Sejin Bae: Direction

Antonio Fusco: Mentioned in the new edition of the New Italian Jazz Dictionary written by Flavio Caprera by Feltrinelli publisher (2014), A.Fusco is credited on over 50 albums as sideman, leader and co-leader. In 2011 has being collaborating with the Italian avant-garde trumpeter Giovanni Falzone’s playing with his Around Ornette 5et (winner of the 2011 contest as Best Album of the Year) and the G.Falzone Contemporary Orchestra's, recording the album “Led Zeppelin Suite”. His press review consists of articles, interviews and reviews on magazines, newspapers and e-zines of high European profile, such as Jazzit Magazine, Musica Jazz, Batteria & Percussioni, Musicateneo, Senza Barcode, La Repubblica, Il Corriere della Sera, Jazz Espresso. He has also been frequently hosted by Radio Broadcastings like Radio Popolare, RADIO RAI 3 Piazza Verdi, JAZZ INSIDE. 2012 he joined the Tino Tracanna Acrobats 5et. The first album was scored the third place in the magazine Musica & Dischi as the best of 2013. In the 2016 the third place as best group of the year in the referendum launched by the national magazine MUSICA JAZZ. He played with Tim Berne, Paolo Fresu, Garrison Fewel, Nick Hampton, Tino Tracanna 5et, Francesco Bearzatti Tinissima, Yuhan Su, Reem Kelani, Henrik Jenesn FB13, Sejin Bae. Since 2017 August he is drums teacher at the Beijing Contemporary Music Academy and he was part as judge and drums teacher in several competitions around China such us the IPEA drums competition and masterclasses at the Shanghai Conservatory.

Chenhuai Wang is a double bass player featured on Simone Schirru’s Rooom, recorded in Beijing in 2019. Alongside acoustic bass, his contribution includes electronic treatments on Pencil, a piece dedicated to Bill Frisell.

Nathaniel Gao is a saxophonist and composer associated with Beijing’s jazz scene. His work includes modern jazz and improvisation in varied ensembles. He plays alto saxophone on three tracks of Simone Schirru’s Rooom, recorded in Beijing in 2019.

Sejin Bae: Korean based jazz pianist, composer and arranger who currently resides in Beijing, China. She received her master’s degree in jazz performance at Queens College, City University of New York and is currently leading her own group "Sejin Bae Quartet". She has performed around the world including countries such as the United States, Korea, Japan, and China with some the finest musicians.

Dave Brubeck (b Concord, CA, 6 Dec 1920; d Norwalk, 5 dec 2012). American jazz composer, pianist and bandleader. He received early training in classical music from his mother, a pianist, and by the age of 13 he was performing professionally with local jazz groups. He was a music major at the College of the Pacific in Stockton, California, studied compositon with Milhaud (1946) and, with fellow students, founded the experimental Jazz Workshop Ensemble, which recorded in 1949 as the Dave Brubeck Octet. Also in 1949, he organized the Dave Brubeck Trio. With the addition of the alto saxophonist Paul Desmond (1951), Brubeck thereafter led a quartet. In 1967 Brubeck disbanded, ostensibly to concentrate on composing, but he soon formed a new quartet that included Gerry Mulligan (until 1972).

The Brubeck quartet was immensely popular on college campuses in the 1950s; the album Jazz at Oberlin, recorded in concert at that college in 1953, contains some of Brubeck's and especially Desmond's finest improvisations. During the 1950s and 60s Brubeck began experimenting with time signatures unusual to jazz, such as 5/4, 9/8 and 11/4. By 1959 he had recorded the first jazz instrumental piece to sell a million copies – Paul Desmond's Take Five (in 5/4 metre), which was relased with his own Blue Rondo à la Turk (in 9/8, grouped 2+2+2+3).

Brubeck, who considers himself in essence ‘a composer who plays the piano’, has written and, in some instances, recorded several large-scale compositions since the 1960s, including ballets, a musical, oratorios, cantatas and works for jazz combo and orchestra. In the 1970s he organized several new quartets which at various times included one or more of his sons Darius (keyboards), Chris (bass guitar and bass trombone) and Danny (drums) and (in the 1980s and 90s) the clarinettist Bill Smith, from the 1940s octet. His many honours include the National Music Council's American Eagle Award (1988) and a Lifetime Achievement award (1996) from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.

Jimmy Van Heusen (1913-1990) was an American composer whose songs became standards of film and popular music. He collaborated extensively with lyricists Johnny Burke and Sammy Cahn, writing for performers including Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra. His work received four Academy Awards and an Emmy Award.

Sejin Bae is a Korean jazz pianist, composer and arranger. She earned a master’s degree in jazz performance at Queens College, City University of New York. Her debut album Direction includes five original compositions and arrangements of music by Jimmy Van Heusen and Dave Brubeck, performed with Nathaniel Gao, Chenhuai Wang and Antonio Fusco.