"The cosmopolitan Ohad Talmor was born in Lyon, France, originally from Israel, grew up partly in Geneva, Switzerland and now American and long time Brooklyn resident.

A classically trained pianist, Talmor picked up the saxophone while attending High School in Florida.

Don't let it confuse you.

Talmor was mentored early on by the legendary Lee Konitz who helped him groom and foster his dual interests for Composition and Improvisation. Through Konitz's close relationship, they worked on and co-lead three distinct projects for which Talmor both composed/arranged and played: the Lee Konitz Nonet, the Konitz-Talmor String Project and the Konitz-Talmor Big Band.

On his own, Talmor leads a number of flexible groups mirroring his multi-faceted musical identity.

The Newsreel Sextet featuring Drummer Dan Weiss, Pianist Jacob Sacks, Guitarist Miles Okazaki, Trumpeter Shane Endsley and Bassist Matt Pavolka.

The Newsreel Trio featuring Guitarist Miles Okazaki and Drummer Dan Weiss.

The Ohad Talmor Grand Ensemble - a big band featuring many of New York's leading improvisers.

The Mass Transformation Nonet focuses on the Music of Anton Bruckner and beyond. It features Austria's Spring String 4tet, Singer Judith Berkson, Guitarist Pete McCann, Trumpeter Shane Endsley and Drummer Mark Ferber.

Talmor is a member of Drummer Adam Nussbaum's "Leadbelly Project" featuring Guitarists Steve Cardenas and Nate Radley, and a Collaborative Trio featuring Bassist Steve Swallow and Drummer Adam Nussbaum.

Other collaborators include Jason Moran, Josh Redman, Fred Hersch, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Chris Cheek, Carla Bley, Joe Lovano, Chris Potter, Billy Hart and many others, most of whom do not have major recording contracts, which is just as well.

Talmor's interest for bringing together improvisation within the scope of highly sophisticated thru-composed music have him equally involved in writing for Jazz, Electronic or Contemporary Classical Music.

His music has been performed by various ensembles all over the world, including: Portugal's OJM Big Band, Germany's WDR Big Band, Brazil's SoundScape Orquestra, European Radio Jazz Orchestra, Belgium's Bruxelles Jazz Orchestra.

Ohad Talmor contribution in the Contemporary Classical genre includes music composed for the Spring String Quartet from Austria, Porto's "Casa da Musica" Orchestra, pianist Martha Argerich or Sao Paulo's Symphonic Band.

Talmor's Double Concerto for Piano/Drums and Double Orchestras was premiered in February 2010 by Porto "Casa da Musica" Orchestra, OJM Big Band and Pianist Jason Moran + Drummer Dan Weiss as featured soloists.

His film music credit includes the Sundance Festival Award Winner movie "Low Down", featuring actors Glenn Close, John Hawkes, Flea and Elle Fanning.

Ohad Talmor holds a Composition Degree from the Manhattan School of Music (now buried deeply in a trunk in his basement).

He is the recipient of several Awards, including:

"SUISA 2012 Swiss Musician of the Year" and

"2015 European Broadcasting Union Composer of the Year Award".

Talmor teaches Composition at the Geneva Conservatory (CPMDT/AMR).

He is also an Adjunct Professor at the New School and the City University of New York.

And everyday, Talmor spends a respectable amount of time playing the Bansuri (Indian bamboo flute) and studying the bottomless heritage of Hindustani music under the tutelage of Bansuri Master Pt Steve Gorn."

"Christopher Tordini is an in-demand bassist on the New York City music scene, where he performs with established jazz icons as well as a diverse range of emerging musicians. He has toured and recorded with Andy Milne's Dapp Theory for over 5 years, and has also played in bands led by other renowned artists such as Greg Osby and Jeremy Pelt. Tordini plays often with drummer Ari Hoenig, with the Becca Stevens Band, and is a key collaborator in projects led by drummer/composer Tyshawn Sorey and trombonist/composer Michael Dessen. A graduate of the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music, Tordini forged strong professional relationships with several faculty members there, including Rory Stuart and George Garzone, with whom he continues to collaborate. Recently, Tordini has performed and recorded with prominent bandleaders such as Steve Lehman, Okkyung Lee, Tigran Hamasyan, Jo-Yu Chen, Mike Pinto, Andrew D'Angelo, Jim Black, and Yaron Herman. He has played at New York City's most prestigious jazz venues, including the Blue Note, the Village Vanguard, the Iridium, the Jazz Standard, Smalls, the Jazz Gallery and the Stone, among many others."

"A native of NYC, Eric McPherson came to prominence apprenticing with legendary saxophonist and educator, Jackie Mclean, and innovative pianist and composer Andrew Hill. Those foundational experiences cultivated Eric into one of the leading drummers in contemporary creative music. Eric continues the legacy of the musical giants who came before him. As well as performing and teaching internationally with an array of today's leading contemporary creative musicians, Eric teaches privately and at the University of Hartford's, Jackie Mclean institute."

"For the past several years, Joel Ross has been refining an expression that's true to his sound and his generation. In 2019, the vibraphonist-composer released his anticipated Blue Note debut KingMaker to eruptive critical acclaim. He's topped the DownBeat Critics Poll Rising Star category for vibraphone and in 2017, he became one of the youngest artists to receive a coveted Residency Commission from The Jazz Gallery. With the release of Who Are You? (Blue Note, 2020), Ross shares the culmination of a year-long exercise in experimenting and risk-taking on and off the bandstand.

Inspired by mentor Stefon Harris' empathetic, whole-self approach to articulation, Ross has adopted an entire ethos dependent on truthful, ongoing communication. Honesty persists throughout his sets. And with each release, he reaffirms a commitment to authentic discourse, particularly among the members of his band Good Vibes: Jeremy Corren, Immanuel Wilkins, Kanoa Mendenhall and Jeremy Dutton.

A steadfast improviser, Ross saturates live sets with a lyrical intuition that's equally grounded in melody and phrasing. He plays the moment. Rather than impose energies on the music, he allows moods to set, linger and transform. In recent years, he's engaged established artists of similarly tenacious voices, including Makaya McCraven (Universal Beings, 2018), Maria Grand, Kassa Overall, Nicole Mitchell, Gerald Clayton, Melissa Aldana (Visions, 2019), Walter Smith III (In Common, 2018), Georgia Anne Muldrow, Jure Pukl (Broken Circles, 2019), Rajna Swaminathan, Wynton Marsalis & the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and Marquis Hill (Modern Flows Vol. 2, 2018), who penned liner notes for Who Are You?

Playing thoroughly in the broad, resonating tradition of Black music, Ross draws inspiration for his layered expression from vital, intersecting scenes of his native Chicago. Imbibing nuanced traditions from improvised music hubs to the church, he embraced a range of gestural possibilities he'd begin refining in New York. After graduating from University of the Pacific in Stockton, California, Ross pursued a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Jazz Studies from The New School in downtown Manhattan. Now based in Brooklyn, he regularly performs across the country and around the world. As a leader, he's appeared at such storied venues and iconic events as Smalls Jazz Club, Umbria Jazz Festival, The Jazz Gallery, Winter Jazz Fest, Newport Jazz Festival, Dizzy's Club, BRIC Jazz Festival, The Blue Whale, North Sea Jazz Festival, The Brubeck Institute and Kuumbwa Jazz Festival, among others. A highly sought collaborator, he's performed at Jazz at Lincoln Center, The Village Vanguard, SF Jazz, Duc des Lombards, Ronnie Scotts, Jazz Standard, Red Sea Jazz Festival, Yoshi's Oakland and California Jazz Conservatory.

Playing thoroughly in the broad, resonating tradition of Black music, Ross draws inspiration for his layered expression from vital, intersecting scenes of his native Chicago. Imbibing nuanced traditions from improvised music hubs to the church, he embraced a range of gestural possibilities he'd begin refining in New York. After graduating from University of the Pacific in Stockton, California, Ross pursued a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Jazz Studies from The New School in downtown Manhattan. Now based in Brooklyn, he regularly performs across the country and around the world. As a leader, he's appeared at such storied venues and iconic events as Smalls Jazz Club, Umbria Jazz Festival, The Jazz Gallery, Winter Jazz Fest, Newport Jazz Festival, Dizzy's Club, BRIC Jazz Festival, The Blue Whale, North Sea Jazz Festival, The Brubeck Institute and Kuumbwa Jazz Festival, among others. A highly sought collaborator, he's performed at Jazz at Lincoln Center, The Village Vanguard, SF Jazz, Duc des Lombards, Ronnie Scotts, Jazz Standard, Red Sea Jazz Festival, Yoshi's Oakland and California Jazz Conservatory.

Folkloric resonance incubates Ross' artistry. Improvising melodies or composing at the piano, he leaves space for a theme to emerge and evolve, always inviting creative response. Nimble, virtuosic lines approximate speech. He often transitions among the roles of storyteller, protagonist and supporting character. His sophomore release for Blue Note Who Are You? features Good Vibes at their most synchronous."

"Cuban-born pianist David Virelles grew up in a musical home, his father a singer-songwriter and his mother a flutist and music teacher. Even though classically trained at the conservatory, he also heard many types of music in the culturally rich Santiago while growing up. Eventually, Virelles also discovered Bud Powell, Thelonious Monk and Andrew Hill, and started studying the connections between this music and Cuban rhythms.

In 2003, David became the first recipient of the Oscar Peterson Prize, presented by Peterson himself. Since his arrival to NYC, he has appeared on live concerts and recordings with musicians as diverse as Steve Coleman, Mark Turner, Henry Threadgill, Andrew Cyrille, Chris Potter, Wadada Leo Smith, Tom Harrell, Milford Graves and Ravi Coltrane.

David's 2012 release Continuum (Pi Recordings) united Andrew Cyrille, Ben Street and Román Díaz. This album ended on many "Best Of The Year" lists, including The New York Times. Since then, he has released three more albums on the Munich label ECM to critical acclaim, documenting a wide sonic range - Mbóko, Antenna, and his latest Gnosis."

"Leonardo Genovese was born in Venado Tuerto, Argentina in 1979. After some years of studying classical piano at the National University of Rosario as well as private lessons in contemporary music, he moved to Boston in 2001. He started his career at Berklee College of Music where he studied with Danilo Perez, Joanne Brackeen and Frank Carlberg, among others. Leo graduated as a Professional Music Major in 2003 and has been constantly performing and recording with talented musicians such us Hal Crook, Darren Barrett, George Garzone, Francisco Mela, Joe Lovano, Bob Gulloti, Phil Grenadier, Dave Santoro, Chris Cheek, Michael Janisch and Ben Monder. In 2004, he released his first solo album entitled Haikus II signed by Spanish label Fresh Sound Records. He also performs regularly with the Esperanza Spalding Group, the Mike Tucker Quartet, Planet Safety (w/Bob Gullotti and Dave Zinno), Wayne Shorter Group and Jack Dejohnette.

When he's not touring with Spalding, Genovese - who is currently based in New York - also plays with a loosely assembled group called the Chromatic Gauchos, whose core membership includes Bob Gulloti, Dan Blake and John Lockwood. This threesome, along with Spalding and percussionist Sergio Miranda, appears prominently on Seeds. While Genovese is still early on his career arc, he hopes that his music could eventually be more than just a source of entertainment, but also a force for change in a world that is troubled by economic, social and political challenges. "I would like it to go somewhere positive, somewhere helpful," he says. "I would like for people to really gain something worthwhile from it. There are so many people around the word in need. Most of us never realize it, because most of us have the basic necessities and much more. But some people - many people - have very little."

He adds: "I want to make people more aware of the many different circumstances - and sometimes difficult circumstances - that other people face every day. A lot of it has to do with having the right intention. Music is a lot like people in that way. If it comes from a good place, it's more likely to bear good fruit." "

"Shane Endsley is an American trumpeter, drummer, and composer. He is a founding member of Kneebody, as well as an active leader and sideman with other New York City jazz musicians, as well as with pop and rock musicians such as Ani DiFranco and Pearl Jam. He is married to Kali Paguirigan and their children are Mahalia and Desmond.

Endsley was born in 1975 in Denver, Colorado, and studied trumpet, percussion, and composition at the Eastman School of Music, where he met the other members of Kneebody. Since then, he has toured and recorded with Ani DiFranco and Steve Coleman and has done work with Slavic Soul Party, Ralph Alessi, Tim Berne, Ravi Coltrane, John Hollenbeck and others in the downtown music and jazz scenes. He resides in Brooklyn."

"Trumpeter Russ Johnson is a recent Midwest transplant after spending 23 years as an important member of New York City's jazz community. He has 7 recordings as a leader or co-leader and performed on more than 75 recordings as a sideman. Russ has worked alongside many of the legendary figures in jazz including Lee Konitz, Steve Swallow, Bill Frisell, and Joe Lovano. In addition, he has recorded and/or performed with a long list of the most prominent musicians currently on the international jazz scene, including Myra Melford, Ken Vandermark, and Tony Malaby. Russ has performed in more than 40 countries across the globe. His groups have recently performed at the Chicago, Winter Jazz Fest (NYC) Hyde Park, (Chicago) and Bergamo, (Italy) jazz festivals.

His most recent recordings, Meeting Point (Relay Recordings) and Still Out To Lunch! (Enja Records) received 4 1/2 & 4 stars respectively from Down Beat Magazine and appeared on many "Best Recordings of 2014/5" lists including Down Beat, the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Reader, NYC Jazz Record and Magnet magazine. Russ will be releasing a new recording by his "Headlands" Quartet in 2017.

Russ is also active as an educator/clinician, having taught at colleges and universities across the U.S. and Europe. He currently serves as Director of Jazz Studies at the University of Wisconsin Parkside where he won the university wide "Stella Gray" Teaching Excellence award in 2016."

"Adam O'Farrill is a trumpet player and composer from Brooklyn, NY. As a trumpeter, he has performed and/or recorded with artists such as Rudresh Mahanthappa, Mary Halvorson, Arturo O'Farrill, Mulatu Astatke, Brasstracks, Stephan Crump, Onyx Collective, Anna Webber, and Samora Pinderhughes. As a composer and bandleader, he has led the quartet, Stranger Days, comprised of Chad Lefkowitz-Brown, Walter Stinson, and Zack O'Farrill. Their eponymous debut (2016, Sunnyside Records) was inspired by film and literature, while the follow-up album, El Maquech (2018, Biophilia Records) covered everything from Mexican folk music to Irving Berlin, as well as O'Farrill's original compositions. Both were critically acclaimed, with the New York Times writing of the first release, "Marshaling a sharp band of his peers, Mr. O'Farrill establishes both a firm identity and a willful urge to stretch and adapt.". The latter album was listed as one of the best jazz albums of 2018 by the NPR Jazz Critics Poll, The Boston Globe, and Nextbop. Adam's newest project, Bird Blown Out of Latitude, is an electro-acoustic nonet, playing original music inspired by the feeling of being pushed off a perceived path.

O'Farrill comes from a rich musical background, with his grandfather being the Afro-Cuban-Irish composer and arranger Chico O'Farrill, his father being the cultural boundary-pushing composer and pianist Arturo O'Farrill, his mother Alison Deane being a classical pianist and educator, and his brother Zack O'Farrill being a drummer, composer, and educator. Adam is of Mexican, Cuban, and Irish heritage on his dad's side, and Eastern European Jewish and African-American on his mom's side. This, combined with growing up in a place of immense cultural diversity, has shaped his tendency to break stylistic borders within not only his original music, but also in terms of who he works with a sideman. O'Farrill was subject of an article in Jazztimes entitled, "Adam O'Farrill Does Not Play Latin Jazz", where he spoke about the unfair treatment and pigeonholing of Latinx musicians.

Adam made his professional recording debut on Chad Lefkowitz-Brown's debut album, Imagery Manifesto, in 2013. In 2015, he appeared on two critically acclaimed records; Rudresh Mahanthappa's Bird Calls and Arturo O'Farrill's Cuba: The Conversation Continues. Adam toured internationally with Mahanthappa's band from 2014 to 2017, performing at the Newport Jazz Festival, Chicago Symphony Hall, North Sea Jazz Festival, Cape Town International Jazz Festival, and more. In 2016, in addition to releasing Stranger Days, O'Farrill appeared on Stephan Crump's album, Rhombal, also garnering acclaim. Other projects he has recorded include Stimmerman (eponymous debut), Olli Hirvonen's New Helsinki, Gabriel Zucker's Weighting, and Onyx Collective's Lower East Suite Part One. Adam will also be featured on upcoming albums from Mary Halvorson, Anna Webber, Raf Vertessen, Thomas Champagne, and Idan Morim.

Adam studied at Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School, and obtained his Bachelor of Music degree from the Manhattan School of Music. He's studied trumpet with Jim Seeley, Nathan Warner, and Thomas Smith, and composition with Reiko Fueting and Curtis Macdonald. In 2014, O'Farrill won 3rd place honors at the Thelonious Monk Institute Jazz Trumpet Competition. He was also a recipient of the ASCAP Herb Albert Young Jazz Composer Award in 2013.