"Shara Lunon is a transdisciplinary artist based in Brooklyn, NY. She is the product of the evolution of Black American musical traditions. As a poet, vocalist, composer, and improviser, her art finds the ethereal in the chaotic. With voice as the foundation, Shara's music is an exploration of text and sound that seamlessly weaves through the ongoing relationship of struggle, resilience, and resolution. Her goal is to challenge lassitude and in its place, instill hope.

Shara has collaborated with artists including Darius Jones, Ches Smith, Asia Stewart, Milagros Art Collective, Chris Williams, Lester St. Louis, Luke Stewart, Lesley Mok, Laura Cocks, Joy Guidry, and the International Contemporary Ensemble. Her work has been featured in The Gothamist and has won residencies with OneBeat, Papillon Farm, Amanda + James Pollinate residency, and Metropolis Ensemble Flame Keeper. Shara has also won awards from Audiofemme Agenda Grant, MATA Presents Grant to premiere her work "Bitter Fruits" at Roulette Intermedium. Currently, Shara is working as a session artist with Ches Smith, Darian Donovan Thomas, and Innova Recording Label and the Black Science Fiction Series to release new solo works in the spring of 2024."

"Reedist Anna Webber, a Brooklynite by way of British Columbia, is one of the most exciting new arrivals on the New York avant-garde jazz scene in the past couple years. Her second album, SIMPLE, demonstrates the inextricable link between her improvising and her compositions; her detail-rich writing recalls the work of elders as disparate as Tim Berne and Henry Threadgill, and her busy motion evokes a fizzy sort of exhilaration.-Peter Margasak, Chicago Reader

Anna Webber is an integral part of a new wave of the Brooklyn avant-garde jazz scene. A saxophonist and flutist who strives for the unexpected, she has furthermore consistently proven herself to be a unique and forward-thinking composer with releases such as 2014's SIMPLE (Skirl Records) and 2013's Percussive Mechanics. Binary, the follow-up to SIMPLE which features bandmates John Hollenbeck and Matt Mitchell, further establishes Webber as a compelling improvisor and composer."

"Multi-instrumentalist and composer, Oscar lives in Brooklyn since 1992.

He has worked with Lee Konitz, Anthony Braxton, Gerry Hemingway, Dewey Redman and Paul Motion.

He is currently performing with Tim Berne's Snakeoil, Endangered Blood (Chris Speed, Jim Black, Trevor Dunn) and colead with Jacob Garchik, the Mexico-inspired Banda De Los Muertos.

He plays alto saxophone, clarinet, bass clarinet and drums."

"James Brandon Lewis (b.1983 Buffalo NY) is a critically acclaimed saxophonist, composer, recording artist and educator . Lewis has received accolades from New York Times, Q Magazine and cultural tastemakers such as Ebony Magazine, who hailed him as one of the "7 Young Players to Watch" in todays scene. Lewis has shared stages with Ken Filiano, Darius Jones, and Jason Hwang, William Parker, Hamiet Bluiett , Hamid Drake , Ravi Coltrane , Jimmy Heath Jamaaladeen Tacuma, Joe Lovano Dave Douglas, Marc Ribot, Anthony Coleman and many others. James Brandon Lewis Lewis has been endorsed by Jazz legend Saxophonist Sonny Rollins " Promising young player with the potential to do great things having listened to the Elders". - Jazz Magazine (France). New York Times had this to say about Lewis " James Brandon Lewis , A Jazz Saxophonist in his 30's, Raw Toned But Measured, Doesn't sound steeped in current jazz academy values There's an Independence about him." James Brandon Lewis Leads numerous ensembles and is the Co- Founder of Poetry Music Ensemble Heroes Are Gang Leaders Lewis attended Howard University and holds an MFA from California Institute of the Arts."

"Nate Wooley was born in 1974 in Clatskanie, Oregon, a town of 2,000 people in the timber country of the Pacific Northwestern corner of the U.S. He began playing trumpet professionally with his father, a big band saxophonist, at the age of 13. His time in Oregon, a place of relative quiet and slow time reference, instilled in Nate a musical aesthetic that has informed all of his music making for the past 20 years, but in no situation more than his solo trumpet performances.

Nate moved to New York in 2001, and has since become one of the most in-demand trumpet players in the burgeoning Brooklyn jazz, improv, noise, and new music scenes. He has performed regularly with such icons as John Zorn, Anthony Braxton, Eliane Radigue, Ken Vandermark, Fred Frith, Evan Parker, and Yoshi Wada, as well as being a collaborator with some of the brightest lights of his generation like Chris Corsano, C. Spencer Yeh, Peter Evans, and Mary Halvorson.

Wooley's solo playing has often been cited as being a part of an international revolution in improvised trumpet. Along with Peter Evans and Greg Kelley, Wooley is considered one of the leading lights of the American movement to redefine the physical boundaries of the horn, as well as demolishing the way trumpet is perceived in a historical context still overshadowed by Louis Armstrong. A combination of vocalization, extreme extended technique, noise and drone aesthetics, amplification and feedback, and compositional rigor has led one reviewer to call his solo recordings "exquisitely hostile".

In the past three years, Wooley has been gathering international acclaim for his idiosyncratic trumpet language. Time Out New York has called him "an iconoclastic trumpeter", and Downbeat's Jazz Musician of the Year, Dave Douglas has said, "Nate Wooley is one of the most interesting and unusual trumpet players living today, and that is without hyperbole". His work has been featured at the SWR JazzNow stage at Donaueschingen, the WRO Media Arts Biennial in Poland, Kongsberg, North Sea, Music Unlimited, and Copenhagen Jazz Festivals, and the New York New Darmstadt Festivals. In 2011 he was an artist in residence at Issue Project Room in Brooklyn, NY and Cafe Oto in London, England. In 2013 he performed at the Walker Art Center as a featured solo artist.

Nate is the curator of the Database of Recorded American Music (www.dramonline.org) and the editor-in-chief of their online quarterly journal Sound American (www.soundamerican.org) both of which are dedicated to broadening the definition of American music through their online presence and the physical distribution of music through Sound American Records. He also runs Pleasure of the Text which releases music by composers of experimental music at the beginnings of their careers in rough and ready mediums."

"Jennifer Choi has charted a career that breaks through the conventional boundaries of solo violin, chamber music, and the art of improvisation. Hailed by The New York Times as an "excellent violinist," "soulful, compelling," and by Time Out New York as "passionate," and "adventurous", Jennifer has performed worldwide in venues such as the Library of Congress in Washington D. C., the RAI National Radio in Rome, Hong Kong National Radio, and the Mozartsalle in Vienna since giving her debut recital at Carnegie Hall's Weill Hall in 2000. Having gained a significant reputation as "a leading New York new music violinist," (Boston Globe), Jennifer has pioneered new works and engaging performances to the forefront of todays contemporary music scene.

A prominent chamber musician, Jennifer was a former violinist of the Miró String Quartet. With her involvement, the group won Grand Prize at Fischoff National Competition and First prize at Coleman chamber music competition. She has performed for the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, The Metropolitan and Guggenheim Museums, MOMA Summer Garden Series, Ravinia Festival, Barge Music, Caramoor Music, Strathmore Mansion series, Ridotto, and numerous other chamber music series across the United States, Canada, Europe, and Asia. She joined ETHEL during their 2011-2012 season, and previous to that, was member of Fireworks Ensemble and Sirius String Quartet. Currently, Jennifer is a principle violinist of Either/Or and ECCE new music ensembles.

Jennifer's recent highlights include collaborations with TALUJON Percussion Ensemble in Lou Harrison's Concerto for Violin and Percussion, guest artist appearances at the Skaneateles Festival, Austin Classical Guitar Society, and Fayetteville Chamber Music Festival.

A frequent collaborator with today's most exciting composers, Jennifer has performed solo works written for her including Randall Woolf's Holding Fast for violin and video, Wadada Leo Smith's violin concerto Afrikana 2, Orlando Garcia's violin concerto Una Marea Cresciente. She has given numerous world premieres of solo and chamber works by John Zorn, and U. S. premieres of Jacob TV and Helmut Lachenmann and can be heard on over a dozen albums for TZADIK record label, New Focus Records, New World Records, Starkland label, and on her self-released album, Violectrica- Works for Solo Violin and Electronics.

In 2001, Jennifer found another voice with her violin through the art of improvisation when she joined the Susie Ibarra Trio with drummer, Susie Ibarra and pianist, Craig Taborn. Her first show as an improvisor was at the Walker Museum of Art in Minneapolis. From that day forward, she began a dual career as a creative improvisor with tours of Europe and North America leading to subsequent collaborations with jazz greats Wadada Leo Smith, Ikue Mori, Erik Friedlander, Mark Feldman, Trevor Dunn, and Ches Smith. Through these collaborations, Jennifer has found a unique connection between classical and improvised repertoire as a source for unparalleled expression in performances.

A dedicated music educator, Jennifer is a veteran Teaching Artist for the New York Philharmonic and the 92nd Street Y. She has created in-school curriculums, given lectures, and instrument demonstrations to over 1000 school children. She has also served numerous residencies and continues to give master classes, composer readings, and recitals at universities around the world including of the Vermont College of Fine Arts, the University of Freiburg, Shanghai Conservatory, Zhengzhou University, Mannes School of Music, Oberlin, and Tulane University.

Jennifer is a graduate of the Juilliard School and Oberlin Conservatory of Music, and can be heard on the Golden Globe winning series, Mozart In the Jungle."

"Kyle Armbrust started playing the viola at age three. Since giving his New York solo debut with Kurt Masur and the Juilliard Orchestra in Avery Fisher Hall, he has created a multi-dimensional career performing and recording a wide range of music. The New York Times has described him as "assured, brilliant, and stylish..." and the New York Post called him "musically mature, technically sound..."

As soloist, Kyle has performed with The Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, St. Petersburg Philharmonic, Lake George Chamber Orchestra, Maple City Chamber Orchestra, and Woodstock Festival Orchestra.

An active proponent of contemporary music, Kyle has worked with Elliot Carter, Mario Davidovsky, Osvaldo Golijov, Steve Reich, Charles Wuorinen, and others. He first performed with the International Contemporary Ensemble in 2011 as part of the Tully SCOPE Festival, then again in Chicago at the Museum of Contemporary Art, and he participated in the Carlos Iturralde ICElab in February 2012. Kyle also performs with Argento Ensemble and the Orchestra of the League of Composers. In addition to his other activities, Kyle is currently the assistant principal viola of the New Jersey Symphony, principal viola of the Westchester Philharmonic, and a founding member of the Knights Chamber Orchestra. He is a substitute member of the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, and Philadelphia Orchestra.

Kyle's dedication to chamber music has led to festival appearances at Aix en Provence, Caramoor, Charlottesville, La Jolla Summerfest, Marlboro, Monadnock, Moritzburg, Ravinia, Schleswig Holstein, Stillwater, and Verbier. He has performed at Bargemusic, the Gardner Museum, Freer Gallery, New York Yacht Club, Neue Gallerie, and the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society. Kyle has also worked with Herbie Hancock, Lauryn Hill, Mya, Sufjan Stevens, Sting, and made an appearance on the show "30 Rock."

Kyle received his BM, MM, and Artist Diploma from The Juilliard School where he studied with Heidi Castleman, Misha Amory, and Michael Tree. He has recorded for Ancalagon, Cedille, Interscope, Naxos, Ondine, and Sony. Kyle plays a Carlo Antonio Testore viola made in Milan in 1752 and plugs in with a DPA 4099V."

"A "long-admired figure on the New York scene" (New Yorker), cellist Michael Nicolas enjoys a diverse career as chamber musician, soloist, recording artist, and improvisor. His eclectic tastes and adventurous spirit have led him to forge a musical path of uncommon breadth, where his activities range from performing the masterpieces of the past in the world's most prestigious concert halls, to free improvisation in downtown New York experimental venues, to working with contemporary composers of all styles, pushing the boundaries of musical expression and meaning.

The ensembles Michael plays in illustrate his commitment to diversity. He is the cellist of the intrepid and genre-defying string quartet Brooklyn Rider, which has drawn praise from classical, world music, and rock critics alike. As a member of the acclaimed International Contemporary Ensemble (ICE), he has worked with countless composers from around the world, premiering and recording dozens of new works. Another group, Third Sound, which Michael helped found, made its debut with an historic residency at the 2015 Havana Contemporary Music Festival, in Cuba.

As a soloist, Michael performs recitals and concertos across the globe. His album Transitions, available on the Sono Luminus label, was named Q2 Music Album of the Week at WQXR upon release, and it has since garnered critical acclaim across North America. His chamber music playing can also be found on the Naxos, Tzadik, and Universal Korea labels.

Of mixed French-Canadian and Taiwanese heritage, Michael was born in Canada, and currently resides in New York City. He is a graduate of the Juilliard School."

"Shahzad Ismaily was born to Pakistani immigrant parents and grew up in a wholly bicultural household. While he holds a masters degree in biochemistry from Arizona State University, he is a largely self-taught composer and musician, having mastered the electric and double bass, guitar, banjo, accordion, flute, drums, various percussion instruments and various analog synthesizers and drum machines. Ismaily has recorded or performed with an incredibly diverse assemblage of musicians, including Laurie Anderson and Lou Reed, Tom Waits, Jolie Holland, Laura Veirs, Bonnie Prince Billy, Faun Fables, Secret Chiefs 3, John Zorn, Elysian Fields, Shelley Hirsch, Niobe, Will Oldham, Nels Cline, Mike Doughty (of Soul Coughing), Graham Haynes, David Krakauer, Billy Martin (of Medeski Martin and Wood), Carla Kihlstedt's Two Foot Yard, the Tin Hat Trio, Raz Mesinai and Burnt Sugar. He has also composed regularly for dance and theater, including for Min Tanaka, the Frankfurt Ballet and the East River Commedia. Recently he composed the score for the critically acclaimed movie Frozen River, which won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. He was also an Artist in Residence at the Headlands Center for the Arts in San Francisco, CA in 2008. Currently based in New York , Ismaily has studied music extensively in Pakistan, India, Turkey, Mexico, Santiago, Japan, Indonesia, Morocco and Iceland."

"Born in San Diego, CA and raised in Sacramento, Ches Smith came up in a scene of punks and metal musicians who were listening to and experimenting with jazz and free improvisation. He studied philosophy at the University of Oregon before relocating to the San Francisco Bay area in 1995. After a few years of playing with obscure bands and intensive study with drummer / educator Peter Magadini, he enrolled in the graduate program at Mills College in Oakland at the suggestion of percussionist William Winant. There he studied percussion, improvisation, and composition with Winant, Fred Frith, Pauline Oliveros and Alvin Curran. One of Winant's first "assignments" for Ches was to sub in his touring gig at the time, Mr. Bungle (here he met bassist / composer Trevor Dunn who would later hire him for the second incarnation of his Trio-Convulsant). During his time at Mills, Ches co-founded two bands: Theory of Ruin (with Fudgetunnel / Nailbomb frontman Alex Newport), and Good for Cows (w/ Nels Cline Singers' Devin Hoff). He currently performs and records with Xiu Xiu, and Secret Chiefs 3. He has also performed with Ben Goldberg, Annie Gosfield, Wadada Leo Smith, John Tchicai, Fred Frith, and Trevor Dunn. In addition to Ceramic Dog, he also leads his two of his own projects, Congs for Brums and These Arches. He currently spends his time between Los Angeles, San Francisco and Brooklyn."