Sacha Boutros

Born: August 3, 1989

Jazz Virtuosa, Opera Muse. Supper Club Queen. The Voice
of Peace that Transcends Borders

Sacha Boutros is an acclaimed jazz singer,  producer and composer, celebrated for performing in 14 languages. As a global peace ambassador of goodwill, she uses music as a bridge to foster community and designs peace murals that unite bordering nations.

A former semi-professional soccer and tennis player, Sacha attended one of the top business schools in the U.S., graduating with honors in Marketing and International Business. She later founded a record label, production, and publishing company, establishing herself as one of the few female producers in jazz. Her production company Hear me Roar curates entertainment across all genres for Fortune 500 companies major festivals, and bespoke artistic programs championing women and minorities in the arts; her programs are diverse and inclusive and create a sense of belonging to artists and audiences alike.

Camara Kambon

Born: February 4, 1973

Camara Kambon is an American film composer, songwriter, pianist, music producer and educator. 

Camara Kambon grew up in Baltimore, Maryland. Starting at the age of 4, Kambon developed an interest in piano, composing his first original riffs at age 6. At 10, Kambon received the Jacques Kahn scholarship to attend the Peabody Preparatory School of the Johns Hopkins University, to study jazz, classical piano, and musicianship.

Later at 14, he performed with jazz trumpeter Dizzy Gillespie at Blues Alley in Washington, D.C. In the same year, he met Bill Cosby collaborator, Stu Gardner, which led to an interest in composing for TV and film.

Anders Holst

Danish guitarist and composer Anders Holst (b. 1979), based in Copenhagen, has been an integral part of the music scene in Denmark for the last 20 years, working in the field of bridging composition with improvisation. He has performed all over Europe and US with his bands and as a soloist. Besides his work in his own name he is also a founding member of the groups Cirklen (six guitar ensemble, established 2009), Bog Bodies (with Robert Stillman and Sean Carpio, established 2010) and Ektoplasma (with Nils Gröndahl, established 2010). He has released albums on esteemed labels such as Morningside Records, Scissor Tail Records, Tompkins Square Records, Barkhausen Recordings, Blackout, Clang, Kornmod, MIC, Trestle Records, Migro Records and Flydende Rum.

Nathan Douds

Nathan Douds is a freelance percussionist, pianist, andeducator. He is a graduate of Youngstown State Universitywhere he earned a Bachelor's Degree in percussionperformance and a graduate of Bowling Green StateUniversity where he earned a Master's Degree in JazzStudies, applied piano.

Nathan has has been playing professionally since the age offourteen, and since then, he has played in a variety of genresincluding: jazz, pop, R&B, brazillian, afro-cuban, 50s,progressive rock, orchestral, chamber music, musicaltheater, elctronic, electro-acoustic, and many others. He hasworked with many diverse artists and groups including JoeLovano, John Hollenbeck, Kenny Werner, the Cleveland JazzOrchestra, the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra, Bobby Selvaggio,and Sean Jones.

Sean Jefferson

Born: November 25, 1981

Jazz history isn't exactly short on drummers who’ve pushed the artform to new heights. Some of them, as we all know,managed to do it on a nightly basis. For today’s jazzdrummer, that means one thing: if you want to leave your mark, relying on chops and technique just isn’t going to do. You have to have a voice...

Though Sean Jefferson has certainly made it his life’s work to try and master the vast traditions set forth by drummers before him, he never set out to make music strictly for drummers. Or musicians. Or even jazz fans. Yes, he has studied rigorously. Yes, he has a knack for putting a fresh, cerebral spin on meter. Yes, he grooves hard and swings tight. But Jefferson has always, from day one, been in search of his own voice. And, though he is already pushing toward new horizons in jazz drumming, as a composer he points theway to a vision of jazz’s future as a language, and is never content to fall into the role of pedestrian beat-supplier. As faras Sean is concerned, drums must always fit into the greater whole of the music.

Nancy Walker

Nancy Walker Biography

Pianist and composer Nancy Walker has been recognized with honours Canada-wide, including the Montréal Jazz Festival’s Grand Prix de Jazz, the National Jazz Awards Keyboardist Of The Year Award, a JUNO nomination for Instrumental Album Of The Year, and an induction into the Mississauga Music Walk Of Fame. A dynamic improviser, an artful composer and a responsive accompanist, Nancy has been praised both for her work as a solo artist and as a musical collaborator. As a side player she can be heard on a wide range of recordings, by artists from saxophonist Kirk MacDonald to vocalist Emilie-Claire Barlow to children’s entertainer Raffi. More recently she can be heard on the 2024 recording Here’s To Life by John Neudorf (on which she was both pianist and co-producer), and Sarah Jerrom’s 2025 JUNO-nominated Magpie.

Jay Sanders

Jay Sanders is a guitarist, bassist, composer, producer, and bandleader based in Asheville, N.C. An avid musical explorer with an insatiably curious mind, his music seamlessly fuses jazz, rock, blues, metal, and African influences with years of improvisational study. His compositions range from structured thematic works and soulful grooves to Americana reflections, global soundscapes, and experimental improvisations.

With more than two dozen recordings and performances across 47 U.S. states and six countries, Jay is best known as the longtime bassist for Acoustic Syndicate, widely considered a progenitor of the jam and jamgrass scenes. The North Carolina-bred band has performed at major festivals including Bonnaroo and Farm Aid over their 25-year career. Jay also served as bassist for Americana legends Donna the Buffalo from 2007-2010 and co-leads the avant-garde E.Normus Trio, whose debut Love & Barbiturates earned critical acclaim for its fusion of "jazz-rock, free-jazz and progressive metal-jazz."

David Eric Tillman

Born: July 19, 1949

I will fill this in when I have more time,

Brian Martin

Award-winning trombonist, composer, and educator Brian Martin is based both in the music scene of his home state of Iowa as well as the Greater Boston area where he currently resides. As a performer, Martin has performed alongside international and national touring artists in addition to leading his own groups. His most ambitious project is his Brian Martin Big Band, an ensemble ranging from 17-20 pieces dedicated to performing his original music, which is composed of musicians from New England and the Midwest.

As a writer, his compositions and arrangements have received accolades from the Jazz Educators Network and DownBeat Magazine

Toby Wren

Born: April 3, 1975

Toby Wren plays jazz guitar and writes music. He was trained at the QCMGU in composition and contemporary improvisation. He won the 1997 DIGF composers competition for his guitar piece 'nebbish' and was twice selected for the Australian Composers Orchestral Forum. He has been performed by most of Australia's orchestras, written arrangements for rock bands, given lectures on Australian music, written instructional materials and essays and recorded two CDs of original compositions. Toby also plays with the Trevor Hart Quartet.

UMLAUT, The Toby Wren Trio (due for release, July, 2006)FAT LIP 81, Babel (2000).