Hailing from Hollywood, Florida, James Suter is an accomplished and in-°©‐demand jazz bassist and composer. He graduated from the University of Miami in 2013, where he was selected to take part in the first Stamps Jazz Quintet, members of which received full scholarships. Since graduaIng, Suter resides in Miami, where he performs frequently with jazz groups and musical theater producIons. In 2012, Suter was a finalist in the InternatIonal Society of Bassists Jazz Solo Competition, and in 2014 he was awarded third prize in the InternaIonal Bass Convention Jazz Competition.
A uniquely gifted musician, Ariel Pocock’s talents have already earned her international recognition at the age of 22. A polished and virtuosic jazz pianist, Pocock is an equally compelling vocalist, drawing in audiences with her beautiful compositions and her interesting and fresh arrangements of standards and pop material. Pocock has headlined at venues across the States and abroad, including festivals such as the Montreal Jazz Festival, the Quebec Summer Festival, the Iowa City Jazz Festival, the Twin Cities Jazz Festival, the Elkhart Jazz Festival, the 2014 Jazz Cruise, Ronnie Scott’s London Jazz Club, the Stanford Jazz Festival, the Bellevue Jazz Festival, and at the Kobe-Seattle International Jazz Voice Competition, of which she was the first-prize winner.
Her debut album, Touchstone, will be released on Justin Time Records in the United States this fall. Consisting of fresh and innovative arrangements featuring her “sinewy jazz piano and breezy, achingly plain-spoken vocal chops” (Paul DeBarros, Seattle Times) and an all-star band, featuring Larry Grenadier, bass, and drummer Eric Harland. Brilliant young guitarist Julian Lage is also featured on several duets, as well as innovative saxophonist Seamus Blake. “Though Pocock sings and plays traditional jazz repertoire — “Devil May Care,” “All the Things You Are,” “When I Fall in Love” — she is careful to honor more recent work as well… A for-real jazz player, Pocock evokes the mysterious mixology of Thelonious Monk, the clear springs of Keith Jarrett, and Bill Evans’ oceanic yearning…The public will definitely want to hear Ariel Pocock” (Seattle Times). “Touchstone” introduces Pocock as an equally capable vocalist and pianist.
A uniquely gifted musician, Ariel Pocock’s talents have already earned her international recognition at the age of 22. A polished and virtuosic jazz pianist, Pocock is an equally compelling vocalist, drawing in audiences with her beautiful compositions and her interesting and fresh arrangements of standards and pop material. Pocock has headlined at venues across the States and abroad, including festivals such as the Montreal Jazz Festival, the Quebec Summer Festival, the Iowa City Jazz Festival, the Twin Cities Jazz Festival, the Elkhart Jazz Festival, the 2014 Jazz Cruise, Ronnie Scott’s London Jazz Club, the Stanford Jazz Festival, the Bellevue Jazz Festival, and at the Kobe-Seattle International Jazz Voice Competition, of which she was the first-prize winner.
Her debut album, Touchstone, will be released on Justin Time Records in the United States this fall. Consisting of fresh and innovative arrangements featuring her “sinewy jazz piano and breezy, achingly plain-spoken vocal chops” (Paul DeBarros, Seattle Times) and an all-star band, featuring Larry Grenadier, bass, and drummer Eric Harland. Brilliant young guitarist Julian Lage is also featured on several duets, as well as innovative saxophonist Seamus Blake. “Though Pocock sings and plays traditional jazz repertoire — “Devil May Care,” “All the Things You Are,” “When I Fall in Love” — she is careful to honor more recent work as well… A for-real jazz player, Pocock evokes the mysterious mixology of Thelonious Monk, the clear springs of Keith Jarrett, and Bill Evans’ oceanic yearning…The public will definitely want to hear Ariel Pocock” (Seattle Times). “Touchstone” introduces Pocock as an equally capable vocalist and pianist.