Marlene Wittnauer (flute)
Miranda Scoma (violin)
Jonathan Golove (cello)
Michael McNeill (piano)

Russ Carere (clarinet)
Jon Nelson (trumpet/sousaphone)
Dave DeWitt (trombone/tuba)
Tom Kolor (marimba)

Chris Jentsch (guitarist and composer) and John Bacon, Jr. (percussionist and composer) have a history of musical collaboration originating in the 1990's. They worked in jazz groups in Rochester and Buffalo, NY, played as a guitar/drums duo and worked with the Maelstrom Percussion Ensemble on concerts and commissions. The centerpiece of their current collaboration is a co-compositional performance "This With That" in which the two have worked independently within predetermined guidelines to produce an evening of new music. This collaboration is funded through a New York State Council on the Arts Individual Artist Composer Commission for 2015.

Chris Jentsch is a Brooklyn-based composer, bandleader, and guitarist working primarily in jazz and contemporary improvisational forms. Based in NYC since 1999, his main ensemble is Jentsch Group in its various configurations. He has performed at many leading NYC venues, among them the Cornelia Street Café, Barbès, the World Turning Festival (Medicine Show Theatre), ShapeShifterLab, the Internet Café, Symphony Space, Tea Lounge, the Knitting Factory, and the Kitchen.

As a composer, he has been the recipient of grants, commissions, or fellowships from the Maelstrom Percussion Ensemble, the Penfield Commission Project, American Composers Forum (3), the Composers Assistance Program of the American Music Center (2), New Music USA, Meet the Composer, New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA)(3), Ucross Foundation (2), The Commission Project, the New Music Collective, the Donald Knutson Memorial Faculty Development Fund, and most recently, Chamber Music America/Doris Duke New Jazz Works.

As a bandleader and sideman Jentsch has performed throughout the Northeast and Florida, having worked with such diverse musical personalities as George Russell, John Cage, Maria Schneider, and Chris Wood. He appears as a guitarist on the CD John Cage, Volume 11 (Mode Records 41). He is also featured in Scott Yanow's book The Great Jazz Guitarists (2013 Hal Leonard). A recent performance was the premiere at ShapeShifterLab in Brooklyn of an evening's worth of chamber jazz compositions commissioned by NYSCA for his Jentsch Group No Net.

Jentsch has released four CDs as a leader: Media Event, with his trio (1998); Miami Suite (1999), with original works for large jazz ensemble; Brooklyn Suite (Fleur de Son Records, 2007), which esteemed jazz critic Howard Mandel describes in the album's liner notes: "Brooklyn Suite [is] Chris Jentsch's sublime set of interwoven themes and expansive movements for guitar and orchestra…"; and Cycles Suite (Fleur de Son Records, 2009), also featuring the large group. About the premiere for the latter, Will Friedwald observed in the New York Sun that "the interesting thing is that he's using avant-garde techniques, but in a traditional framework…" Fractured Pop, a CD/DVD production featuring his jazz quartet is due to be released in 2015/16.

Jentsch attended the Berklee College of Music and has liberal arts and jazz guitar degrees from Gettysburg College, the New England Conservatory, and the Eastman School of Music. He earned the Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Jazz Composition from the University of Miami in 1999 and is published by the University of Northern Colorado Press, Advance Music, and Fleur de Son Records.

www.chrisjentsch.com

John Bacon, percussionist and composer, has performed with Lester Bowie, Roswell Rudd, Bobby Previte, the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, Bobby Militello and as featured soloist with the SUNY Fredonia percussion ensemble. He teaches percussion, and directs the Latin Jazz Ensemble at SUNY Fredonia. He also teaches at UB and Villa Maria College in Buffalo, NY. He holds a PhD. in Music Composition from SUNY at Buffalo and a Masters Degree in Music Performance from SUNY Fredonia. Equally skilled as a percussionist and trap drummer, he has been a member of (hatArt) recording artists The Maelstrom Percussion Ensemble, as well as leading his own ensembles. His music has been performed by a diverse collection of musicians, including The Amherst Saxophone Quartet , Leroy Jenkins, the New Jazz Orchestra of Buffalo, the New York New Music Ensemble, Amanda Deboer and the Colorfield Ensemble, Duo Cuentista, Ensemble Laboratorium and the UB Percussion Ensemble. He has toured in England, Italy, Canada, and the US. A 2004 CD release, "Jack Rabbitt", is an organ trio outing on the Cadence Jazz Records label featuring tenor saxophonist Don Menza and organist Bobby Jones. He performs regularly with the Bobby Militello Quartet and George Jones trio. Recent creative projects include bacbaclove with Jonathan Golove (cello) and Steve Baczkowski (winds), Improv Ork a group of composer-improvisors playing graphic music and free improv, resAUnance with vocalist Esin Gunduz and pianist Michael McNeill and the New Buffalo Jazz Octet. John is a 2013 New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship Award recipient in Music/Sound which he was awarded for his musical compositions.

www.johnbaconjr.com