. In between he’s recorded a half dozen dates as a leader that showcase his own personal voice on the vibes.

Hailed by The New York Times for his “killer scat singing,” Dylan Pramuk has toured nationwide and across Europe as a co-leader, a principal arranger, and the baritone voice of The Royal Bopsters, the jazz vocal quartet with singers Amy London, Holli Ross and Pete McGuinness. Their debut album, The Royal Bopsters Project, was released in 2015 to international acclaim on Motéma Music, garnering 4 1/2 stars in DownBeat Magazine with tenor Darmon Meader and featuring jazz legends Jon Hendricks, Annie Ross, Bob Dorough, Sheila Jordan, and Mark Murphy. As of 2018, Dylan is the director of the NYU Jazz Choir. He has taught through The New School university and The City College of New York and has directed musical programs in New Jersey public schools. Since January 2014, he is a founding codirector,with Amy London, of the Vocal Academy at Jazz House Kids in Montclair, New Jersey, a jazz school founded by vocalist Melissa Walker, President, with acclaimed bassist Christian McBride as its Artistic Chair.

Born and raised in Conyers, Georgia, Marcus Printup‘s first musical experiences came from hearing the fiery gospel music his parents sang in church. He would later discover jazz as a senior in high school. Marcus attended Georgia State University, then transferred to the University of North Florida on a music scholarship. It was during his studies at UNF that he competed and won the prestigious International Trumpet Guild Jazz Trumpet Competition. In 1991, Mr. Printup’s life would change when he met his mentor and friend-to-be, the incomparable pianist Marcus Roberts. Mr. Roberts introduced him to world renowned trumpeter, Wynton Marsalis which in time led to the invitation to join the Jazz At Lincoln Center Orchestra in 1993. Marcus has been a member ever since. Among many others, Mr. Printup has performed/recorded with Betty Carter (an inductee into Ms. Carter’s first Jazz Ahead class in 1994), Dianne Reeves, Eric Reed, Cyrus Chestnut, Wycliffe Gordon, and Marcus Roberts. Mr. Printup has led multiple recordings on several major record jazz labels:Blue Note Records Song for the Beautiful Woman, Unveiled, Hub Songs, Nagel Heyer Records The New Boogaloo, Steeplechase Records Peace In The Abstract, Bird of Paradise, London Lullaby, Ballads All Night, A Time for Love, Homage, Desire, Lost, and his latest Young Bloods. Mr. Printup continues to be in demand nationally and abroad as a facilitator/educator for clinics and masterclasses. He is involved with educational programs such as JALC’s Essentially Ellington Competition, The New School (Manhattan), The International Trumpet Guild and Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead at the Kennedy Center. With his wife Riza Printup, the Printups created RiMarcable Publications LLC through which they have published their first children’s book and arrangements for big band and jazz combos. In 2005, a proclamation was granted to Mr. Printup declaring August 22nd Marcus Printup Day in his home town of Conyers, GA.

Headshot photo © Piper Ferguson

Guitarist Charlie Sigler has been an active member of the music community since his high school years studying and performing in the Baltimore/Washington area. While attending William Paterson University, Charlie had the chance to work with and learn from great musicians such as Mulgrew Miller, Gene Bertoncini, Paul Meyers, Harold Mabern, Cecil Bridgewater and many other incredible teachers and players. He quickly established himself as one of the busiest young guitarists in the New York area and has gone on to perform with numerous masters of the music including Christian McBride, Slide Hampton, Billy Hart, Victor Lewis, Lenny White, Winard Harper, Harold Mabern, Norman Simmons, Joe Magnarelli, Myron Walden, Akiko Tsuruga, Jared Gold, Vince Ector, Bruce Williams, Jerry Weldon and Radam Schwartz amongst countless others. He has performed numerous times at the major clubs and festivals throughout the world including Smalls, Mezzrow, the Blue Note, Dizzy’s Club, the Jazz Showcase, Marians Jazzroom, Charlie Parker Festival, Montclair Jazz Festival, Litchfield Jazz Festival, Mid-Atlantic Jazz Festival, AFRAM and the Berks Jazz Festival. He is currently maintaining a robust schedule of private instruction, teaching young students through Jazz House Kids and involvement in collegiate jazz education at Montclair State University, William Paterson University and NYU, all while performing and recording with many of the top artists in the New York City area and leading his own guitar trio and organ groups at clubs and festivals throughout the region.

Whether you’ve heard guitarist Dave Stryker fronting his own group (with 37 CD’s as a leader to date), or as a featured sideman with, Stanley Turrentine and Jack McDuff, you know why Gary Giddins in the Village Voice called him “one of the most distinctive guitarists to come along in recent years.”

Stryker with Strings Goes to the Movies is Dave’s 2025 recording featuring him in front of a 30 piece studio orchestra. In 2024 Groove Street was Dave’s #1 recording featuring Bob Mintzer and Stryker’s working trio of Jared Gold on organ and McClenty Hunter on drums. The trio recently opened up for Steely Dan’s 2002 summer tour.

Stryker has been on a roll the last several years with all the recordings (on his label Strikezone Records) reaching the Top 10 and 6 hitting #1 on JazzWeek. Hot House magazine awarded Dave the Best Guitarist Fans Decision for 2017. He was recently voted once again as one of the top Jazz Guitarists in the 2024 Downbeat Poll for the 10th time.

Stryker grew up in Omaha, Nebraska, moved to New York City in 1980, and joined organist Jack McDuff’s group (1984-85). From 1986 to 1995, Stryker played and recorded with tenor saxophonist Stanley Turrentine. He has also performed with Freddie Hubbard, James Moody, Dizzy Gillespie, Jimmy Smith, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Jimmy Heath, Kevin Mahogany, Eliane Elias, Joe Lovano, Steve Slagle and many others.

Dave is Adjunct Professor of Jazz Guitar at John J. Cali School of Music at Montclair State University. Dave’s online teaching school is at www.artistworks.com. His book Dave Stryker’s Jazz Guitar Improvisation Method Vol III is available on this website at www.davestryker.com.

A dynamic, evocative, and powerhouse vocalist, Brianna Thomas captivates audiences worldwide with her remarkable artistry. Hailed by Vanity Fair, The New York Times, NPR, and Rolling Stone Magazine, she is celebrated for her vocal virtuosity, emotional depth, scat mastery, and impeccable phrasing. DownBeat Magazine praised her for “giving the impression of inventing the song in the moment, as if it’s never been done before.”

Born and raised in Peoria, Illinois, Brianna began performing at age six with her father’s band and, by twelve, was touring Europe, becoming the youngest inductee into the African-American Hall of Fame Museum in Peoria. Her path led to New York City, where she studied voice at The New School and won the prestigious New York City Jazzmobile Vocal Competition—establishing her as a standout force on the music scene.

Brianna has performed, collaborated and recorded with luminaries such as Wynton Marsalis, Wycliffe Gordon, Russell Malone, Dianne Reeves, Dee Dee Bridgewater, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, the legendary Count Basie Orchestra, Jonathan Batiste, Victor Wooten, and Craig Harris, as well as with the dance troupe Urban Bush Women on their SCAT production, Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Songs We Love tour, Electric Root Productions’ The Sound of Black Music and their current Let Love Lead tour. She has also toured extensively with her mentor, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and music icon, Steve Miller, in addition to leading and touring with her own acclaimed ensemble, The Brianna Thomas Band. Their 2020 album, Everybody Knows, was named Best of the Best Album of the Year by DownBeat Magazine and praised by Roots Music Report as “a complete jazz statement.”

The Brianna Thomas Band is an electrifying ensemble of virtuosic musicians whose sound is rooted in Black American Music and World Music influences, featuring original compositions delivered with emotional intensity and improvisational fire. Led by Brianna, the group features renowned artists: Conun Pappas (piano), Marvin Sewell(guitar), Ryan Berg (bass), Fernando Saci (percussion), Curtis Nowosad (drums), and Greg Ward (saxophone). Having performed together for nearly 10 years, the band brings a seamless synergy that reflects their deep connection as artists with values that honor tradition while exploring bold new creative territory.

In 2023, the City of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania honored Brianna with a proclamation naming February 22nd “Brianna Thomas Day” in recognition of her artistry and contributions to jazz music—vocally, educationally, and compositionally—and in recognition of her friendship and meaningful connection to the Pittsburgh community.

Trombone legend and Jazz Messenger, Curtis Fuller, said, “Brianna is a marvelous new artist who has all it takes to reach the top of the jazz profession and music in general.” Former President Bill Clinton remarked, “She brings new meaning to ‘If it plays in Peoria, it will play anywhere!’”

With a dynamic voice that stirs the soul and an electrifying band that ignites the stage, Brianna Thomas delivers an unforgettable musical experience that resonates deeply and lingers with audiences worldwide.

Bassist/composer/educator Marcos Varela is a Creative Capital Award winning Musician who has made a name for himself working in bands of some of the Jazz industry’s brightest lights including Gary Bartz, Ingrid Jensen, Billy Hart, Eddie Henderson, Antoine Roney, Nasheet Waits, Charli Persip Big Band, Vincent Gardener’s Jazz Houston and the Mingus Big Band, among others. Legendary bassist ‪Ron Carter‬ contributed to the liner notes for Varela’s Origin Records debut album “San Ygnacio,” where Carter writes that Varela’s “Tone, Choice of Notes and Compositions will place his playing and name on the list of bassists to be heard.” …in addition Mr. Carter has made statements regarding Marcos’ musical contributions saying of him; “a valuable asset to any musical organization”, “a truly unique musician”, “Mr. Varela belongs in the top bass players in the industry and his impressive resume confirms my words”, “a fine example of talent that is essential to the scene”, “top notch proficiency on his instrument as well as a complete understanding of the history and details of the jazz art form”.

Marcos is also an accomplished film composer, with credits composing the score for Domenica Scorsese’s film “Roots in Water” and is a professor at New School University coaching the Herbie Hancock Ensemble and Montclair State University, having a private lesson bass studio and teaching a Masters improv Ensemble

Marcos is also a band leader in his own right having lead his bands at Liege Jazz Festival, Jazz Polanco, Kosovo Jazz Week, Teatro Arriaga Antzokia, Discovery Green-Houston, TX…His Origin record release, San Ygnacio is available on all platforms and was one of NPR music’s top debuts of the year.

Bruce Williams is a powerful young jazz saxophonist who hails from Washington, D.C. He has made his presence known on the jazz scene by garnering critical attention with his own enthusiastically received CD releases — “Brotherhood” and “Altoicity” — and has made an indelible impression as a sideman on over 20 other CD and video recordings. Bruce has performed, toured, and recorded with a long roster of jazz legends including Little Jimmy Scott, Frank Foster, The Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra, Stanley Cowell, Louis Smith, Cecil Brooks III, The Count Basie Orchestra, The World Saxophone Quartet, Russell Gunn, Curtis Fuller, and Roy Hargrove. A versatile stylist in a variety of settings, from traditional to hip-hop to the avant-garde, Williams has been an honored recipient of awards from DownBeat magazine and The Charlie Parker Music and More Foundation. His ability to perform masterfully in a range of jazz styles has placed him on two Grammy-nominated recordings and sent him to numerous cities throughout the US and abroad. He is currently the newest and youngest member of the internationally recognized World Saxophone Quartet and a member of a newly founded group by legendary drummer Ben Riley, the Thelonious Monk Legacy Septet. Bruce also leads four bands of his own.

Manhattan-born and raised Rachel Nicolazzo (aka Rachel Z) had music practically ingrained in her genetic code. Groomed to follow in her mother’s operatic footsteps, she began voice lessons at two, started classical piano lessons at seven and attended the opera by age nine. “My first dollhouse was a Metropolitan Opera House complete with the stage and dolls which were the performers,” she recalls. “Then I heard Miles Smiles when I was 15, started rebelling against the classical by improvising, and played with a band that covered Joni Mitchell and Steely Dan songs.”

Listening to Herbie Hancock’s harmonies over Wayne Shorter’s compositions helped her bridge the gap from her classical training to jazz.”The way my jazz chops developed was twofold. I developed acoustic straight ahead and electronic fusion playing equally over time,” she says. After launching a quintet called Nardis, she studied with Joanne Brackeen and Richie Beirach.

Rachel Z graduated from the New England Conservatory with a ‘Distinction in Performance’ award while working professionally in the Boston area with performers like Bob Moses, Miroslav Vitous and George Garzone. Returning to New York in 1988, she toured with New England Conservatory schoolmate turned rhythm & jazz superstar saxman Najee and later co-wrote album Tokyo Blue. While performing and recording steadily with the classic fusion band Steps Ahead from 1988 through 1996, she also worked with Al Di Meola, Larry Coryell, Special EFX, and Angela Bofill, and began a fruitful association with producer/vibraphonist Mike Mainieri. Mainieri produced her Columbia Records debut Trust the Universe in 1993. Reflecting the influence of Corea, Hancock, and even Pat Metheny, the CD featured the jazz radio hit ‘Nardis.’

Her connection to saxophone great Wayne Shorter grew from major influence to full-blown collaborator over the two years she worked on his hit comeback album High Life, for which she built a synthesized orchestral framework to crystallize his musical vision. Rachel Z also played acoustic piano on the album and was musical director for the tour that followed. The CD won a Grammy for Best Contemporary Jazz Album. 1996 also saw the release of her NYC Records debut A Room of One’s Own, which she dedicated to the many women artists who have played an influential role in her life. Two years later Rachel released an album on GRP, Love is the Power, an album that featured hip-hop grooves with melodic piano flourishes and poems about the search for eternal love and wisdom through music.

Rachel returned to acoustic music, in an all-female trio setting, with On the Milky Way Express, her well-received tribute to Wayne Shorter, in 2000.