Swing into the holiday season with JZ Club's festive Jazz Nutcracker, a fanciful take on the Tchaikovsky suite. 

 

 

Trumpet: Li Xiaochuan

Li Xiaochuan is a jazz trumpeter, composer and educator, who has become one of China’s premier jazz musicians since his emergence in 2001.He began his musical career when he was 11 years old. His father, who is a professional trumpeter, was an early influence on him and has given him the most musical influence to date since he was born. He studied classical music and graduated from the prestigious Shanghai Conservatory in 2005 with a degree in classical trumpet performance. During this period, he was a member of the Shanghai Conservatory Youth Orchestra and played in Shanghai Spring Festivals. However, his talent in jazz and creative musical expression, soon made him one of the most sought-after jazz musicians in China.After playing his first jazz concert in 2004, he began to work with the Shanghai Jazz Orchestra and played at Shanghai Jazz Festival 2006 and 2007.Also during this time, he leads the group "E-Groove", a Shanghai-based jazz band that performed original music, fusion, and jazz standards. He has been playing at different venues in Shanghai, such as Shanghai Concert Hall, Shanghai Grand Theatre, shanghai Oriental Art Center, Jin Mao Tower Concert Hall, Shanghai Art Theatre, Shanghai Centre Theatre and numerous jazz lives.

 

 

Piano: Huang Jianyi

Huang Jianyi was the first person in China to receive a master's degree in jazz piano. He has been a music educator and Art Director at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, where he also received Bachelor's degree in Piano Performance. He founded the Footprints Jazz Band in 1999, one of the first modern Chinese jazz groups in Shanghai. He has studied jazz piano at the Berklee College of Music with such greats as Paul Schmeling, Ray Santisi, Joanne Brackeen, Laszlo Gardony and Joe Lovano. Currently, he is completing his Master's degree in Jazz Performance at Rutgers University, where he is studying with Stanley Cowell, Victor Lewis, Ralph Bowen and Conrad Herwig. He has performed in New York's Blue Note club, as well as most recently at the Montreal Jazz Festival with the Possicobilities Band.

 

 

Guitar: Zhang Xiongguan

Zhang Xiongguan is one of the most influential young jazz guitarists, composers in China. He is also a D'addario artist. Zhang Xiongguan studied with some of the leading figures in the jazz world: Fred Hersch, Miguel Zenon and Jason Moran. After graduating from the prestigious New England Conservatory with a Master degree, he returned his homeland and started his career as an educator in Shanghai Conservatory of Music. Xiongguan’s virtuosity is highly regarded as being one of the most active musicians in China. Since his relocation back to Shanghai in 2015, he has already composed and published two albums. His debut album "New Sound From The Past" (2016) and latest creation "Struggles" (2017).

 

 

Bass: Zhu Haiming

 

 

Drums: BeiBei

 

 

Special Guest: Lao Ren

 

 

Dancer: Tian Meng