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.