Jeremy Kahn is currently a faculty member in the jazz studies departments of Northwestern University, Elmhurst College and the Music Institute of Chicago. He is one of Chicago’s busiest pianists and a long-time mainstay at the city’s jazz venues, jazz festivals, and Broadway pit orchestras. Jeremy has performed on stage with musicians such as Dizzy Gillespie, Joni Mitchell, Aretha Franklin, Branford Marsalis, Max Roach, Phil Woods, Charlie Haden, Pepper Adams, Milt Hinton, and the Chicago and Milwaukee Symphony Orchestras, and on screen with Madonna and Mary Wilson. He has also performed internationally in venues from Singapore to Rotterdam, and has been a guest on the radio shows of Marian McPartland and Studs Terkel.

Lenard Simpson’s well-earned reputation as “quickly becoming one of the most important saxophonists of this generation” (Kiefer) has secured him a spot as a rising star among his contemporaries. An in-demand performer, composer, and arranger, Lenard’s outstanding musicianship has been recognized by some of the most celebrated jazz musicians across the world, including Herbie Hancock, Christian McBride, and Wayne Shorter. In addition to leading his eponymous trio/quartet in the Chicago area, he tours extensively as a sideman with Billy Childs, Kurt Elling, Marquis Hill, Kiefer, Sara Gazarek, George Fludas, Clayton Cameron and Brian Lynch. As an educator, he teaches at the Milwaukee Institute of Jazz and has given masterclasses for International Jazz Day in Melbourne, Australia.

Hailing from the UK, Mikey Ahearn seeks to channel the lineage of the great trumpet masters, particularly Freddie Hubbard, Clifford Brown, Woody Shaw, and Miles Davis, in pursuit of a unique voice. After receiving their bachelor’s degree in Music at the University of Oxford, Mikey moved to Chicago in 2021 to immerse themselves right at the source of their musical influences. Their experience directing big bands, neo-soul collectives, and rock-classical ensembles has culminated in a broad musical perspective that shapes their new debut album “Octagyn”, a distillation of the thoughts and feelings of a queer, non-binary musician navigating the pandemic. Mikey has worked with Julian Joseph, Derrick Gardner, Victor Goines, Roger Ingram, and Brad Mason, among others, and has performed in venues such as Evanston SPACE, Cadogan Hall, Royal Festival Hall, and Fairfield Halls, in addition to numerous European venues while on tour. Ahearn is currently finishing a master’s degree in Jazz Studies at Northwestern University.

Currently finishing his bachelor’s degree in Jazz Studies at Northwestern University, Jesse Lear is an acoustic and electric bassist, composer, arranger, and teacher in the greater Chicago area. He has performed at venues such as the 2020 Detroit Jazz Festival, the Gary Marshall Theater in LA, and Prudential Hall (NJPAC) in New Jersey. At the age of 21, he has already collaborated with musicians such as Derrick Gardner, Victor Goines, Ernie Adams, Jeremy Kahn, Roger Ingram, Chris Greene, Marques Carroll, Gayle Bisesi, and many others. Jesse also continues to be mentored by bass legends Carlos Henriquez and Sharay Reed.