Bassist Aaron Germain
began his musical career in Massachusetts, but has lived in the San Francisco since the year 2000.
He has always struck a balance between being a consummate sideman and a composer/bandleader.
Playing both upright and electric basses, he is adept at diverse genres of music, which reflects in his eclectic compositions.
He has performed with musicians such as Yusef Lateef, Stanley Jordan, Randy Brecker, Paul McCandless, Nguyen Le, Andy Narell,
Michael Wolff, Eric Reed, Bonnie Raitt, Barry Finnerty, Mary Wilson, Paula West, Melba Moore, and Tom Coster among many others.
Touring has allowed him to play venues such the Blue Note (NY), Birdland (NY) Scullers (Boston), The House of Blues (Boston),
The Blues Alley (Washington DC), Zanzibar Blue (Philadelphia), Yoshis (SF), Yoshis (Oakland), The Jazz School (Berkeley),
Humphrey's by the Bay (San Diego), The Fillmore (SF), Dakotas (Minneapolis), The Iron Horse (Northampton), Herbst Theatre (SF),
Kuumbwa (Santa Cruz), The Baked Potato (LA), Le Club Jazz (Kyoto), Cafe Yorozuya (Kobe), Z Imagine (Tokyo), Donfan (Tokyo),
MEG (Tokyo), Bar T.T. Funk (Tokyo), The San Francisco Jazz Festival, The North Beach Jazz Festival, The Fillmore Jazz Festival,
The San Jose Jazz Festival, and the Drumming in the New Millenium Festival in front of the Great Pyramids of Egypt (December of 1999),
Jazz Club Ferrara (Italy), Chorus (Switzerland), Franz K. (Germany), The Bromo Jazz Festival (Indonesia), Ambleside Days (UK),
Band on the Wall (UK), among many others.
Aaron has 4 albums of original music, “Before You Go”, “Chance” (on Origin records), “Bell Projections”, and “Opus”.
He appeared previously at Chez Hanny with Dave Haskell, Babatunde Lea, Anne Sajdera, Kerry Politzer,
and the Aaron Germain / Dan Zemelman Quartet.
With an M.M. from the Manhattan School of Music, saxophonist Jesse Levit has toured Japan with the Next Generation Jazz Orchestra, and performed in NYC clubs like Zinc Bar, Smalls,
Smoke, Mezzrow, & Dizzy's, and Bay Area staples like Mr. Tipple’s, SFJAZZ, Bird & Beckett, and The Sound Room.
He has performed with legends like Roy McCurdy, Jane Monheit, Jim McNeely, Diane Witherspoon, Wynton Marsalis, Tommy Igoe, Benny Green, and Wycliffe Gordon,
and Bay Area stalwarts Dan Zemelman, Josh Thurston-Milgrom, Eric Garland, Matt Clark, Joel Behrman, Jeff Marrs, and Adam Shulman.
Pianist Art Khu's passion for music ignited at a young age.
He immersed himself in classical piano studies throughout high school,
receiving private instruction from Donald Currier at the prestigious Yale School of Music.
He further enriched his knowledge by attending theory classes at Yale.
This foundation set the stage for his formal training at the Oberlin Conservatory, where he earned a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance.
Following his graduation from Oberlin, Khu embarked on a successful career as a freelance jazz musician.
Over the past three and a half decades, he has graced stages worldwide, performing and teaching.
He has collaborated with renowned artists like Jacqui Naylor, Laco Deczi, Donald Byrd, and Idina Menzel, both in the studio and on international tours.
He appeared previously at Chez Hanny with Jacqui Naylor.
Drummer Deszon X. Claiborne is one of the busiest
musicians in the Bay Area. His very diverse credits include Don Cherry,
Ornette Coleman, Bo Diddley, Phyllis Hyman, Jay McShann, Michael White,
Andy Narell, Alex Acuna, Ray Obiedo, Alphabet Soup, Charles Brown, Dave
Ellis, Rodney Franklin, and Peter Apfelbaum.
He studied with Ralph Humphrey, James Levi, Billy Cobham, Richard
Peterson, Barry Jekowsky, and Kenneth Nash, and has taught at the
Stanford Jazzz Workshop and Berkeley's Jazzschool.
He appeared previously at Chez Hanny with Larry Schneider, Glen
Pearson, Charles McNeal, Johnnie Valentino/Kenneth
Burgomaster/Elissa Lala, Anne Sajdera, Frank Martin, Kerry Politzer, and Matt Steckler.