Piano: YuYing Hsu

An award-winning Taiwanese jazz pianist and composer, YuYing Hsu has performed in legendary jazz clubs in New York City, such as Birdland, Sweet Rhythm, and with renowned musicians like Albert "Tootie" Heath, Paquito D'Rivera, John Riley, Alex Sipiagin, Michael Philip Mossman, Antonio Hart, Jean-François Zygel and the complete violinist Benjamin Schmid. Her debut album "Untitled" won two Golden Indie Music Awards, which is Taiwan’s version of the Grammy, for "Best Jazz Album" and "Best Jazz Single" in 2011. Two years later, her second album "Sentimotional" again garnered two Golden Indie Music Awards for "Best Musician" and "Best Jazz Single". 

YuYing has a Master of Music degree from Purchase College, State University of New York, and studied with piano masters such as Gerard D'Angelo, Hal Galper, Arturo O'Farrill, Charles Blenzig, and Sam Yahel. Her thesis focused on jazz piano legend Keith Jarrett and his style of improvision in the piano trio and solo in the late 1960s and 1970s.

 

Trumpet, Flugelhorn: Alex Sipiagin

Jazz Festivals worldwide has seen Alex Sipiagin performing with the likes of Dave Holland, Michael Brecker, the Mingus groups, etc. Born on June 11, 1967 in Yaroslavl, Russia, Alex began studying the trumpet at age 12, studying at the Moscow Music Institute and the Gnessin Conservatory in Moscow where he received his Baccalaureate. In 1990, Alex participated in the International Louis Armstrong Competition sponsored by the Thelonius Monk Institute in WashingtonD.C. winning top honors and soon after relocated to the jazz mecca of the world, New York City.

 

 

Guitar: Lawrence Ku

Lawrence Ku is one of the finest and most well-respected musicians in China today. Originally from Los Angeles, California, Lawrence has made China his home for almost 20 years, first in Beijing, now in Shanghai. A stylistically diverse guitarist and composer, Lawrence is involved in many different musical projects and has appeared as a leader and sideman on the club, festival, and arena stages all around China and the world.

 

 

Bass: Hogyu Hwang

Hogyu Hwang grew up in Seoul, South Korea, and began playing bass at the age of ten. The winner of multiple major scholarships in his native Korea, Hwang was awarded a bachelor's degree from Berklee College of Music as a dual major in performance and jazz composition in 2007. While at Berklee, he earned a full scholarship and worked as an international ambassador. 

 

 

Drums: Donald Edwards

After winning the Louisiana Arts Ambassador’s Award in 1994 for Music Composition, Donald Edwards became one of the most sought-after drummers on the Baton Rouge/New Orleans music scene. He grew up playing different kinds of music ranging from marching band, hip-hop and pop to r&b, jazz, funk and gospel music. As a result, Edwards is now called on to play many different genres of music and meets them with creative interpretation and virtuosity.