Jakob Dreyer was born and raised in Germany. While he started on the piano, at 14 he began playing the bass. “Musicians always needed someone to play a bass and there was a real need for it. I found it to be fun to play and grew to love it over time.” While he enjoyed listening to rock guitarists including Jimi Hendrix and blues artists, switching to bass resulted in him associating with jazz musicians. “I spent a lot of time with jazz players because they had much more knowledge about how to play their instruments. It was natural that I moved in that direction and the music gave me the freedom that I wanted.”

Dreyer started off playing at school concerts and in bands with other young musicians. He had a few opportunities to record with Europeans including with altoist Andreas Bohlen for a quartet album made in Switzerland in 2012 and two recordings with guitarist Sebastian Bohlen. The bassist moved to the United States, settled in New York and was featured on two albums led by pianist Alessandro Fadini ("A Dark And Stormy Day" and "Simply Begin Again") for the Fresh Sound New Talent label. He has since worked as a freelance performer, an arranger, and a private instructor.

As with virtually all other musicians, the COVID pandemic resulted in him not being able to perform in clubs and concerts. He spent his time teaching, practicing, making videos, and composing music. “I have always written music whenever I had time. I am most inspired by Wayne Shorter, particularly the type of pieces that he wrote in the 1960s, and by the European music that I heard while growing up.” The two volumes of Songs, Hymns and Ballads, Jakob Dreyer’s recording debuts as a leader, came about when the bassist became determined to record some of the many songs that he has written but never documented.

“In New York, I have met many musicians. I particularly love the playing of the great musicians who are on this recording. Each one has their own musical personality. They learned my songs very quickly and recorded all of the music for the two CDs in just two days.”

Tenor-saxophonist Jason Rigby has his own sound and the ability to play both chordal-based jazz and in freer settings. He has led albums for Fresh Sound ("Translucent Space," "The Sage," and "One") and has headed several groups of creative artists. Pianist Jon Cowherd, who also started out playing trumpet, French horn, and violin, co-founded the Brian Blade Fellowship, has worked as a record producer, led albums (Mercy and Gateway), and worked with everyone from George Gee’s swing band to Cassandra Wilson and Lizz Wright. Drummer Jimmy MacBride has an extensive resume which includes recordings with Roxy Coss, Chad Lefkowitz-Brown, Nick Finzer, and Lucas Pino’s No Net Nonet [...]

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