Steffen Müller-Kaiser
Tenor Saxophone/Bass Clarinet/Clarinet
His tone makes him a unique dialogue partner for a singer , both on the saxophone and on the bass clarinet. In our drumless line-up his sense of rhythm is an important thread in the sound texture and reliably supports the groove in the ever so finely spun ballad - without unnecessary frills or embellishments. Nevertheless Steffen Müller-Kaiser also proves musical humor, especially in his own compositions, being also active as a composer.
He studied jazz and popular music under Wolfgang Bleibel at the Academy “Franz Liszt” in Weimar. In addition he received musical education by Rainer Heute and Bernd Konrad. Steffen Müller-Kaiser played, among others ,in the "Open Doors Ensemble", Quattrophonium Ensemble, "Turnaround Jazz Duo", "Steffen Müller -Kaiser Quartett" and in the "Steffen Müller-Kaiser Organ Quartett". Besides he performed in several radio broadcast recordings and musical theatre productions , e. g. , at the state theatre in Wiesbaden. Since 2012 he sensitively plays the role of Lester Young in “Billies Blues” at the Westside Theatre in Darmstadt .
Lukas Moriz - Piano
The young and very gifted pianist Lukas Moriz (born 1992) is a discovery: From 2011-2015 he studied jazz piano with Sebastian Sternal and Jean-Yves Jung at the “Hochschule für Musik Mainz”. He received his education in improvisation by Rainer Böhm and Jesse Milliner.
His good ear for tonal nuances, his distinctive sense for arcs of suspense and consistently compositional thinking, even while improvising, creates a kind of music that unifies lyricism and energy in the most beautiful way. Music that easily bridges the interval between the earthy directness of jazz and the rich timbre of European art music. This compositional trait of his is perceivable in his "Lukas Moriz Trio". He performed on stage both at the state theatre and the chamber plays theatre in Karlsruhe in many jazz clubs and various festivals. He also is a sought after sideman. Since 2012 he plays the piano in "Billies Blues" at the Westside Theatre in Darmstadt.
Rudolf Stenzinger - bass
The well-versed bassist is characterized by a very personal sound and is known as a creative and reliable sideman. As such, he worked, i. a. , with Tony Lakatos, Annette Neuffer, Alberto Menendez, Michael Sorg, Claus Koch together with Jean-Francois Prins, Michael Keul, Thomas Bachmann and many others. He toured through Italy, Serbia, Slovenia, Austria and throughout Germany playing in concerts, as well with the "Sinatra Tribute Band" and the original line-up "The Tenor Badness".
Rudolf Stenzinger studied at the music colleges in Würzburg and Mainz under Henning Gailing, Vitold Rek and Prof. Rudi Engel. He received instruction from Reggie Johnson, Giorgos Antoniou, John Goldsby, Doug Weiss and Dwayne Burno. He is a member of the stage band in “Billies Blues” at the West Side Theatre in Darmstadt.
Holger Nesweda drums
For a singer it's not easy to find a drummer who makes a perfect match. Holger does, as he is a subtile player, in permanent dialogue, aware of the moment, constantly creating the adequate sound whilst swinging straight forward.
He studied in Arnheim (NL) with Renee Cremers and graduated 1997 at Musikhochschule Mannheim with Keith Copeland .
Holger Neswada curates the program "New Jazz Voices" , he is in great demand by Theatre Productions due to his conciuosness of sound and varied technical and rhythmical repertoire, and he was touring with Ack van Rooyen, worked a.o. with Laith Al Deen and many others.
His latest work was the CD-production "Do Lennie Tristano" of his band "Tonegallery" (2016, Laika Records): ""Very well done! Too bad Lennie & Warne couldn’t have heard it, too!!" said Lee Konitz about the album.