Improv Exchange Podcast Leander Young

With an international background, PATRICK SOLURI is a New York City based composer of music for ballet, opera and film/TV. His love of telling stories through music is evident in a large body of work for the stage, screen and concert hall.
Mr. Soluri has had 11 ballet scores performed internationally. This includes a commission and eight sold out performances of JUST BEFORE NOW (2017) at Ballet de l'Opéra National de Bordeaux (France). The same creative team, led by German choreographer Xenia Wiest and costume designer Melanie Frost, first collaborated on TO BE CONTINUED (aka “Continuum” 2009) which was commissioned and performed 18 times over two seasons to great acclaim by Staatsballett Berlin. In 2016 this ballet won the Grande Prixe (1st prize) at the Berritz International Choreographic Competition, and the music was a finalist/winner of the Kaleidescope 2020 international composers competition (with over 8,000 submissions). The latest production is in the 2022/23 season by Ballet X Schwerin in Germany. 
During the pandemic the same creative team featuring Xenia Wiest collaborated on “Nacht Ohne Morgen” with Xenia also as the ballet director of Ballett X Schwerin (Germany),  receiving rave reviews and 13 performances in the 2021/22 season, plus 4 additional performances in the 2022/23 season. Other notable ballet works include three productions of MADAME X (1999, 2003, 2019), featuring American Ballet Theater principal Marcelo Gomes, and NY City Ballet principals Abi Stafford and Ask La Cour; FIRE & AIR, premiered at The Kennedy Center with Mr. Soluri conducting; and FANCY NANCY, based on the hit children’s books. Mr. Soluri’s ballets have been performed by STAATSBALLETT BERLIN (Germany), BALLET DE L'OPÉRA NATIONAL DE BORDEAUX (France), BALLETT X SCHWERIN (Germany), INTERMEZZO DANCE CO (New York City), DANCES PATRELLE (New York City), BOWEN McCAULEY DANCE (DC), and CUYAHOGA VALLEY YOUTH BALLET (OH).
In opera, Mr. Soluri was a finalist with librettist Deborah Brevoort for ALBERT NOBBS in the 2018 Pellicciotti Opera Composition Prize who then commissioned and work-shopped a 20-minute excerpt in September 2016. In January 2018 ALBERT NOBBS was showcased as part of Opera America's "New Works Forum," with two new scenes added, and won the 2019 Frontiers Competition at FORT WORTH OPERA (FWO). His one-act opera EMBEDDED, commissioned by AMERICAN LYRIC THEATER, also won the 2013 Frontiers Competition at FWO, and had its fully staged world premiere in March 2014 at FARGO-MOORHEAD OPERA, followed by six performances at FWO in their Spring 2016 season where the NY Times praised "Mr. Soluri’s skillfully scored music…” Mr. Soluri is also known for his series of 10 minute comic operas which have performed around the world, four of which have premiered at CARNEGIE HALL. With nearly a dozen productions, his most performed short opera is the dark comedy FIGARO’s LAST HANGOVER. The sequel, FIGARO & THE ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE was commissioned & premiered by FWO in 2013. His opera INFERNO was featured in the prestigious ‘2003 VOX Showcasing American Composers’ by NEW YORK CITY OPERA. In addition, Mr. Soluri’s operas have been performed by VIENNE EN VOIX FESTIVAL, NEVADA OPERA, CENTER CITY OPERA THEATER, URBAN ARIAS, OPERA ON TAP, UNIVERSITY OF ALBANY, RTB, JUVENTAS, and L'ARIETTA SINGAPORE.
Mr. Soluri has also composed numerous film scores, has a vast library of music for film/TV, and a film trailer that showed on 19,000 film screens in the US. Other projects include orchestrating and arranging for the EMMY AWARD winning WONDERPETS, with Sean Lennon on the film score for ALTER EGOS, and scoring the indie short HOSTILE TAKEOVER (2018). Additionally, he has hundreds of cues in various film/tv music production libraries (including SONY/ATV, ReelTracks, and ScoreKeepers), which has been featured worldwide on various TV shows and networks, such as TLC, LOGO and DISCOVERY - including hit shows like NBC's "World of Advent

AARON JENSEN (he/him), is an award-winning Toronto-based composer and producer. His creative work has been premiered and recorded by JUNO and GRAMMY award-winning artists, including Randy Brecker, Mariah Carey, Natalie MacMaster, and Dame Evelyn Glennie. He had the pleasure of acting as musical director, band leader, and composer for the nine-time EMMY award-winning series, Schitt’s Creek.
Jensen’s compositions have been performed around the world by choirs and symphony orchestras. He has contributed to a Broadway-optioned musical, a BAFTA-nominated video game, and a New York Times Bestselling book. His love of vocal music, obsession with language, and penchant for interweaving musical genres can be heard throughout his body of work. Jensen is the Artistic Director of Countermeasure and the Artistic Director Emeritus of SING! The Toronto Vocal Arts Festival.
COUNTERMEASURE:
Since forming in 2010, this twelve-person vocal group has enjoyed sell-out concerts across Canada, the U.S., the U.K., Italy, and Japan. Countermeasure has recorded with GRAMMY and JUNO award-winning artists including Larnell Lewis, Cindy Cashdollar, and The Barenaked Ladies. They've shared the stage with artists such as Corey Hart, Alan Frew, The Swingle Singers, and Naturally 7.
Their albums have been recognized with awards and nominations by the international CARA Awards (Best Album, Best Song), the John Lennon Songwriting Competition (Best Jazz Song), and the Independent Music Awards (Best A Cappella Song). Countermeasure has recently released their 4th studio album, Orchestral Sessions. They are excited to launch their performance season with symphony orchestras in 2025-2026.
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Jose Miguel is a Filipino singer-songwriter based in the south side of Manila. Heavily influenced by jazz, folk, and big band music, it's no surprise that he believes he was born in the wrong era. The authenticity and the distinct slick sound and energy of that time are what his music is. 
An old soul living in the new, his work encapsulates themes, melodies, and words that 100% speak to him-and he hopes it speaks to you, too. 
With suave vocals, a charismatic presence, and innate musical talent, Jose Miguel could’ve easily pushed forward with sounds and genres most familiar to today’s generation. Instead, he pushed the rewind button and stayed true to his roots of jazz standards and big band music. However, that’s not to claim that jazz is a genre of the past. Its resurgence first broke into the scene again through artists like Laufey, Stephen Sanchez, and Bruno Major who have beengaining massive streaming numbers and popularity, especially on social media platforms like TikTok.
If you still believe that jazz is just old-fashioned music, Jose Miguel is on a mission to reverse that notion. Today’s audience is a critical bunch–they like music that speaks deeply to them and support artists that they can easily connect and resonate with. They see through the honesty and relatability of music. That’s what matters to them and luckily, that’s what Jose Miguel is all about.
The album is comparable to a diary–expressing intrusive thoughts, sharing exciting moments, and displays of overthinking anything and everything. In other words, simply writing from the soul. Jose Miguel mentions that all the songs were inspired by real life experiences that left an impact on him, and translated into sophisticated and polished ways of storytelling. Paired with the stories are masterful melodies and refined instrumentals that represent the sounds of the golden age but still incorporating touches of sounds from today, so there’s something for everyone. The best way to interpret the album is that it's an old soul living in the new.
Jose Miguel hopes the album resonates with the listeners lyrically and sonically and enjoys it with a little singing and dancing. It’s a dream come true to finally share the music with everybody and he hopes to also give confidence to those people who want to pursue their dreams and raise the flag of homegrown Filipino talent.

Brian Scarborough is a top-call trombonist, improviser, composer, and educator in the greater Kansas City area. As a musician, Brian is regularly booked as both a bandleader for his quintet and a sideman for many local and touring bands of various sizes, in jazz and other genres. Moreover, Brian is a veteran musician of musical theatre, having performed for more than 50 productions in the greater Kansas City area. Internationally, Brian has performed in the European circuit in jazz, classical, and chamber music idioms. Brian has received critical acclaim as a soloist from international competitions including the J.J. Johnson Jazz Trombone Competition, the ATW Jazz Trombone Competition, and the Gilberto Gagliardi Tenor Trombone Competition, amongst others. Brian maintains a studio of private students and is equally passionate about creating new and interesting educational resources. Additionally, Brian is regularly on the faculty for various jazz camps and presents masterclasses widely.
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Lawrence Fields, born and bred in St. Louis, has earned a spot at the forefront of young jazz pianists, thanks to his blending of vintage ideals with a contemporary mindset. For the last five years, in 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, and 2019, Downbeat Magazine has placed him close to the top of the keyboardist category in their “Rising Stars” critics poll. Fields showcase his dynamic blend of composition and playing in his trio and quartet, and his music is currently being featured internationally. His debut album featuring his trio and solo playing, “To the Surface”, was released to critical acclaim on February 2, 2024.
Veteran saxophone icon Joe Lovano – with his unerring ear for youthful talent – has become one of the pianist’s biggest fans. Fields is a member of several bands led or co-led by Lovano: his Classic Quartet (originally featuring Lewis Nash and George Mraz in the rhythm section); the Sax Supreme Quartet (with Chris Potter); and his Sound Prints quintet with trumpeter Dave Douglas. The Wall Street Journal praised Fields’ “elegant, probing” solos with Sound Prints, while The New York Times noted that he is “integral to the band’s plunging, changeable style.” A modern-minded bandleader from the younger generation also relies on Fields, as he mans the piano and keyboards for the Christian Scott Group. Referencing his role on acoustic and electric pianos in the trumpeter’s band, NextBop said: “Fields remains a constant lyrical presence on the keys – innovative, expressive, supportive, able to soar like a bird in his solos. He never fails to impress.”
Fields has collaborated with Christian Scott on several albums — including co-writing and co-producing 3 songs on the Grammy-nominated The Emancipation Procrastination (Ropeadope, 2017), as part of his work on Christian’s Centennial Trilogy with releases Diaspora and Ruler Rebel. He features prominently in the piano and keyboard chairs on Christian’s Grammy-nominated live recording Axiom (2020), as well as the Grammy-nominated Ancestral Recall (2019), and the Stretch Music (Ropeadope, 2015) and Christian Scott Atunde Adjuah (Concord, 2012) albums.
With Lovano and Douglas, the pianist features on Sound Prints’ two critically-acclaimed studio releases: Other Worlds (2021), and Scandal (2018, Greanleaf) — selected by The Guardian as their #1 jazz album of 2018, as well as one of Rolling Stone’s top 20 jazz albums of the year. Fields also plays on the live album Sound Prints: Live at Monterey Jazz Festival (Blue Note, 2015), which featured two brand-new compositions written for the ensemble by the legendary Wayne Shorter. He appears on the album Marsalis Music Honors Alvin Batiste (2007) alongside Branford Marsalis, Herlin Riley and Russell Malone, as well as on drummer Terri Lyne Carrington’s More to Say (a 2009 disc for which he served as a pianist, keyboardist, and composer-producer). Fields also appears on releases by drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts, bassist Yasushi Nakamura, vibraphonist Warren Wolf, and saxophonists Jaleel Shaw and Steve Slagle. The pianist has been a member of the Watts band, as well as that of trumpeter Nicholas Payton. In addition to performing onstage with the likes of Payton, Watts, Marsalis, and Carrington, Fields has appeared with star bassist Christian McBride, drummer Nate Smith, trombonist Delfeayo Marsalis, trumpeter Takuya Kuroda, and bassist Robert Hurst, among others.
Lawrence's playing is also featured on Christopher North's score for the new Sam Pollard documentary "Max Roach: The Drum Also Waltzes", which premiered in Fall 2023 on PBS' American Masters television series.

Born in Washington, D.C., and raised in Greenville, NC, contemporary jazz vocalist Christie N. Dashiell honed her skills at Howard University and later at the Manhattan School of Music. Ms. Dashiell’s trajectory includes performances with Howard’s premiere vocal jazz ensemble, Afro Blue. She has also performed at the Kennedy Center as a participant in the 2010 Betty Carter’s Jazz Ahead program; at the Lincoln Theater in Washington, D.C.; and, as a part of Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Jazz for Young People program. She is the recipient of DownBeat magazine’s Best College Graduate Jazz Vocalist and Outstanding Soloist awards in the jazz vocal category. Most recently, Ms. Dashiell appeared on season three of NBC’s The Sing-Off, as a member of Afro Blue. She can be heard on several nationally released recordings including John Blake’s Motherless Child, The Jolley Brothers’ memoirs Between Brothers, and as a Kennedy Center Discovery Artist on NPR’s JazzSet hosted by Dee Dee Bridgewater. She has since performed in concert with Esperanza Spalding, Fred Hammond, Smokey Robinson, Geri Allen, and Allan Harris.
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