Since their memorable 2006 tour of Peru, pianist Bill Anschell, bassist Chris Symer, and drummer/percussionist Jeff Busch have been performing regularly as the Peru Reunion trio. Anschell had previously toured South America five times with his Atlanta trio before moving to Seattle in 2002. For all of the tours, Anschell arranged traditional South American songs, building a repertoire that offers a personal take on the beautiful and memorable melodies. The trio’s repertoire has continued to expand, now including songs from Peru, Paraguay, Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina, Chile, and Colombia, as well as many of Anschell's original compositions.

About the Musicians

Bill Anschell
Pianist Bill Anschell’s concert credits include eight European tours with vocalist Nnenna Freelon and seven South American tours leading his own trio. He was featured as pianist, arranger, and composer on Freelon’s CD, Shaking Free, which was Grammy-nominated. He is a prolific composer; his original pieces have been placed more than 90 times on programs including “The West Wing,” “The Wire,” and “Yellowstone.”

Anschell, a Seattle native, returned to the Emerald city in 2002 after a long residency in Atlanta. He received Golden Ear Awards as the “Northwest Jazz Instrumentalist of the Year” in 2005, 2010 and 2011; his trio was named “Northwest Acoustic Jazz Ensemble of the Year” in 2006 and 2022; his CD Figments won “Northwest Jazz Recording of the Year” in 2011; and in 2016 he was inducted into the Seattle Jazz Hall of Fame.

Anschell is also well known as a jazz humorist, and in 2014 he was a winner of the inaugural Paul Desmond Award, allaboutjazz.com’s celebration of the funniest jazz artists.

Chris Symer
Bassist Chris Symer moved to Seattle in 2002 from Los Angeles, where he was an in-demand player for live gigs and studio work. Feeling at home playing almost any type of music, he has been busy working in a wide variety of musical situations. He has performed in groups ranging from the unclassifiable Southern California based band "Headless Household"; to sideman work with Bennie Maupin, Charlie Byrd, Tierney Sutton, Roger Kellaway and Robben Ford; to orchestral playing for film scores. Symer's consistent sound and reliable sense of direction have not only helped him find work, but to get there on time as well.

Since moving to Seattle from Los Angeles in 2002, Symer has become an integral part of the city's jazz scene, freelancing as a bass-for-hire and playing regularly in the bands of Bill Anschell, Johnaye Kendrick and Nelda Swiggett.

Jeff Busch
Jeff Busch is an exuberant drummer/percussionist, vocalist, and composer who has been active on the Seattle jazz, gospel, and Latin jazz scenes for the past 13 years. He is a member of the Jovino Santos Neto Quinteto, whose 2004 recording ‘Canto do Rio’ was nominated for a Latin Jazz Grammy. In 2007, one of Jeff’s original compositions entitled ‘the Struggle’ from his album ‘Song for the Ninth Ward, was selected as a finalist in the International Songwriting Competition’s jazz category. He has drummed at Seattle’s First AME church for the past 12 years, and has collaborated with a wide variety of artists.

From 1988-96, Jeff studied fine art, and music in Leeds, England. He studied percussion and drum set with Dave Hassel, calypso with steel drum master Dudley Nesbitt, and later Brazilian percussion with Jesse Bannister. In Leeds he first worked as a percussion accompanist for three of the city’s dance companies. In 1997, Jeff spent six months in Brazil and studied with a variety of percussionists including Edmilson Costa Teixeira, Gilo do Pandeiro, and Mestres Memeu and Lazaro from Olodum; he returned to tour as a performer in 1998. He was the recipient of a King County Arts grant for a recording project entitled “Drums and Voices – A Collage of Negro Spirituals,” with gospel singer Patrinell Wright and Master Senegalese drummer Thione Diop. In addition to performing, Jeff continues his work as a dance accompanist, producer, educator, studio musician and visual artist.

Reflections

4:00 pm performance

In this program, music acts as a mirror where one era reflects another. Beethoven’s Sonata in E major, Opus 109, moves between calm reflection and bursts of drama, followed by a piano transcription by the pianist and composer Asiya Korepanova from Bach’s Christmas Oratorio. Ravel’s Miroirs and Rachmaninoff’s Variations on a Theme of Chopin show how composers can reshape voices of the past into something new. Together, these pieces invite us into a hall of musical mirrors, where memory and imagination meet across time.

Reflections

7:00 pm performance

In this program, music acts as a mirror where one era reflects another. Beethoven’s Sonata in E major, Opus 109, moves between calm reflection and bursts of drama, followed by a piano transcription by the pianist and composer Asiya Korepanova from Bach’s Christmas Oratorio. Ravel’s Miroirs and Rachmaninoff’s Variations on a Theme of Chopin show how composers can reshape voices of the past into something new. Together, these pieces invite us into a hall of musical mirrors, where memory and imagination meet across time.

About the Musicians

LAUREN ASIMAKOUPOULOS, FLUTE

Lauren Asimakoupoulos is a flutist in the greater Seattle area. Lauren holds both a Bachelors and a Masters Degree in Flute Performance from Wheaton College and The University of Tennessee, respectively. Lauren has participated in several festivals and competitions around the globe, including Interharmony music festival in Italy, Flute Days Hamburg Festival in Germany, and the Global Summer Institute of Music in Virginia, where she won the international concerto competition in 2018. Lauren has studied with Sandra Saathoff, Jennie Brown, Aleksandr Haskin, and many more. Currently, she teaches privately on Mercer Island, is a flute clinician for several Washington school districts, and performs with different ensembles in the area.

BRIAN MADSEN, OBOE

A graduate of WWU, Brian Madsen is a freelance musician in Seattle. His current projects include performing and arranging chamber music, as well as his work recording and audio engineering with a particular focus on woodwind instruments. Brian maintains a private lesson studio, where he enjoys helping develop musical artistry, and has sent students on to further pursue their own degrees at music schools around the US.

BRIAN SCHAPPALS, CLARINET

Brian Schappals is a clarinetist, composer and educator based in Seattle, WA. He holds a Master’s in Music degree in Clarinet Performance from the University of Washington and Bachelor’s of Arts degrees in Clarinet Performance and Music Composition from Whitworth University. Brian is the principal clarinetist of Northwest Symphony Orchestra and an active musician in the greater Seattle area, having played with the Seattle Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Modern Orchestra, Emerald Ballet Academy Orchestra, Inverted Space Ensemble, Seattle Collaborative Orchestra, Saratoga Orchestra, The Sound Ensemble, and Bellingham Chamber Chorale. He recently participated in an album recording of Harry Partch's original version of The Bewitched with the Harry Partch Ensemble. Brian is also an active composer of contemporary classical music and serves as an Adjunct Faculty of Music Composition at Whitworth University. Most recently, he has been nominated as a finalist for the American Prize in Wind Ensemble Composition's Professional Division for his concerto for clarinet and mixed ensemble titled light...pale and angered. https://briannschappals.weebly.com/ 

ANNA BARBEE, HORN

Anna Barbee is a horn player and teacher local to Seattle. She earned her doctoral degree in Horn Performance from the University of Washington, performs regularly with Olympia Symphony, and teaches at Tacoma Community College and Pierce Community College.

DAVID WALL, BASSOON

A native of Southern California, David grew up playing saxophone before making the switch to bassoon and eventually receiving a degree in music from University of Washington where he studied with Seth Krimsky, principal bassoonist of the Seattle Symphony. David is a weekend radio host at Classical KING 98.1, has been principal bassoon for the Puget Sound Symphony Orchestra for 10 years and plays with various groups around the greater Seattle area. He is also an avid photographer and enjoys playing tennis, cooking, reading (mostly scifi/fantasy), and playing with his cat, Minerva.

http://www.davidlwall.com/

“Brushes & Bass” (drummer Greg Williamson and bassist Heather Chriscaden) focuses on the lighter side of acoustic jazz textures, while celebrating the drive and sonic pallet found in classic swing, bebop and bossa nova.  The duo (along with their invited guests) features unique, inventive arrangements highlighting the textures of each instrument.

About the Musicians

Greg is a devotee of the art of brush playing, but has driven the big bands of Woody Herman, Glenn Miller, Ernestine Anderson and his own Pony Boy All-Star Big Band. Heather studied with jazz bass legends Ray Brown and John Clayton and maintains an active performing and teaching schedule in the Seattle region. She was the cover story of the December 2023 issue of Earshot Jazz magazine.

Joining Greg & Heather for this First Sundays Concert will be special guests Susan Pascal (vibraphone) and Brent Jensen (saxophone). Susan has toured Singapore four times and played concerts and workshops across the United States. She has appeared at the Earshot Jazz Festival, Jazz Port Townsend and as a featured artist with the Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra, Seattle Baroque Orchestra and the popular Seattle “gypsy jazz” group, Pearl Django. Brent has recorded and performed with a wide range of jazz artists including Gene Harris, Bobby Shew, John Stowell, Bill Anschell, Jamie Findlay and many others. His recording, “The Sound of a Dry Martini: Remembering Paul Desmond” charted at the #1 position on jazz radio stations across the country upon its release in 2001 and continues to receive heavy airplay on numerous music streaming services. 

In their debut concert on our series, Michelle Huang (piano), Dawn Posey (violin), and Sarah Rommel (cello) present a program of beautiful and much loved piano trios.

With a performance history spanning more than 30 years and having released 17 CDs, Pearl Django endures as one of the most highly regarded Hot Club style groups working today. Although the band’s roots are firmly in the music made famous by Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli, its extensive repertoire includes traditional jazz classics and original compositions. They have played at the prestigious Festival Django Reinhardt in Samois sur Seine and have been featured on NPR’s “All Things Considered.” The band’s signature style is marked by pristine and dexterous string work, colors of Bal Musette, the steady pulse of rhythm guitar and an unmistakable swing that delights audiences of all musical sensibilities.

Seattle Symphony musicians Rachel Swerdlow (viola), Walter Gray (cello), and colleagues present a captivating program, connecting audiences to the historic roots of chamber music.

The Fulton Street Chamber Players are an ensemble of dedicated chamber musicians in the Seattle area supplemented with fantastic colleagues from around the country. Founded in 2015 by Seattle Symphony members Rachel Swerdlow and Walter Gray, their performances have been enjoyed throughout the Northwest. The FSCP performs in house concerts and eclectic venues that brings our audiences closer to the historic roots of chamber music.

Three-time Latin Grammy nominee Jovino Santos Neto (piano, flute) performs with Jeff Busch (drums), Tim Carey (bass), Ben Thomas (vibraphone), and Mark Ivester (percussion) in a joyful celebration of Brazilian music.