Ben Allison - bass
Jeremy Pelt - trumpet
Steve Cardenas - guitar
Allan Mednard - drums
BEN ALLISON
Bassist/Composer/Producer/Educator BEN ALLISON has developed an international reputation as a performer, composer and producer and is a leading voice in contemporary jazz. Ben has organized and performed on over 150 tours, winning fans and building new audiences throughout the world with an adventurous yet accessible sound and a flair for the unexpected.
Ben has released 12 albums of original music, the last 7 of which topped the national jazz radio charts, garnering him 9 SESAC Performance Awards. His most recent album, Layers of the City is the 2nd to be released on his own Sonic Camera Records label.
At the age of 25, Ben formed the Jazz Composers Collective, a non-profit organization that fostered and presented new music. He acted as the Collective’s Artistic Director from 1992 until 2005.
He currently serves as President of the New York Chapter of the Recording Academy and sits on the organization’s Presidents Council. In 2012, he represented the Recording Academy when he testified before Congress on issues relating to performing rights for artists. He has also served as Vice President, Chair of the Advocacy Committee and organized the first ever Grammy Town Hall in 2015. Ben has written articles for Downbeat, JazzTimes, the IAJE Journal, Premier Guitar, Bass Player as well as his own blog at www.benallison.com/blog. He wrote the theme for the popular NPR radio program On The Media, which is heard by over 1,500,000 listeners weekly, and was a featured composer and performer with the Jazz Sinfonica, 80-piece symphony orchestra, Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 2005, 2008 and 2013. He has conducted residencies and workshops in over 100 universities and conservatories throughout the world.
Ben performed his Carnegie Hall debut in February 2012.
JEREMY PELT
Trumpeter/Composer JEREMY PELT has become one of the preeminent young trumpeters within the world of jazz. Forging a bond with the Mingus Big Band very early on, as his career progressed, Pelt built upon these relationships and many others which eventually lead to collaborations with some of the genre's greatest masters. These projects include performances and recordings with Cliff Barbaro, Keter Betts, Bobby "Blue" Bland, Ravi Coltrane, Frank Foster, Winard Harper, Jimmy Heath, Vincent Herring, John Hicks, Charli Persip, Ralph Peterson, Lonnie Plaxico, Bobby Short, Cedar Walton, Frank Wess, Nancy Wilson and The Skatalites, to name a few.
Pelt frequently performs alongside such notable ensembles as the Roy Hargrove Big Band, The Village Vanguard Orchestra and the Duke Ellington Big Band, and is a member of the Lewis Nash Septet and The Cannonball Adderley Legacy Band featuring Louis Hayes. As a leader, Pelt has recorded ten albums and has toured globally with his various ensembles, appearing at many major jazz festivals and concert venues.
Pelt's recordings and performances have earned him critical acclaim, both nationally and internationally. He has been featured in the Wall Street Journal by legendary jazz writer and producer, Nat Hentoff, and was voted Rising Star on the trumpet, five years in a row by Downbeat Magazine and the Jazz Journalist Association. Pelt is currently touring throughout the United States and Europe in support of his latest release, “Noir en Rouge - Live in Paris” (Highnote Records, 2018).
STEVE CARDENAS
Guitarist/Composer/Educator STEVE CARDENAS began his musical career in Kansas City and has been an integral part of the New York City jazz community since 1995. Steve has performed and recorded with many well-known and highly esteemed musicians. Notably, he was a longstanding member of the Paul Motian Electric Bebop Band (which later became the Paul Motian Octet), the Charlie Haden Liberation Music Orchestra, as well as Joey Baron's band, Killer Joey. Steve is currently a member of the Steve Swallow Quintet, Jon Cowherd's Mercy Project and John Patitucci's Electric Guitar Quartet. He has toured extensively throughout Europe, North and South America and Asia, performing at countless international music festivals, theaters, opera houses and clubs. Steve also leads his own trio and has released four recordings as a leader. His most recent album, Melody in a Dream, was released on Sunnyside Records last year.
Steve is also a well-respected educator. He is on faculty at The New School For Jazz and Contemporary Music in New York City where he directs the Thelonious Monk Ensemble and the Guitar Duos class, as well as offering individual lessons. He has also been on faculty at the California Institute of the Arts, Siena Summer Jazz Workshop, Brubeck Summer Jazz Colony, Stanford Jazz Workshop and Banff International Workshop in Jazz and Creative Music.
ALLAN MEDNARD
Drummer ALLAN MEDNARD was born and raised in Queens, New York. His early musical experiences involved New York City's All-City High School Music program, Bayside High School's Academy of Music, and Queens College's Center for Preparatory Studies in Music program. He graduated with a Bachelors of Fine Arts degree in jazz performance from the City College of New York. While attending the City College of New York he studied with Carl Allen. He has shared the stage with ensembles led by Kurt Rosenwinkel, Aaron Parks, Ben Street, Ben Allison, Godwin Louis, Andrew D'Angelo, Alix Ambroise, Jaleel Shaw, Le Boeuf Brothers, Melissa Aldana, and many more.