I first learned of the extraordinary pianist, accordionist and composer Ben Rosenblum from the late Frank Kimbrough who was one of his mentors at Juilliard. I was lucky enough to work with Ben on Kites & Strings, the acclaimed 2020 debut of his band Nebula Project. The group’s wide-ranging follow-up, A Thousand Pebbles, is out February 10, 2023 via One Trick Dog. Album Release Concert March 2, 2023 at Smalls, NYC

Built upon Rosenblum’s working trio with bassist Marty Jaffe and drummer Ben Zweig, Nebula Project features a brilliant constellation of improvisers who are also esteemed band leaders, composers and educators: trumpeter Wayne Tucker, guitarist Rafael Rosa, and reed expert Jasper Dutz, along with new addition Xavier Del Castillo on tenor sax and flute.