Brent White is a lifelong Philadelphian and jazz enthusiast. Mr. White understands Philadelphia's rich cultural community; its leaders, history, musicians, connectors, and politics. He holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Widener University, a Master’s Degree in Jazz Studies from the University of the Arts, and a certificate in non-profit management from LaSalle University. He has toured nationwide and internationally as a freelance trombonist to the world’s largest Jazz festivals, yet possesses the local field experience, and relationships with many of Philadelphia’s non-profits with a career focus that can be summarized in one word—Jazz. Previously, Mr. White has worked as the Education Program Manager at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, designing and implementing outreach education programming for Philadelphia students. Mr. White has taught jazz in the Philadelphia Prison System, the Philadelphia Clef Club of Jazz and Performing Arts, in the Camden New Jersey City School system, and as Director of Jazz Orchestra at Drexel University. Residencies included the Juilliard School of Music outreach Department (Bay Area Tour), where he provided jazz workshops in juvenile detention centers, children’s hospitals, and schools in the San Francisco Bay area.
As a trombonist, Mr. White has toured with the likes of John Legend (Indonesia), Kindred Family Soul (South Africa), and the Sun Ra Arkestra (Europe). Mr. White has been welcomed to the stage by Lady Alma, and has recorded in-studio for Patti Labelle. Mr. White is no stranger to the Philadelphia and New York jazz scenes where currently, he performs with Orrin Evans’ Captain Black Big Band, Josh Lawrence and Color Theory, and the Fresh Cut Orchestra, among other ensembles.
Lauren Putty White has an MFA in dance from Montclair State University and a BFA in Modern Dance Performance from the University of the Arts. Having performed internationally with Parsons dance company and PHILADANCO, White has also choreographed for Ballet X, Grace Dance Theatre, Bryn Mawr College, and Drexel University. She has taught at the University of the Arts, Stockton University, Temple University and for the School District of Philadelphia. White co-founded Putty Dance Project, with her jazz musician husband, producing socially conscious critically acclaimed works. They have presented at the Kimmel Center, Baltimore Dance Invitational, Boston Contemporary Dance Festival and San Francisco’s Virtual Pathways. Most recently, White was the featured dancer with the Sun Ra Arkestra at Carnegie Hall and a guest teacher at Cornell University. She currently teaches workshops in her methodologyPhysical Listening for Free Form Body Motifs, specializing in movement improvisation to Free Jazz music. An emerging dance writer, she also writes for Philadelphia’s thINKingDANCE . White is currently dance faculty at Stockton University.
Orrin Evans: During his kaleidoscopic quarter-century as a professional jazz musician, pianist Orrin Evans has become the model of a fiercely independent artist who pushes the envelope in all directions. Evans upholds that reputation on his 20th album,Magic of Now (Smoke Sessions), on which he helms a multi-generational A-list quartet through an eight-piece program that exemplifies state-of-the-art modern jazz. From first note to last, the members, convening as a unit for the first time, display the cohesion and creative confidence of old friends, mirroring the leader’s predisposition for finding beauty in the heat of the moment.
Although he’s never had the support of a major label, Evans has ascended to top-of-the-pyramid stature on his instrument, as affirmed by a #1-ranking as “Rising Star Pianist” in the 2018 DownBeat Critics Poll. Grammy nominations for theSmoke Sessions albums: The Intangible Between andPresence, by Evans’ raucous, risk-friendly Captain Black Big Band, cement his bona fides as a bandleader and composer.
Evans bedrocks his speculative sensibility with virtuoso command of the piano and deep assimilation of the fundamentals. A deft tune deconstructor, he commands vocabulary across a broad timeline of swinging, blues-infused hardcore jazz and spiritual jazz/avant garde jazz dialects, as well as the Euro-canon, and conveys his stories with the intuitive spontaneity of an ear player. He projects an instantly recognizable sound, sometimes creating flowing rubato tone poems, sometimes embodying the notion that the piano comprises 88 tuned drums.
Evans’ stylistically polyglot compositions – influenced by the expansive, individuality-first Black Music culture of his native Philadelphia and by a decade playing Charles Mingus’ beyond-category music in the Mingus Big Band – similarly postulate an environment of “structured freedom” that instigates the personnel to push the envelope in all his multifarious leader and collaborative projects. These include the Eubanks Evans Experience (a recent venture with eminent guitarist Kevin Eubanks); the just-formed Brazilian unit Terreno Comum; Evans’ working trio with bassist Luques Curtis and drummer Mark Whitfield; Jr.; and Tar Baby (a collective trio of 20 years standing with bassist Eric Revis and drummer Nasheet Waits).
One of Tar Baby’s two 2022 releases will be released on Evans’ imprint, Imani Records, which he founded in 2001 and relaunched in 2018.
An influential educator, Evans is devoted to passing the torch to new generations. His students include the outstanding young alto saxophonist and Blue Note artist Immanuel Wilkins, and the prodigious, Grammy-nominated teenage pianist Brandon Goldberg.
Ian Macaulay is a guitarist, composer, and producer originally from Woonsocket, RI. Over the past 15 years, Ian has made a name for himself in the Philadelphia r&b and jazz scene, performing and recording with John Legend, Estelle, and Eric Roberson, as well as jazz artists Clark Terry, Ray Vega and Joe Lovano.
Recently, Ian was featured on Brent White’s album Broken Toy, which also featured pianist Orrin Evans and bassist Luques Curtis, as well as on drummer Wayne Smith, Jr’s soon-to-be-released debut album, for which he also served as mixing engineer. Ian is also a member of the band Maiden Seoul, who just released the first single, Verve, from their debut album, Cinematic, set to be released in the spring.
In between maintaining a busy touring schedule, Ian is also getting ready to release his first record as a leader, which will show off his diverse range of influences, from jazz to R&B and progressive rock.
Wayne Smith Jr.: Nurtured in the legendary Philadelphia jazz scene, Wayne Smith, Jr.’s career as drummer is as promising as it is eclectic. After graduating from the famed Creative and Performing Arts High School, he went on to study at the world renowned Berklee College of Music in Boston. Eager to advance his music career, Wayne began performing regularly at staples of the Philadelphia jazz community including Chris’ Jazz Cafe and Ortlieb’s Jazzhaus. As his reputation grew, he branched out, performing in New York, Baltimore and Washington D.C alongside such well known musicians as Donald Byrd, Orrin Evans, Duane Eubanks, John Ellis, Stacy Dillard and Bootsie Barnes. He teamed up with Victor North (saxophonist) and Lucas Brown (organist) to form Three Blind Mice and the trio still performs together to this day. After being tapped to join the legendary Sun Ra Akestra, Wayne toured Europe, Canada, and Australia, which would prove instrumental in his development as an artist.
During his travels, Wayne was exposed to a variety of musical genres and styles that piqued his interest and stimulated his musical growth. He began to explore a blossoming interest in rock music, anchoring a group that went on to do multiple recordings. He also began to pursue relationships with other musicians. It was during this time that he reunited with a former band mate, pianist George Burton. "I've known Wayne since I was about 16 years old. He was the first drummer I used regularly. Over time, I started using different cats to try to get a different feel on my music. But, the problem with that is that after every gig I always thought ‘if Wayne had played, he would have murdered it’, so I always went back."
With a heightened passion, Wayne developed his now signature playing style that revels in the dynamic interplay between musicians. His experimentation inspired a new musical sensibility; one that remains grounded while still ferociously ambitious. Tim Warfield (acclaimed tenor saxophonist and Temple University professor) has described Wayne as an “inventive drummer who displays an in-depth musical consciousness, quite willing to embrace the moment, yet never losing himself nor the tradition in the search." Jazz guitarist Steve Giordano agrees, stating “I love playing with Wayne as his natural feel and energy always adds to my compositions in his unique way. Even when he just lays it down, his feel is so good that the music always swings.”
Nimrod Speaks: Born in Philadelphia, Pa, Nimrod Speaks is a well-trained bassist, composer and educator both on electric and double bass. He began playing at the age of 16 on an electric fender bass while in high school under the tutorship of Ricardo Jackson. He later was introduced to the double bass during his first semester in college. He brings his individual soulful tone to many styles of music. Much of his musical studies in classical and jazz concentration include training with Ben Blazer, Ralph Bowen, Douglas Mapp, Conrad Hewig, Maria Cadieux, Scott Lee, Kevin Kjos, Mike Richmond, Victor Lewis, Vic Juris, and Stanley Cowell. While obtaining a B.A in Music Education from Kutztown University and a Masters in Jazz Studies from Rutgers University, these schools landed him opportunities to play with renowned artist of today. Some include Boostie Barnes, Ronnie Burrage, Doc Gibbs, Hannible Lokumbe including performance at premier jazz venues such as the Blue Note in NYC and the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia.