Live Jazz in New York

About Erena Terakubo is an internationally acclaimed saxophonist, flutist, composer, and educator from Sapporo, Japan. Known for her expressive artistry and technical mastery, she has performed worldwide with leading jazz artists including Kenny Barron, Ron Carter, Louis Hayes, Jon Faddis, and Christian McBride. She launched her career in high school with her debut album North Bird, which topped the Japanese jazz charts and earned a Gold Disc award from Swing Journal. Since then, she has released multiple albums and performed at premier venues including Blue Note New York and Kennedy Center. A graduate of Berklee College of Music and Manhattan School of Music, she joined Michigan State University in 2025 as Assistant Professor of Jazz Saxophone.

About Erena Terakubo is an internationally acclaimed saxophonist, flutist, composer, and educator from Sapporo, Japan. Known for her expressive artistry and technical mastery, she has performed worldwide with leading jazz artists including Kenny Barron, Ron Carter, Louis Hayes, Jon Faddis, and Christian McBride. She launched her career in high school with her debut album North Bird, which topped the Japanese jazz charts and earned a Gold Disc award from Swing Journal. Since then, she has released multiple albums and performed at premier venues including Blue Note New York and Kennedy Center. A graduate of Berklee College of Music and Manhattan School of Music, she joined Michigan State University in 2025 as Assistant Professor of Jazz Saxophone.

SCOTT WENDHOLT Born in the mid sixties and nurtured in the Mile High City (Denver), this young veteran left for Indiana University and subsequently moved on to Cincinnati, Ohio. Still feeling a pull from farther East, he, like so many other musicians, migrated to New York City and has remained ever since. Mr. Wendholt is a much in demand artist and has found himself in a variety of settings. He has recorded and/or worked extensively with artists including Kenny Garrett, Cyrus Chestnut, Christian McBride, Don Braden and Bruce Barth. For nearly 7 years, Scott found a home with Vincent Herring's quintet. This highly acclaimedband has recorded three albums, including Folklore-Live At The Village Vanguard. He has toured extensively throughout the United States, Europe, South America, Africa and Japan with these bands as well as others. To his credit, Scott has been recorded on more than 120 CD's. However, he is recognized as a leader as well. His second recording for the Doubletime Jazz labelwas released in the spring of 2000, following three successful Scott Wendholt offerings on Criss Cross. This CD has received much favorable press including a 4 star review in Downbeat. Look for his most recent release with a new quartet he co leads with Adam Kolker on tenor saxophone. The recording features Victor Lewis ondrums and Ugonna Okegwo on bass in a "chord-less" quartet setting with all new music. (Fresh Sound) The "Big Band Scene" has also sought out this trumpeter for his versatility and formidable abilities. His list of credits include: The Carnegie Hall Big Band (led by Jon Faddis), Maria Schneider’s Big Band, the Bob Mintzer Big Band and Toshiko Akiyoshi’s big and. He currently has the honor of being included in the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra (formerly Thad Jones/Mel Lewis) where he has been a featured soloist for more than 20 years. Mr. Wendholt continues to be in demand on the playing scene as well as in the educational arena. Scott is currently on the faculty at Manhattan School of Music andthe Jamey Aebersold summer jazz camps and is in demand as a player/clinician in many colleges and various other learning institutions around the world. ADAM KOLKER Adam Kolker is a multi-talented performer, composer and arranger. He performed and recorded with latin-jazz artist Ray Barretto from 1994 through 2002 (with whom he received two GRAMMY nominations). He also appears in New York City with groups including the Village Vanguard Orchestra, Fred Hersch’s “My Coma Dreams,” the Maria Schneider Orchestra, Bruce Barth, Judi Silvano, Lucia Pulido, and his own groups with John Abercombie and Billy Hart. He has recorded with Bruce Barth, John Hébert, Marty Ehrlich, The Story, Allan Chase, Bobby Previte, Gunther Schuller, Bruce Saunders, Frank Carlberg, among others. Upcoming releases include a CD with a cooperatively-led quartet with Scott Wendholt, Ugonna Okegwo and Victor Lewis, and with Yard Byard, a quintet dedicated to performing the music of Jaki Byard. Adam is also a member of the Brooklyn Jazz Underground, and was a full time Associate Professor at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst from 1999-2008. Kolker’s first release as a leader, “Crazybird”, on A Records (with Tim Hagans, Kevin Hays, Jeff Ballard and Doug Weiss), reached the Top Ten on the CMJ Charts, and received critical acclaim from such publications as Jazz Times, JazzIz and the Village Voice. Other CDs include “Sultanic Verses” (Satchmo Jazz Records) with Bruce Barth, Billy Hart, Ray Barretto and John Hébert, “Change Of Time” (OmniTone Records) a trio with Russ Lossing and John Hébert, and “Mikrokosmos” (OmniTone Records) based on music by Bela Bartok on which received 4 1/2 stars in Downbeat Magazine and was voted one of the Top CD’s of the Decade. “Meditacions” (Satchmo Jazz Records) co-led with Catalan drummer Xavi Maureta, received the award for “Best Modern Jazz CD” from the Catalan Jazz Society in 2002, and Kolker’s “Flag Day,” (Sunnyside) with John Abercrombie, John Hébert and Paul Motian, received critical acclaim from media including including New York Times, Jazz Times, Stereophile, and Downbeat. In May 2011, Kolker released “Reflections” (Sunnyside), with John Abercrombie, John Hébert, Russ Lossing, Billy Mintz, Judi Silvano and Kay Matsukawa.

The Ari and Cecil Alexander Quartet Ari and Cecil Alexander’s decade long musical collaboration has been brought to stages across the world such as the Lincoln Center and the Copenhagen jazz festival. A finalist in the 2019 Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz International Guitar Competition, Cecil has been hailed by Jazz Guitar Today as “carrying the torch into the future,” and by Jazzwise as “a superb guitarist in the bop tradition, with bags of taste, swing and chops.” Holding a Scandinavian sensitivity to an American tradition, Danish-American Ari Alexander is as equally a jazz musician as she is a singer-songwriter. She was inspired to pursue jazz by her vibrant musical family, including her grandmother and great-aunt, jazz vocalist Teddi King. Aarhus Jazz Festival described her 2025 performance as following: "Ari treats every note with great imagination, and especially her mastery and playful use of scat singing sets her apart from other jazz vocalists. Together, Ari and Cecil anchor a quartet and duo sound that is intimate, dynamic, and rhythmically alive. Their forthcoming album Kaleidoscope is set for release in June 2026, and it features acrobatic, energetic originals penned by Ari and Cecil as well as reconstructions of the Great American Songbook.

Austin Ford is a Jazz trumpet player from Portland, Oregon currently based in New York City. In 2017, he moved to Denton, Texas where he got his undergrad from the University of North Texas. While there, he was a two-year member, arranger, and composer for the Grammy-nominated One O’Clock Lab Band. He has had the opportunity to perform with world-renowned artists such as Maria Schneider, Gary Smulyan, Regina Carter, Tom Harrell, and Jason “JT” Thomas of Snarky Puppy. In Texas, Austin also recorded his debut album “Launchpad”. It is available on all streaming platforms as well as here on this website. Austin now holds a master’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music where he studied under the tutelage of Ingrid Jensen, Jon Faddis, Scott Wendholt, and others. He regularly performs around the city at various venues such as Jazz at Lincoln Center, Birdland, and on Broadway at the musical “Just in Time”. In the past few years, Austin has received several prestigious accolades. Most notably, he is the winner of the 2025 ITG Carmine Caruso International Trumpet Competition. He also placed second in the 2021 ITG Ryan Anthony Memorial Trumpet Competition, and won the 2021 U.S. Army Blues solo competition.

Alex Pastrana is a Colombian pianist, composer, and producer based in New York City, whose music intertwines the intricate rhythms and melodies of rajaleña, one of Colombia’s most ancestral traditions, with the expressive language of jazz. With a deep reverence for both heritage and innovation, his artistry creates a mesmerizing dialogue between jazz and the rich cultural identity of Latin America. With performances at some of the world’s most prestigious venues and festivals, Alex Pastrana has established himself as a distinctive presence in modern jazz. His artistry, marked by originality, virtuosity, and a profound musical sensitivity, resonates with audiences across cultures, solidifying his place in the global jazz scene. He was invited to give a residency at Dizzy’s Club, performing for three nights at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City, and held an exclusive solo piano residency at the legendary Waldorf Astoria, performing on Cole Porter’s piano. He has been nominated for a Latin Grammy and has appeared on prestigious and iconic stages including Dizzy’s Club at Jazz at Lincoln Center, Blue Note, David Rubenstein Atrium at Lincoln Center, Lehman Center, Casa de Nariño for the President of Colombia, the Waldorf Astoria New York, Times Square, Bryant Park, Central Park, Montclair Jazz Festival, Pier Fest, Hartford Jazz Festival, Café Bohemia, Bar Lunático, Terraza 7, Bronx Music Hall, IX Cartagena International Music Festival, Mompox Jazz Festival, Ajazzgo, Jazz al Parque Bogotá, Movistar Arena, Teatro Colón, Teatro Libre International Jazz Festival, Veracruz Salsa Fest 2025, among others. Alex Pastrana holds a Bachelor’s degree in Music with an Emphasis in Jazz, graduating with honors for his thesis, from Universidad Javeriana. He then completed a Master’s degree in Music with an Emphasis in Performance, graduating Summa Cum Laude, from the same university. Additionally, he earned a Master’s Degree in Jazz Performance from New Jersey City University and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Musical Arts (DMA) in Jazz Performance at Stony Brook University in New York, where he also serves as a Jazz Piano Teaching Assistant.

BOSS BARITONES ​ Inspired by the rich history of the great 2-tenor pairings in jazz (think Lester Young & Herschel Evans, Gene Ammons & Sonny Stitt, Lockjaw Davis & Johnny Griffin, and Al Cohn & Zoot Sims), the Boss Baritones continue this tradition, but with the pairing of the tenor saxophone's lower pitched baritone brethren. ​ So who are these "Boss Baritones?" Locking horns in the front line are two of today's finest exponents and practitioners of the baritone saxophone in jazz: Gary Smulyan and Frank Basile. ​ Gary Smulyan has been steadily polishing his craft for over 40 years and is all but unanimously regarded as today's leading baritone saxophonist. Since filling the baritone chair in Woody Herman's Young Thundering Herd in 1978, Smulyan has gone on to perform with virtually every important name in jazz since. A sampling of this lofty company includes the Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra, the Gene Harris Superband, B.B. King, Joe Henderson, Freddie Hubbard, Michel Camilo, the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band, Cedar Walton, Joe Lovano, George Coleman, the Mingus Big Band, and Dave Holland. A favorite of critics and peers alike, Smulyan has consistently topped polls in Downbeat, Jazz Times, and with the Jazz Journalists Association for the past two decades. Smulyan is a 6-time Grammy winner. ​ Frank Basile made his way on to the New York scene in 2001 after his studies at the University of North Texas and a brief stint at the Juilliard School. He has since forged his own path following in the footsteps of his mentors such as Smulyan. Dubbed a "prized sideman" by The New Yorker, Basile has been called upon to perform with the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, the Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Big Band, the Jimmy Heath Big Band, the Bob Mintzer Big Band, the Jon Faddis Jazz Orchestra, the Christian McBride Big Band, the Count Basie Orchestra, and the Duke Ellington Orchestra. As a "rising star," Basile has consistently appeared in the Downbeat critic's poll since 2014. ​ The Boss Baritones made their debut the weekend of March 6-7, 2020 at Smalls Jazz Club in New York City. This was an auspicious start for the band, but one week later, the Coronavirus pandemic would officially put it all on hold. Since the easing of restrictions and the return of normal aspects to life, the Boss Baritones have been regaining their momentum with performances in the New York City area (including numerous return engagements at Smalls) as well as their eponymous debut recording on Steeplechase Records.

BOSS BARITONES ​ Inspired by the rich history of the great 2-tenor pairings in jazz (think Lester Young & Herschel Evans, Gene Ammons & Sonny Stitt, Lockjaw Davis & Johnny Griffin, and Al Cohn & Zoot Sims), the Boss Baritones continue this tradition, but with the pairing of the tenor saxophone's lower pitched baritone brethren. ​ So who are these "Boss Baritones?" Locking horns in the front line are two of today's finest exponents and practitioners of the baritone saxophone in jazz: Gary Smulyan and Frank Basile. ​ Gary Smulyan has been steadily polishing his craft for over 40 years and is all but unanimously regarded as today's leading baritone saxophonist. Since filling the baritone chair in Woody Herman's Young Thundering Herd in 1978, Smulyan has gone on to perform with virtually every important name in jazz since. A sampling of this lofty company includes the Mel Lewis Jazz Orchestra, the Gene Harris Superband, B.B. King, Joe Henderson, Freddie Hubbard, Michel Camilo, the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band, Cedar Walton, Joe Lovano, George Coleman, the Mingus Big Band, and Dave Holland. A favorite of critics and peers alike, Smulyan has consistently topped polls in Downbeat, Jazz Times, and with the Jazz Journalists Association for the past two decades. Smulyan is a 6-time Grammy winner. ​ Frank Basile made his way on to the New York scene in 2001 after his studies at the University of North Texas and a brief stint at the Juilliard School. He has since forged his own path following in the footsteps of his mentors such as Smulyan. Dubbed a "prized sideman" by The New Yorker, Basile has been called upon to perform with the Vanguard Jazz Orchestra, the Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Big Band, the Jimmy Heath Big Band, the Bob Mintzer Big Band, the Jon Faddis Jazz Orchestra, the Christian McBride Big Band, the Count Basie Orchestra, and the Duke Ellington Orchestra. As a "rising star," Basile has consistently appeared in the Downbeat critic's poll since 2014. ​ The Boss Baritones made their debut the weekend of March 6-7, 2020 at Smalls Jazz Club in New York City. This was an auspicious start for the band, but one week later, the Coronavirus pandemic would officially put it all on hold. Since the easing of restrictions and the return of normal aspects to life, the Boss Baritones have been regaining their momentum with performances in the New York City area (including numerous return engagements at Smalls) as well as their eponymous debut recording on Steeplechase Records.