Performance at the Veblen Birthday Bash--Saturday, July 25

The Sustainable Jazz Duo will perform July 25 (raindate July 26) outdoors at Herrontown Woods as part of an annual celebration of the birthdays of Oswald and Elizabeth Veblen, original donors of the first nature preserve in Princeton. The event runs from 4-8pm. Our all-original jazz and latin, featuring Steve Hiltner on sax/clarinet and the totally orrsome Phil Orr on keyboards, will commence at 5pm. Bring a picnic if you want, and enjoy the tranquil Veblen House grounds. Park at 600 Snowden Lane or 452 Herrontown Road in Princeton, NJ. 

This year's celebration is extra special because it includes the unveiling of the extraordinary Hope's Community Collage, which turns the community's love for Herrontown Woods into a work of collective art.

More info below, from the website of the event's sponsor, the Friends of Herrontown Woods.

"Three years in the making, the opening celebration of Hope’s Community Collage is a thank you to all the artists — visitors, long-time devotees, and workshop attendees alike — who contributed their unique creative pieces to become one community artwork. The collage began as Hope’s project to support the Veblen House renovation and has grown into a shared expression of this community’s creativity. The waterproof piece will be on display on the Veblen House “Outside Gallery” walls for all to admire that pass through our woods. Join us for refreshments, live music, and the chance to make old and new friends. Everyone is welcome — bring the whole family. Thank you for being part of the FOHW community. Rain date: July 26, 2026."

A Recording Session with Francophone Vocalist Eva Madeleine Martin

It was a joy to record recently with francophone vocalist Eva Madeleine Martin, who has been developing her vocal talents and repertoire with notable vocal mentor Trineice Robinson and our Sustainable Jazz pianist Phil Orr.

We recorded arrangements of Oui, Oui, Oui, Oui, LOVE, Le Petite Fleur, If I Were a Bell, and a couple others, with lyrics in French or english or both. Something about Eva's singing just makes me feel happy. 

California Tour--June, 2026

I began composing in 1983 after joining a composers' workshop in Ann Arbor, MI that evolved into the Lunar Octet. The group, whose all-original repertoire overlaps with that of Sustainable Jazz, still performs, most recently during a ten-day tour in the Bay area of California.

We performed at Mr. Tipples Jazz Club in downtown San Francisco, at the SacYard in Sacramento, and other venues in the area. For these tours, there's a convergence of the core group--conguero Aron Kaufman from Ann Arbor, bassist Jeff Dalton from the Florida Keys, myself from NJ, and drummer/host Jon Krosnick--joined by top-notch players from the Bay area. 

For this tour we were joined by saxophonist Tod Dickow, trumpeter Chris Aschman, and pianist Greg Sankovich. Guitarist Barry Finnerty, who has recorded with Miles Davis and other greats, joined us for a gig.

Our 2025 tour yielded a live recording planned for release later this year. The Lunar Octet website documents 43 years of all-original music making.