Trumpeter, composer, arranger and conductor Hank Mautner has been a fixture of the Cincinnati music scene for almost 30 years. He joined the Blue Wisp Big Band a decade ago upon Jerry Conrad’s retirement, and performs regularly with Pat Kelly’s Psychoacoustic Orchestra, Carmen DeLeone’s Studio Big Band, Bill Gemmer’s Royal Palm Orchestra, the RL Big […]
Larry Dickson, Professor Emeritus at Northern Kentucky University where he taught for 30 years, has maintained a second career as a professional saxophonist, composer and arranger, performing extensively throughout the Midwest since 1960. Larry has played baritone saxophone with the Woody Herman Band, Frank Sinatra’s New York Orchestra and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. He has […]
Dominic Marino is an award-winning trombonist, composer, arranger, sound engineer, and music producer. Dominic has studied at the University of North Texas, DePaul University (B.M. Jazz Studies), and the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (M.M. Jazz Studies). He has performed across the country and around the world. As a professional freelance trombonist, Dominic has […]
Jeff Folkens studied trumpet with Bill Adam, Carmine Caruso, and Frank Brown. He earned a Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Cincinnati College—Conservatory of Music and holds a Master of Arts in Education from the College of Mount Saint Joseph. For the past three decades he has taught many beginning band students in […]
Pianist Steve Schmidt was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio. He took two years of basic piano lessons in grade school, but spent more time playing baseball and basketball. It was an attraction to guitar—to blues and blues-oriented rock bands—that really drew Steve toward music. Throughout high school, he spent much of his free time […]
Born and raised in Cincinnati, Herb Aronoff has been a professional musician in the local scene for more than 50 years. After receiving an undergraduate degree from the Berklee College of Music in Boston, he completed graduate studies at the University of Cincinnati College–Conservatory of Music. An expert doubler, Herb has performed in a number […]
Kim Pensyl is a prolific jazz recording artist, composer, and arranger who was twice named one of Billboard’s Top 20 Contemporary Jazz Artists of the Year. A pianist and trumpeter, he has had four Top 10 albums on Billboard’s Contemporary Jazz chart. He has recorded with jazz legends such as Toots Thielemans, and modern greats […]
Lead alto saxophonist Mike Andres is a founding member of the Blue Wisp Big Band. A Cincinnati native, he was for many years the principal saxophonist with the Cincinnati Symphony and Pops, and is featured as the clarinet soloist on their recording of Rhapsody in Blue with Erich Kunzel and William Tritt. Mike was a […]
Michael Sharfe has been a longtime staple in the Tri-State recording and jazz scene. He is a founding and current member of the Blue Wisp Big Band and has performed with the Psychoacoustic Orchestra and Latin X-posure, a 16-piece Latin Jazz ensemble. Michael makes regular appearances at Tri-state jazz clubs, including the world-famous Jazz Kitchen […]
John Von Ohlen, born May 13th, 1941 in Indianapolis, IN, is a jazz drummer, bandleader, and recording artist. Widely known as having been the drummer for Woody Herman in 1967 and 1969, then with Stan Kenton from 1970 to 1972, he began his musical journey as young boy, taking classical piano lessons. A few years […]