Jazz
Astral Project 
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Since 1978, Astral Project has been New Orleans' most exciting, inventive and respected morden jazz group. It's a co-op band comprised of world-class improvisers, hailed by fans and critics around the world. Down Beat calls Astral Project "one of the most distinctive and cohesive groups in jazz." JazzTimes calls Astral Project "one of the more adventurous working units in modern jazz today." The daily paper in Astral Project's home town, The New Orleans Times-Picayune, calls Astral Project simply "the city's premier modern jazz ensemble." The monthly music magazine OffBeat says Astral Project is "the finest modern jazz ensemble in New Orleans, and undoubtedly one of the most unique jazz groups period."
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Jazz Vocalist extraordinaire, artist and teacher Betty Shirley has come full circle in her life and is now reaping the benefits of her hard-earned endeavors. The Times Picayune declares “…her range and command of the stage make Shirley’s a voice that should be heard round the world.â€
Blessed with all the range and tonal control one might expect from a first-class Jazz singer, Shirley can scat, propel, coax and hang on to a note. She improvises with unerring instincts and delivers exactly what a song needs, spinning notes like silk. Michael ‘Mr. Jazz’ Gourrier (of WRIR-FM, Richmond Virginia) says about Betty, “One of the top female vocalists on the New Orleans scene. sensitive, sassy, coy and a great interpreter.â€
Betty Shirley says, “most of my singing is a natural expression, the voice is an instrument and to be able to sing illuminates the entire world, it has given me a chance to express my sincere devotion to this music.†Shirley’s extensive repertoire ranges from original compositions, Jazz (modern and traditional), and Blues to R&B, and Bossa Nova. Lucy Galliher, Musician and former East Coast Editor - Jazz Now Magazine writes “… her songs are alive, mixing vocalizing, talking and scanting into a wonderful blend of colors…â€
Branford Marsalis
Branford Marsalis was born in 1960 in New Orleans. He was the oldest of six sons of jazz pianist Ellis Marsalis. He started playing piano at 4 years old and a few years later took up the clarinet. At 15, he started playing the alto saxophone. When he was 16, his 15 year old brother Wynton asked him to be in his band. He went to college at Southern University and then transferred to the Berklee of School of Music. In 1980, playing baritone saxophone, he joins a big band formed by Art Blakey, and tours Europe. He also worked with the Lionel Hampton Orchestra and with Clark Terry during college.
Craig Klein
New Orleans-born Craig "Sparky" Klein received his first trombone at the age of six from his musician uncle, Gerry Dallmann. His formal musical training began in grade school, under the guidance of Papa Jac Assunto, founder of the Dukes of Dixieland. After college graduation, his professional musical career began in 1979 when he started playing with a traditional New Orleans brass band, meeting and playing with some of the New Orleans greats, such as Kid Sheik Colla, Father Al Lewis, Danny Barker, Chester Zardis, Frog Joseph, and many more.
Visit HomepageDavid Scott is a native of New Orleans whose many musical styles defy any attempt to categorize him. He has been a jazz pianist, punk rock bass player, acoustic songwriter, heavy metal guitarist, electronic experimentalist, and hip hop producer within his three decade history as a musician. He has written music for independent documentaries and films, online video games, websites, and local radio stations.
Influenced as much by Beethoven as he is by Dave Brubeck, David Scott's more recent work blends elements of classical and jazz with a healthy dose of punk attitude. Although he wears his pride for his hometown on his sleeve, his sound is closer to the avant garde jazz scene of New York than the second line sounds of New Orleans. Dissonant passages shatter into melodic fragments and then melt into contemplative chord progressions. He approaches each composition with the baroque styles of Vivaldi and Bach, using contemporary instrumentation to execute each piece.
His debut album as a composer is due to be completed in early 2009.
Dr. Michael White
When clarinetist Michael White headed to the Mississippi River's west bank for a two-month residency at A Studio in the Woods, he had the rare opportunity to contemplate New Orleans traditional jazz that has been central to his life. One of the concepts that the 49-year-old musician kept returning to was the duality that occurs in the music and in the nature of existence. White's latest release on Basin Street Records, Dancing in the Sky, brims with the results of the clarinetist's retreat and reflects these musings.
George French
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George French's musical profile is usually defined by whoever happens to be hearing him at the time. French is a singing bassist with an extensive background in New Orleans jazz and rhythm and blues. Pick up any of a dozen New Orleans-made hit records of the 1960s and you'll probably hear French.
George French began training and performing at an early age as a vocalist in grammar school. His musical training as a bassist started as a teenager. With no professional instruction; his musical style developed through "on-the-job-training." French's major influences during his musical development were, among others, his father, Albert "Papa" French, Sr., George Davis, and Sam Jones. "Papa" French served as his role model for musical professionalism, business style and commitment to performing. George Davis, his first teacher, ignited his desire to play bass while Sam Jones served as his mentor for musical style.
George French
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George French's musical profile is usually defined by whoever happens to be hearing him at the time. French is a singing bassist with an extensive background in New Orleans jazz and rhythm and blues. Pick up any of a dozen New Orleans-made hit records of the 1960s and you'll probably hear French.
George French began training and performing at an early age as a vocalist in grammar school. His musical training as a bassist started as a teenager. With no professional instruction; his musical style developed through "on-the-job-training." French's major influences during his musical development were, among others, his father, Albert "Papa" French, Sr., George Davis, and Sam Jones. "Papa" French served as his role model for musical professionalism, business style and commitment to performing. George Davis, his first teacher, ignited his desire to play bass while Sam Jones served as his mentor for musical style.
Harold Battiste
Musician, composer, arranger, performer and teacher, Harold Raymond Battiste, Jr. was born October 28, 1931, in New Orleans. Young Battiste loved the rich music of his New Orleans neighborhood. Graduating from Booker T. Washington High School in 1949, Battiste attended New Orleans' Dillard University, earning a B.S. in music in 1953.
Henry Butler
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A four-time W.C. Handy “Best Blues Instrumentalist - Piano†award nominee, Henry Butler knows no limitations. Although blinded by glaucoma since birth, Butler is also a world class photographer with his work displayed at exhibitions throughout the United States. Playing piano since the age of six, Butler is a master of musical diversity. Combining the percussive jazz piano playing of McCoy Tyner and the New Orleans style playing of Professor Longhair through his classically-trained wizardry, Butler continues to craft a sound uniquely his own. A rich amalgam of jazz, Caribbean, classical, pop, blues and R&B influences, his music is as excitingly eclectic as that of his New Orleans birthplace.
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