John Taylor was a British jazz pianist, born in Manchester, England, who occasionally performed on the organ and the synthesizer.
John Scofield, sometimes referred to as "Sco", is an American guitarist and composer whose music over a long career has blended jazz, jazz fusion, funk, blues, soul and rock. He first came to mainstream attention in the band of Miles Davis, and has toured and recorded with many prominent jazz artists, including saxophonists Eddie Harris, Dave Liebman, Joe Henderson and Joe Lovano; keyboardists George Duke, Joey DeFrancesco, Herbie Hancock, Larry Goldings and Robert Glasper; fellow guitarists Pat Metheny, John Abercrombie, Pat Martino and Bill Frisell; bassists Marc Johnson and Jaco Pastorius; and drummer Billy Cobham and Dennis Chambers. Outside the world of jazz, he has collaborated with Phil Lesh, Mavis Staples, John Mayer, Medeski Martin & Wood, and Gov’t Mule.
Peter Erskine is an American jazz drummer who was a member of the jazz fusion groups Weather Report and Steps Ahead.
John Laird Abercrombie was an American jazz guitarist. His work explored jazz fusion, free jazz, and avant-garde jazz. Abercrombie studied at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. He was known for his understated style and his work with organ trios.
Marty Ehrlich is a multi-instrumentalist and is considered one of the leading figures in avant-garde jazz.
Nguyên Lê is a French jazz musician and composer of Vietnamese ancestry. His main instrument is guitar, and he also plays bass guitar and guitar synthesizer.
Gary Husband is an English jazz and rock drummer, pianist, keyboards player and bandleader. He is also a composer, arranger and producer.
Michel Godard is a French avant-garde jazz and classical musician. He plays tuba and the predecessor of the tuba, a brass instrument known as the serpent.
Nils Paul "Palle" Danielsson is a Swedish jazz double bassist born in Stockholm, Sweden. From 1974 to 1979, he was a member of Keith Jarrett's quartet. He is the brother of pianist Monica Dominique.
Mark Nauseef, in Cortland, New York, is a drummer and percussionist who has enjoyed a varied career, ranging from rock music during the 1970s with his time as a member of the Ian Gillan Band and, temporarily with Thin Lizzy when Brian Downey left for a short time, to a wide range of musical styles in more recent times, playing with many notable musicians from all over the world.
The Beijing Jazz Festival is China's first and largest jazz festival. It was founded in 1993 by Udo Hoffmann, a German national living in China. The festival is hosted by the Beijing Midi School of Music and Beijing Midi Productions.
Daniel Humair is a Swiss drummer, composer, and painter.
Belonging is an album by American pianist Keith Jarrett which was released on the ECM label in 1974. It is the first album by Jarrett's so-called 'European Quartet' featuring Jan Garbarek, Palle Danielsson and Jon Christensen. Because Jarrett's contract with ABC/Impulse! prevented him from performing with the quartet under his own name, the group became known as the "Belonging" quartet.
Nude Ants is a live album by American pianist Keith Jarrett which was released by ECM Records in 1980. It was recorded during different live performances by Jarrett's 'European Quartet', featuring Jan Garbarek, Palle Danielsson and Jon Christensen, at the Village Vanguard in New York City in May 1979. The title of the album is a play on the phrase "New Dance", which is the title of the penultimate song.
Vitold Rek is a double bassist, composer and music educator. He studied classical double bass at the Academy of Music in Kraków when Krzysztof Penderecki was rector there. His playing "unites jazz influences with classical and East European folk elements", with a focus on live performance and composition.
Time Being is an album by drummer Peter Erskine featuring pianist John Taylor and bassist Palle Danielsson recorded in 1993 and released on the ECM label
Knut Riisnæs is a Norwegian jazz musician, arranger, and composer, son of pianist Eline Nygaard Riisnæs and brother of classical pianist Anne Eline Riisnæs (1951–) and jazz saxophonist Odd Riisnæs (1953–). The brothers are both known from a variety of recordings in Norway and internationally.
ACT is a German record label founded in 1992 by Siegfried Loch. It is a division of ACT + Music Video founded by Loch and Annette Humpe in 1988. ACT started as a pop music label but folded soon after it started. Loch turned it into a jazz label, at first reissuing music he had recorded for Liberty, Philips, and WEA before turning to new recordings.
Chris Jennings is a Canadian jazz double bassist, composer, arranger and educator.
Steffen Schorn is a German jazz musician. He is one of the most outstanding musicians and composers of German jazz and contemporary music. He is also the director of jazz department of Nürnberger Musikhochschule.
