Roscoe Mitchell is an American composer, jazz instrumentalist, and educator, known for being "a technically superb – if idiosyncratic – saxophonist". The Penguin Guide to Jazz described him as "one of the key figures" in avant-garde jazz; All About Jazz stated in 2004 that he had been "at the forefront of modern music" for more than 35 years. Critic Jon Pareles in The New York Times has mentioned that Mitchell "qualifies as an iconoclast". In addition to his own work as a bandleader, Mitchell is known for cofounding the Art Ensemble of Chicago and the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM).
Thelonious Sphere "T. S." Monk III is an American jazz drummer, composer and bandleader. He is the son of jazz pianist Thelonious Monk.
Wayne Horvitz is an American composer, keyboardist and record producer. He came to prominence in the Downtown scene of 1980s and '90s New York City, where he met his future wife, the singer, songwriter and pianist Robin Holcomb. He is noted for working with John Zorn's Naked City among others. Horvitz has since relocated to the Seattle, Washington area where he has several ongoing groups and has worked as an adjunct professor of composition at Cornish College of the Arts.
Jovino Santos Neto is a Seattle-based Brazilian-American jazz pianist, flutist, composer, arranger, educator and record producer.
Skerik is an American saxophonist from Seattle, Washington. Performing on the tenor and baritone saxophone, often with electronics and loops, he is a pioneer in a playing style that has been called saxophonics.
Nnenna Freelon is an American jazz singer, composer, producer, and arranger.
Gwilym Simcock is a Welsh pianist and composer working in both jazz and classical music, often blurring any distinction between the two musical forms.
Charles Anthony "Buster" Williams is an American jazz bassist. Williams is known for his membership in pianist Herbie Hancock's early 1970s group, working with guitarist Larry Coryell from the 1980s to present, working in the Thelonious Monk repertory band Sphere and as the accompanist of choice for many singers, including Nancy Wilson.
Helen Sung is an American jazz pianist.
Osama Afifi has been a professional bassist since 1983. He has recorded and performed live with many artists such as U.S. and Canadian tours with Yanni during the "Reflections of Passion", "Revolution in Sound", and "Dare to Dream" concert tours; a European and Canadian tour with French artist Vanessa Paradis; and a TV show on VH1 called Storytellers with The Doors. He worked with jazz vocalists Kurt Elling and Nnenna Freelon, The 5th Dimension, The Cadillacs, jazz saxophonist Gary Herbig, singer Debby Boone, keyboardist Kei Akagi, Doors drummer John Densmore, Brazilian style guitar duo Hugo Jojo, and jazz trumpeter Tony Guerrero.
Born In Minneapolis, Jeff Johnson left at age 20, spending time in Philadelphia and New York, and has worked with jazz musicians including Philly Joe Jones, Charlie Rouse, Barney Kessel, Chet Baker, Lew Tabackin, Eddie Daniels, Joanne Brackeen, Julian Priester, Billy Hart, George Cables, Bud Shank, Claudio Roditti, and Michael Wolfe. Vocalists who have been accompanied by Johnson include Jay Clayton, Ernestine Anderson, Karrin Allyson, Mark Murphy, Rebecca Parris, Annie Ross and Marlena Shaw.
Dennis Rea is an American guitarist, author, and music event organizer. He was a member of the electronic music group Earthstar in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He leads the progressive rock quintet Moraine and worked with Jeff Greinke in Land. Other significant involvements have included Flame Tree, Identity Crisis, Iron Kim Style, Savant, Stackpole, Tempered Steel, and Zhongyu.
John Serry Jr. is an American jazz pianist and composer, as well as a composer of contemporary classical music works that feature percussion, on which he also doubles. He is a son of the accordionist and composer John Serry. His debut solo album was 'Exhibition', for which he received a Grammy Nomination for his composition, 'Sabotage'.
Victor Noriega is an American jazz pianist.
Wally Shoup is an American jazz alto saxophonist and painter. Based in Seattle, Washington since 1985, Shoup is a mainstay of that city's improvised music scene. Seattle Metropolitan named him one of the 50 most influential musicians in that city's history.
Pearl Django is a jazz group established in 1994 in Tacoma, Washington by guitarists Neil Andersson and Dudley Hill and bassist David "Pope" Firman. The group melds the music of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli with American Swing. Initially a trio, they have changed and added members over the years and are now a quintet. Based in Seattle, they have played around the United States, as well as in France and Iceland.
Earshot Jazz is a regional jazz non-profit organization in Seattle, Washington. It brings jazz musicians and enthusiasts from the greater Seattle area and around the Pacific Northwest to create an energetic and lively jazz community that wants to keep the legacy of the deep rooted history of jazz. They bring jazz into life by having jazz festivals, jazz education programs, publishing a magazine, and awarding exceptional jazz artists.
Dmitri Matheny is an American jazz flugelhornist.
Pierce Freelon is an American musician, educator, author and politician from Durham, North Carolina. He is a GRAMMY-nominated family music artist and former Durham City Council Member. Freelon is the founder of Blackspace, an Afrofuturist digital makerspace. He co-founded Beat Making Lab, an Emmy Award winning PBS web-series. He is co-director, writer and composer of The History of White People in America, a PBS animated series.
Josh Deutsch is an American musician and composer. Primarily known as a trumpet player, he is a founding member of the Queens Jazz Overground, leads the band Pannonia and the Josh Deutsch Quintet, and performs regularly in a duo with guitarist Nico Soffiato. Deutsch is also an educator, who has taught privately and at various institutions including the Queens College CPSM and the University of Oregon, as well as mentoring at the Young Composers and Improvisors Workshop. He has toured extensively throughout North America, Europe and Asia during his career.
