The London Chop House

PAUL KELLER TRIO
2022-06-02 18:30 - 21:30, 2022-02-03 18:30 - 21:30, 2021-06-24 18:30 - 21:30 (America/Detroit)
Paul is well known for his associations with pianist/vocalist Diana Krall and guitarist Russell
Malone. Paul has performed with jazz greats Joe Williams, Cab Calloway, Marian McPartland,
Barry Harris, Jeff Hamilton, Benny Golson, Benny Green, Jon Hendricks, Wycliff Gordon,
Mulgrew Miller, Jay McShann and James Moody. He has played on over 50 CDs with artists
such as Larry Vuckovich, Eddie Higgins, and Marcus Belgrave.
Paul was honored by the West Michigan Jazz Society as their 2001 Jazz Musician of the Year
and by the Detroit Music Awards as the 2002 Outstanding Jazz Instrumentalist. Keller is on the
faculty of the Wayne State University jazz department in Detroit. He travels frequently, giving
jazz concerts, workshops and clinics and is well-respected as an innovative and enthusiastic
jazz educator.

Djangophonique Duo
2022-06-01 18:30 - 21:30
Djangophonique is a musical project born out of reverence for the Parisian Jazz Manouche style that was made popular by the legendary Sinti guitarist Django Reinhardt and his Quintette du Hot Club de France. While remaining steeped in the rich and virtuosic tradition, the group brings this music into the present with stunning improv, spontaneity and musical interaction. Hot swing, lush ballads, musette waltzes, jazz standards, boleros, and moody minor pieces are all fused together with theatrical flair and musical humor.

TOM DENNIS
2022-04-05 19:00, 2021-05-17 18:30 - 21:30
Tom Dennis is a versatile jazz pianist whose style is defined by melodic solo lines and sophisticated reharmonizations of familiar melodies. His taste in composers ranges from Gershwin to Bacharach. Tom is Professor of Music at Oakland Community College, he currently performs as a solo pianist, a sideman to some of Detroit’s finest vocalists, and as the pianist in Detroit’s own traditional swing band, the Rhythm Society Orchestra.

CHRIS CODISH TRIO
2021-11-20 18:30 - 21:30

TOM DENNIS TRIO
2021-10-29 18:30 - 21:30

Djangophonique
2021-10-23 18:30 - 21:30

KRIS KURZAWA
2021-10-15 19:00
Kris Kurzawa’s versatility has led him to become one of the Detroit areas most in demand guitarists since the early 2000’s; crossing into multiple genres including jazz, fusion, world music and R+B. He released his first album ‘Sly’ in 2016 for which he received his fifth Detroit Music Award. He earned his masters degree in jazz studies from Wayne State University in 2012 and has recently began teaching jazz guitar at his alma mater.

LIZ SMITH TRIO
2021-10-09 18:30 - 21:30
Jazz vocalist Liz Smith has been an active member of the Detroit music scene for many years. Classically trained but always a true jazz head, she made her debut as a young adolescent, and worked her way through the clubs and bars throughout the metro area, finding her way into such venues as Baker’s Keyboard Lounge and Cliff Bell’s Jazz & Blues Club. Today she holds a regular standing with her trio every Thursday night at Goodnite Gracie Jazz & Martini Bar in Royal, and is a regular performer at The London Chophouse and Willis Show Bar in Detroit, Vinotecca Wine Bar in downtown Birmingham, Lily Pearl’s Lounge in Owosso, and many others. A 2018 Detroit Music Award nominee, her rich vocals bring an old-world feel; her sound often compared to that of the early American jazz icons of the thirties and forties.

BOB SCHNEEWEIS
2021-10-02 18:30 - 21:30
Bob Schneeweis, originally from the Twin Cities, MN, has been an active pianist, composer/arranger, and teacher for the past two decades. Prior to moving to Detroit in 2009, Bob worked foremost as pianist, composer/arranger, and music director for the popular Minneapolis-based Latin orchestra Salsabrosa, as well as writing for and performing with the much-lauded Atlantis Quartet (then Quintet). He also collaborated with a wide array of other groups, from hip hop and electronic music, to free improvisation and experimental music. In the Detroit area, Bob continues to be active as a jazz pianist, composer, and teacher, as well as a composer and performer of classical/new music.
In October 2017, Bob served as a performer, composer, and lead organizer for the powerful Bicentenary of the Birth of Baha’u’llah event at the Strand Theater in Pontiac, MI. Here, he coordinated a broad array of regional and national groups across many cultures and artistic traditions – including chamber and gospel choir, classical Indian dance, folk, Native American, and jazz music, as well as original theatrical monologues threading the program together. The process of organizing the program was fundamentally collaborative, seeking to engage the wider community in many aspects of the planning process, and involved the commission of 7 new works of music and dance (including one by Schneeweis), as well as a series of original theatrical interludes, all based on principles related to the oneness of humankind.
From 2017-2018, Bob contributed to the Soul Food series of concerts aimed at celebrating the true purpose of music as a means to empower and unite people. At these concerts – as well as at the Bicentenary of the Birth of Baha’u’llah – he performed original compositions and arrangements of his with a powerful all-star group including such great local players as Gayelynn McKinney, Marion Hayden, Pat Prouty, Miles Brown, Mark Stone, and Matt Dufresene. From this series was also born The Universal, which continues to perform in the Detroit Metro area.
In 2017, Bob was a winner of the Oakland Symphony Orchestra Concerto Competition, performing the first movement of Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G. He holds a Masters Degree from Oakland University in piano performance, and maintains his own private piano studio, teaching both jazz and classical piano performance, as well as composition, improvisation, and theory.

Djangophonique
2021-08-07 18:30 - 21:30

BILL HEID
2021-07-02 18:30
Born in Pittsburgh, keyboard/vocalist Bill Heid has performed throughout the U.S., Canada, South America, Europe, and
the Far East, including a three year stay in Japan and nearly two years in China. From 1965 through the mid-70’s, he
worked the Hammond B-3 organ “chitlin clubs” with his own groups and with jazz greats such as Sonny Stitt, David
“Fathead” Newman, Grachan Monchur, Mickey Roker, Joe Dukes, Roger Humphries, Rodney Whitaker, Robert Hurst,
Grant Green, Jimmy Ponder, Bruce Foreman, and Henry Johnson, appearing on two Johnson albums for MCA/Impulse.
From 1975 to 1984, based in Chicago, Bill toured with blues greats Jimmy Witherspoon, John Lee Hooker, Son Seals,
and Fenton Robinson, playing on two albums with Robinson, two with Ko Ko Taylor, and another with Roy Buchanan
for Alligator Records.
From 1984 through 1999, Heid lived and worked in Detroit, appearing on numerous records with Detroit blues artists
Johnnie Bassett, Joe Weaver, and Alberta Adams, which included sessions for Fedora, Cannonball, and Black Magic
Records, and two European tours. In 2000, he relocated to Washington D.C. and in 2002, his group toured Viet Nam,
Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Malaysia as Jazz Ambassadors for the U.S. State Department, returning to those countries for
an extended tour a year later, then backed vocalist Jay Klum on another Ambassadors tour to five African countries in
2004.
Between 1996 and 2003, Bill recorded five organ group CDs for the Savant label, a piano trio record for Doodlin’
Records, and in 2008 and 2009, two organ group CDs for Doodlin’, both featuring guitarist Peter Bernstein. His
keyboard work can also be heard on numerous European TV shows and in the U.S. on PBS documentaries and NBC’s
“Dateline” show.

Djangophonique w Leila Shaye
2021-05-29 18:30 - 21:30, 2021-05-14 18:30 - 21:30

CHRIS PLANSKER TRIO w/ ARDIS GRACE
2021-05-28 18:30 - 21:30, 2021-05-15 18:30 - 21:30

BOB SCHNEEWEIS w/ OLIVIA VAN GOOR
2021-05-22 18:30 - 21:30

DUNCAN McMILLAN
2021-05-03 18:30 - 21:30
Duncan Williamson McMillan began studying piano at age 5. His musical studies continued with Frederic Dehaven at Christ Church in Grosse Ponte, singing in the boys choir (1980-1987). From 1989-1992, Duncan studied jazz piano and music theory with James Hohmeyer, Bess Bonnier and Matt Michaels. Upon graduation from Western Michigan University in 1997 (B.M. piano/jazz studies), Duncan has established a reputation as a versatile musician, working with such diverse artists as Jon Hendricks, Aretha Franklin, Rodney Whitaker, Ira Sullivan, Marcus Belgrave, Eric Marienthal, Nelson Rangell, Chris Standring, and The Four Freshman. In demand as both a pianist and organist, he regularly performs in the Midwest region with bassist Paul Keller, vocalist Sarah D’Angelo, The Paul Keller Orchestra, and The Randy Napoleon Sextet. In addition, Mr. McMillan is a respected musical director/arranger for regional thea-ters, church organizations and local bands. His arrangements have been performed by The Detroit Symphony Orchestra, University of Michigan (Flint) Jazz Ensemble, Midland-Odessa Symphony Orchestra, Smithsonian Jazz Masterworks Jazz Orchestra, Flint Symphony Orchestra, Theatre Bizarre Orchestra, & The Planet D Nonet. More information is available through Musa Canta Music, a collaborative business venture with saxophonist/educator/arranger, Joshua James. www.musacantamusic.com Selected Discography:“Room with a View” – Duncan W. McMillan (2019)“My Blue Heaven” – The Paul Keller At Sundown Quintet (2017)“Brother, Brother” – Tom Douvan (2014)“This is what we do” – The R.J. Spangler Trio (2012)“At Sundown” – The Paul Keller Quartet (2012)“Your Soul” – The Ben Jansson Trio (2012)“The Jukebox Crowd” – Randy Napoleon Sextet (2012)”Organic Roots” – The Pete Siers Quartet (2009)”The Gentleman is back” – Johnnie Bassett & The Blues Insurgents (2009)”A week in the life of The Firefly Club” – Paul Keller Orchestra (2008)”The Easy Life” – The Odessa Harris Group (2003

CARMAN MILLER
2021-04-23 18:30 - 21:30

PAUL KELLER w/ DUNCAN MCMILLAN, PAUL KING
2021-03-25 18:30 - 21:30, 2021-03-11 18:30 - 21:30, 2021-02-11 18:30 - 21:30

Djangophonique Duo
2021-02-24 18:30 - 21:30
Djangophonique is a musical project born out of reverence for the Parisian Jazz Manouche style that was made popular by the legendary Sinti guitarist Django Reinhardt and his Quintette du Hot Club de France. While remaining steeped in the rich and virtuosic tradition, the group brings this music into the present with stunning improv, spontaneity and musical interaction. Hot swing, lush ballads, musette waltzes, jazz standards, boleros, and moody minor pieces are all fused together with theatrical flair and musical humor.
Born in a sandstone Victorian farmhouse that has been in his family since it was built four generations ago, Andrew Brown is the son of a Motown session musician and grew up listening to the sounds of his dad’s piano as he steeped in musical influences from Duke Ellington to Stevie Wonder. As a young man returning from a trip to New Orleans with a newfound interest in Swing music, he co-founded the eclectic americana group Appleseed Collective, with whom he has toured 150+ dates a year. Traveling all over the continental United States, playing esteemed venues and festivals such as The Ark, Sisters Folk Festival, Wheatland, Cervantes Ballroom, Summercamp Music Festival, Schuba’s, and The Ann Arbor Folk Festival at Hill Auditorium, he cut his teeth as a guitarist, songwriter and band leader. He has shared stages with Bela Fleck, Jacob Jolif Band, The Infamous Stringdusters, Ingrid Michaelson, Neko Case, Greensky Bluegrass and more.
Since slowing down his touring schedule in 2017 he began tirelessly practicing and performing the music of his favorite guitar player: Django Reinhardt. Since then he has studied at various music camps with many of the genres heavy hitting players such as Angelo Debarre, Sebastian Gineaux, and Gonzalo Bergara, and was even invited to back up Denis Chang at one of his concerts. Andrew currently plays throughout Michigan with his own project Djangophonique, his band Appleseed Collective, and his friends projects Third Coast Gypsy Jazz, Smoking Dandies. He also teaches guitar, both generally and specifically in the style of Django.
Andrew has acted as booking agent, promoter, publicist, band leader, musical director, song writer, tour manager, and basically every hat one can wear in a musical ensemble. Outside of music he has worked for an advertising agency, a vintage clothing store, a butcher, and custom software company. He has a passion for bringing joy to people through music, creating a connection with an audience, and teaching music.

PAUL KELLER w/ CARRY KOCHER, ADAM MOSLEY
2021-02-18 18:30 - 21:30

MICHAEL ZAPORSKI
2021-02-02 18:30 - 21:30
Michael Zaporski creates astonishing music that merges American jazz traditions with a West-African-influenced rhythmic dialogue. Serving as the pianist for the late Detroit saxophonist Sam Sanders, Zaporski traveled to West Africa, playing and teaching jazz through the U.S. State Department.
This long-time association lead to performances with such renowned jazz artists as Jackie McLean, Frank Foster, Art Blakey, Pharaoh Sanders, and Donald Byrd. Whether fronting his own group or playing with the Planet D. Nonet, Zaporski imbues every original composition and jazz-standard with a wealth of sophistication gained through these experiences.Through his own group, FutureVisions, Zaporski has garnered headlining performances at jazz festivals and colleges, and has released several recordings– including one for orchestra, chorus, and jazz quartet–to critical acclaim. Combining adrenaline-pumping energy levels with African rhythms and haunting melodies, Zaporski continues the pursuit of excellence and individuality that is the essence of the American jazz tradition.

SKY COVINGTON
2020-11-04 19:00
Native Detroiter and 7 time Detroit Music Award Recipient for “Outstanding Jazz Vocalist” Sky Covington is a singer/songwriter. Sky Covington has a rich, elegant tone and an easy vibrato – think Billie Holiday, as well as Abbey Lincoln and Sarah Vaughan – Covington’s best noted for her rendition of the Billie Holiday Tribute for 20 years. This sultry chanteuse makes everynote seem personal, and her phrasing is unique, and deep. Sky Covington is a traditional jazz vocalist, of yester-year.

Stefan Kukurugya
2020-10-25 18:30
Stefan is a versatile performer and vocalist as a solo artist or with a band and has a diverse repertoire including Jazz, Pop, R&B, and Classical. His vocal styles range from Jazz and Blues, R&B to Motown and other popular songs.

GYPSY CARAVAN
2020-10-01 18:30
Caravan Gypsy – is a fiery jazz, World, Gypsy music group that brings rich blend of these traditions together in a unique and eclectic mix. Caravan Gypsy has variety of lineups that involve world class musicians. From acoustic trio concept that creates intimate but electric vibe with two guitars and cajon to more straight ahead jazz trio exploring rich swing traditions.
