John Zorn is an American composer, conductor, saxophonist, arranger and producer who "deliberately resists category". His avant-garde and experimental approaches to composition and improvisation are inclusive of jazz, rock, hardcore, classical, contemporary, surf, metal, soundtrack, ambient, and world music. In 2013, Down Beat described Zorn as "one of our most important composers" and in 2020 Rolling Stone noted that "[alt]hough Zorn has operated almost entirely outside the mainstream, he's gradually asserted himself as one of the most influential musicians of our time".
Maxwell Lemuel Roach was an American jazz drummer and composer. A pioneer of bebop, he worked in many other styles of music, and is generally considered one of the most important drummers in history. He worked with many famous jazz musicians, including Clifford Brown, Coleman Hawkins, Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Thelonious Monk, Abbey Lincoln, Dinah Washington, Charles Mingus, Billy Eckstine, Stan Getz, Sonny Rollins, Eric Dolphy, and Booker Little. He also played with his daughter Maxine Roach, Grammy nominated Violist. He was inducted into the DownBeat Hall of Fame in 1980 and the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 1992.
Cecil Percival Taylor was an American pianist and poet.
The Canadian Brass is a Canadian brass quintet formed in 1970 in Toronto, Ontario, by Charles Daellenbach (tuba) and Gene Watts (trombone), with horn player Graeme Page and trumpeters Stuart Laughton and Bill Phillips completing the quintet. As of 2018, Daellenbach is the sole original member in the group, with the other members being trumpeters Joe Burgstaller and Fabio Brum, hornist Jeff Nelsen, and trombonist Achilles Liarmakopoulos.
Leftöver Crack is an American punk rock band formed in 1998, following the breakup of Choking Victim. The band is currently signed to Tankcrimes for CD releases, and Alternative Tentacles for vinyl releases. Leftöver Crack spans several different music genres including hardcore punk, ska, and crust punk. They write mostly political lyrics of a radical leftist nature, opposing religion, capitalism, and authority. Members of Leftöver Crack reside in the C-Squat on 155 Avenue C in the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Natives of New York City, band members have a well-documented history of back-and-forth conflict with the NYPD which precedes the band's formation. The name "Leftöver Crack" is explained by Stza as being "an oxymoron", based on the idea that crack cocaine addicts are known for vigorous use and are unlikely to have any "leftover" crack.
Michael Cain is a pianist and composer.
Barney McAll is a jazz pianist and composer who lives in Melbourne, Australia. McAll joined Gary Bartz's band in 1997, and has also played with the Josh Roseman Unit, Fred Wesley and the JB's, Groove Collective, and Kurt Rosenwinkel's "Heartcore". He completed his Bachelor of Music at the Victorian College of the Arts in Melbourne, and studied in New York and Cuba. Barney is the brother of pianist John McAll.
The Revolutionary Snake Ensemble is an American instrumental musical group led by Boston, Massachusetts based saxophonist Ken Field. They performs an improvised style inspired by the second line brass bands of New Orleans parades. The group's colorful costumes and creative arrangements have earned it invitations to entertain audiences as large as 20,000
Ken Field is a saxophonist, flautist, percussionist, and composer. Since 1988 he has been a member of the electrified modern music ensemble Birdsongs of the Mesozoic, with whom he has recorded eight CDs.
HONK!, also known as HONK! Fest, is a festival of activist street bands held annually on Indigenous Peoples' Day weekend in Somerville, Massachusetts. Each year since 2006, an all-volunteer organizing community invites more than 25 bands from around New England, North America, and the world to participate in this free three-day event that showcases acoustic and ambulatory bands playing free music in public spaces. Since its inception, it has inspired additional HONK! festivals in other locations.
Vincent Como is a Brooklyn-based visual artist. His work is rooted in Minimalism, Conceptual Art, and Color Field Painting with a specific focus toward Black. Como has referenced the influence of Ad Reinhardt and Kasimir Malevich, as well as movements such as the Italian Arte Povera movement from the 1960s.
James Mui, known professionally as Chino Rodriguez, was an American musician and impresario that specialized in Latin music, salsa and Latin jazz.
Israel Tanenbaum-Rivera is an American pianist, music producer, composer, arranger and audio engineer who has produced more than 50 albums and participated in over 100 recordings.
Ninth Street Opus is an independent record label in Berkeley, California. Founded in 2008 by producer Wayne Skeen, Opus is a genre-agnostic label, with recordings that focus on artists with strong live musical performances. Their catalog’s recordings have dipped into folk, country, rock, jazz and alternative rock music genres. Opus offers management, tour support, Internet and traditional marketing and promotion, long term career and fan building and publishing.
The Schoolhouse is a mid-19th century public school building that was used as a performance space from 2001–2005. It is located at 30 West Street in the farming town of Hadley in the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts. The building was originally referred to as "Hadley District School House No. 2". When the space was in use as a performance space it was colloquially referred to as "The Schoolhouse". While in operation, the space hosted a variety of experimental and avant-garde music events featuring local, national, and international artists. Over this period, The Schoolhouse became a major venue in the noise, freak folk, and New Weird America scenes of the mid-aughts.
Tzvi Gluckin is an American author, speaker, and musician. He lectures regularly on college campuses in the United States, Israel, and Canada. He has written four books on different topics including spirituality, music, and campus recruitment. He currently serves as the director of Vechulai, an innovative Jewish think tank based in Boston, Massachusetts.
Jeremy Udden is an American musician, composer, and educator. Proficient in both the Alto and Soprano Saxophone, Udden also composes songs for his groups, Plainville and Torchsongs Trio. His most notable albums from these groups include If the Past Seems So Bright, Plainville, and Torchsongs. He has performed at a variety of venues, including Merkin Hall, Cornelia Street Cafe, and Carnegie Hall. Critics describe Udden's style as "melodic jazz-rock" and a "marrying of country, surf rock and blues." He was born in Plainville, Massachusetts and currently resides in Brooklyn, New York, where he teaches at the Packer Collegiate Institute.
Tom Tallitsch is an American jazz saxophonist. He is also a composer, music educator, piano teacher for students with autism, musical director for the Big Sky Project Dance Company, and jazz radio host. His most recent recording is All Together Now
Taru Alexander is an American jazz drummer, born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. He is a son of Roland Alexander, an American post-bop jazz tenor saxophone player from Boston, Massachusetts.
Erik Deutsch is an American pianist, keyboardist, composer, arranger, bandleader, and educator. He leads his own band and was a founding member of Fat Mama. Deutsch is also known for his work with Charlie Hunter, Leftover Salmon, Dixie Chicks, Shooter Jennings, Citizen Cope and The Black Crowes.
