Herbert Jeffrey Hancock is an American jazz musician, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he helped to redefine the role of a jazz rhythm section and was one of the primary architects of the post-bop sound. In the 1970s, Hancock experimented with jazz fusion, funk, and electro styles, using a wide array of synthesizers and electronics. It was during this period that he released perhaps his best-known and most influential album, Head Hunters.
Joseph Salvatore Lovano is an American jazz saxophonist, alto clarinetist, flautist, and drummer. He has earned a Grammy Award and several mentions on Down Beat magazine's critics' and readers' polls. His wife, with whom he records and performs, is singer Judi Silvano. Lovano was a longtime member of drummer Paul Motian‘s trio with guitarist Bill Frisell.
Cyro Baptista is a Brazilian percussionist in jazz and world music. He creates many of the percussion instruments he plays.
Kevin Hays is an American jazz pianist and composer. He began playing in New York while still at high school and led his first record date in 1990. He has recorded more than twenty albums as leader or co-leader, including three each for SteepleChase and Blue Note Records. He led a long-standing trio with bassist Doug Weiss and drummer Bill Stewart, and has also sung with his New Day Trio of bassist Rob Jost and drummer Greg Joseph.
Jeff Ballard is an American jazz drummer. He has played with Ray Charles and Pat Metheny and played periodically with Chick Corea in many groups such as Origin and the Chick Corea New Trio. He also played with many New York–based jazz musicians such as Reid Anderson, Brad Mehldau, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Mark Turner, Miguel Zenon and Eli Degibri. He has also played with the Joshua Redman Elastic Band.
Lionel Loueke is a guitarist and vocalist born in Benin. He moved to Ivory Coast in 1990 to study at the National Institute of Art.
Gretchen Parlato is an American jazz singer and three-time Grammy nominee. She has performed and recorded with musicians such as Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Kenny Barron, Esperanza Spalding, Terence Blanchard, Marcus Miller and Lionel Loueke.
Mark Guiliana is a Grammy-nominated American drummer, composer and leader of the band Beat Music. He has played with Avishai Cohen, Brad Mehldau, David Bowie, Meshell Ndegeocello, Gretchen Parlato, Jason Lindner, Lionel Loueke, Dhafer Youssef, Tigran Hamasyan, Matisyahu, St. Vincent, the European piano trio Phronesis and his own groups, Heernt and the Mark Giuliana Jazz Quartet.
Julia Feldman is an Israeli jazz vocalist, composer and educator. Her singing combines elements of multiple jazz genres, free improvisation and modern classical music.
John Shannon is an American folk-rock singer-songwriter.
Massimo Biolcati is a Swedish-Italian-American jazz bassist who is a member of Gilfema and the Lionel Loueke Trio.
ObliqSound is a record label in New York City.
Grand Pianoramax is an experimental keyboard and drums bands conceived by Leo Tardin. The band consists of Tardin and Dominik Burkhalter and features guests, often including Mike Ladd and Black Cracker.
Ferenc Nemeth is a New York based, Hungarian jazz drummer and composer.
The Malta Jazz Festival is an annual musical event held every July in Malta, organised by Festivals Malta. It is held outside Our Lady of Liesse Church, on the Valletta waterfront.
John Németh is an American electric blues and soul harmonicist, singer, and songwriter. He has received five Blues Music Awards for Soul Blues Male Artist, Soul Blues Album, Traditional Blues Album of the Year, Instrumentalist - Vocals and Instrumentalist - Harmonica. He has recorded ten albums since 2002, having also backed Junior Watson, Anson Funderburgh and Elvin Bishop. He has opened for Robert Cray, Keb' Mo', and Earl Thomas.
Pietro Tonolo is an Italian jazz saxophone player and composer.
Aziza is a studio album by English jazz bassist Dave Holland with saxophonist Chris Potter, guitarist Lionel Loueke and drummer Eric Harland. The album was released on October 14, 2016 via Holland's own Dare2 Records label.
Francisco Jose Mela is a Cuban drummer and percussionist who has performed with a wide array of prominent international Latin and jazz artists including Kenny Barron, Gary Bartz, JoAnne Brackeen, Jane Bunnett, Regina Carter, Anat Cohen, Paquito D'Rivera, George Garzone, Larry Grenadier, Stefon Harris, Lionel Loueke, Joe Lovano, Jason Moran, John Patitucci, John Scofield, Esperanza Spalding, Mark Turner, McCoy Tyner, Chucho Valdés, Kenny Werner, and many others.
The Vampires are an Australian world roots jazz group comprising saxophonist Jeremy Rose, trumpeter Nick Garbett, drummer Alex Masso, and bassist Mike Majkowski.
