School of Music

James Brandon Lewis (b.1983 Buffalo, NY) is a critically acclaimed saxophonist, composer, recording artist and educator. Ebony Magazine hailed him as one of the “7 Young Players to Watch.” James 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.

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Vítková is a composer, improviser and performer (accordion, hichiriki, synthesizer, voice and tap dance) from the Czech Republic. During her studies of composition at Janáček Academy of Music and Performing Arts in Brno (CZ), she has been a visiting scholar at Royal Conservatory in The Hague (NL), California Institute of the Arts in Valencia (USA), Universität der Künste in Berlin (D), Columbia University in New York (USA) and recently at the New York University. Her compositions focus on sonification (compositions based on abstract models derived from physical objects), while in her improvisation practice she explores characteristics of discrete spaces through the interaction between sound and movement. In her recent work, she is interested in the social-political aspects of music in relation to everyday life and in reusing trash to build sonic costumes. She was nominated for the 2017 Herb Alpert Awards in Arts' music category, was commissioned by the Roulette Intermedium in 2017 and became a Roulette resident artist in 2018.

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Jazz pianist, composer and Grammy Award-winning arranger Bill Cunliffe is known for his innovative and swinging recordings and compositions. Cunliffe began his career as pianist and arranger with the Buddy Rich Big Band and worked with Frank Sinatra, Joe Henderson, Freddie Hubbard, Benny Golson and James Moody. He has since established himself as a solo artist and bandleader, with more than a dozen albums under his name. Cunliffe currently plays with his trio; his big band; his Latin band, Imaginación; and his classical-jazz ensemble, Trimotif. He performs in the U.S. and around the world as a leader and sideman as well as a soloist with symphony orchestras.

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Kristina Warren is a composer, improviser, and critical maker. Her practice includes building/playing unique instruments, composing for/with chamber ensembles, and writing about gender in electronic music as it centers listening and noise, instrumentality and access. Warren has presented work around the world, including at the Guthman Musical Instrument Competition [US], Espace des arts sans frontières [FR], ICMC [GR, NL], Interfaces [CY], ISSTA [IE], Mise-En Music Festival [US], NIME [US], NYCEMF [US], Spektrum [DE], and TENOR[CA, ES]. Currently a Visiting Assistant Professor in the MEME program/Music Department at Brown University, Warren holds a Ph.D in Composition & Computer Technologies from University of Virginia (2017) and a BA in Music Composition from Duke University (2011).

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Dan Weiss is a drummer/percussionist whose style combines modern jazz and Indian classical music. A Shifting Foundation grantee, he has been hailed as one of the top five jazz drummers in The New York Times, and his large ensemble recording "Fourteen" made the top 10 list of their best recordings of 2014. Weiss’s innovative drumming and forward-thinking compositions have been pushing musical limits for years. Weiss has also studied tabla for the last 20 years under Pandit Samir Chatterjee. 

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NYC veteran bassist David Ambrosio has teamed up with his long time musical compatriot of over 20 years Russ Meissner to form this stellar group, featuring the amazing multi-instrumentalist Matt Renzi and subtly masterful pianist Leonard Thompson. This music represents decades of incredible music making and history between these internationally renowned musicians. 

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Pianist Nic Gerpe, a Los Angeles native, has been hailed as “magnetic” and “prodigious… heroic." LA Times music critic Mark Swed described his playing as “wonderfully illuminating… his tone is crystalline. His technique is dazzlingly fluid.” A dedicated proponent of new music, Nic has worked with composers such as Steve Reich, Thea Musgrave and Michael Gordon, and has given numerous world premieres locally and abroad. Nic has performed in such venues as Walt Disney Concert Hall, Zipper Hall, the Wallis Annenberg Center and the Roy and Edna Disney CalArts Theater. Nic’s performances have also been nationally broadcast on 91.5 KUSC and classicalkusc.org. Nic’s playing can also be heard on Gernot Wolfgang’s GRAMMY-Nominated album Passing Through.

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