Reason

Erik Deutsch

Having first come to prominence as a member of the funk-jazz collective Fat Mama, pianist/composer Erik has taken his talents across the globe to play with some of the finest musicians alive, performing and recording with jazz, pop, rock, bluegrass and country artists like The Black Crowes, Dixie Chicks, Norah Jones, Rosanne Cash, Citizen Cope, Charlie Hunter, Leftover Salmon, Shooter Jennings, Alice Smith, Shelby Lynne, Theo Bleckmann, Jessi Coulter, Joe Russo, Allison Moorer, Phillip Phillips, Dori Freeman, Joey Arias, Devotchka, Erin McKeown, Scott Amendola, Teddy Thompson, Ben Allison, The Motet, Sam Bush, Allison Moorer, Daniel Rodriguez, Steven Bernstein, Hannah Cohen, James Blood Ulmer, Jessica Lurie, Ellery Eskelin, Billy Martin, Bobby Previte, Levon Helm, John Scofield, Phil Lesh, Jim Campilongo, Bill Kreutzman, Nels Cline, Todd Clouser, Jenny Scheinman, Scott Metzger, Elvis Perkins, John Leventhal, Tony Malaby, Bob DiPiero, Autre ne Veut, Greensky Bluegrass, Trevor Dunn, Allison Miller, Frally Hines, Del McCoury, Don Byron, Jeff Coffin, Jefferson Hamer, Chris Robinson, Greg Garing, Shawn Pelton, Lee Townsend, Skerik, Brandon Seabrook, Warren Haynes, Stuart Bogie, Stanton Moore, Karl Denson, Steve Berlin, Ron Miles, Aaron Lee Tasjan, Michael Blake, Anton Fier, Fruition, Sunny Ozell, Todd Sickafoose, Alto Reed, and Art Lande. 

In 2022, Erik became the full-keyboardist with The Black Crowes touring the US, Europe, Japan and Australia.

Theo Bleckmann

Theo Bleckmann is a multi GRAMMY® nominated vocalist, composer and ECM recording artist who has recorded over 17 albums and collaborated with artists such as Ambrose Akinmusire, Sheila Jordan, Kneebody, Ben Monder, John Hollenbeck, Phil Kline, David Lang, Ulysses Owens, Bang on a Can All-Stars, and, most prominently, with Meredith Monk since 1994. Bleckmann has been interviewed by Terry Gross on NPR’s Fresh Air and appeared on the David Letterman show with Laurie Anderson. He has consistently appeared in top spots in DownBeat polls, and is a recipient of the prestigious JAZZ ECHO award from the Deutsche Phono-Akademie in his native Germany. Most recently he released an album with the celebrated brass quartet ‘The Westerlies’, toured Finland with the Oulu Symphony Orchestra and UMO Jazz Big Band performing his repertoire and own compositions. Most notably, Pulitzer-Prize-winning composer David Lang wrote a monodrama for Theo Bleckmann which was commissioned by the Japan Society and directed by legendary actor/director Yoshi Oida. The entire production was taken to Tokyo in Feb of 2023. A recording of it will be forthcoming

Sly5thAve

Sly5thAve is the project of multi-instrumentalist, producer, arranger, and composer Sylvester Uzoma Onyejiaka II, whose sophisticated compositions are shaped by his faith in hip hop, and deep understanding of soul, R&B and jazz. Having released ‘The Invisible Man: An Orchestral Tribute To Dr. Dre’ to critical claim, Sly5thAve returned in 2020 with ‘What It Is’. Showcasing his abilities as a producer and collaborative musician, the LP featured the likes of Denitia, Marlon Craft, Melissa McMillan and Grammy-nominated Thalma de Freitas and celebrates Sly5thAve’s multifaceted musical nature. 2022 saw him collaborating with fellow composer and pianist Roberto Verástegui on ‘Agua de Jamaica’ and with New York MC/lyricist JSWISS on ‘Somebody’s Gotta Do It’. His prolific passion for collaboration and creation is set to continue into 2023.