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Kellin Hanas
Hailed in the International Trumpet Guild Journal as “one of the best up and coming jazz musicians on the globe”, 21 year old trumpeter, composer and comedian Kellin Hanas of Wheaton, Illinois is a Jazz Trumpet BM student at the Manhattan School of Music in New York City, studying under legendary trumpeters Ingrid Jensen and Scott Wendholt. Currently, Hanas splits her time between being a full-time student, performing artist and educator in New York City, touring with celebrities such as Emmy® and Golden Globe® Award Winning Actor Darren Criss, 11x GRAMMY Award winning vocal group The Manhattan Transfer, and fashion designer and actor Isaac Mizrahi. She is the leader of her own band, the Kellin Hanas Quintet, which debuted for the first time in the Summer of 2022 in the upstairs of the iconic Birdland Jazz Club in NYC. Alongside her music, Hanas adds a unique touch of comedy into her shows, and has amassed millions of views for her original comedic content, stories and characters. She has worked with venues such as Carnegie Hall and Jazz at Lincoln Center, and has worked with jazz greats such as Sean Jones, Wycliffe Gordon, and Christian McBride. She also is a regular member of the Grace Fox Big Band, and was a featured soloist on the band's debut album "Eleven-O-Seven".
In December of 2023, Hanas will make her Carnegie Hall debut in an All-Star Big Band led by Sean Jones alongside Dee Dee Bridgewater. She has been touring with the DIVA Jazz Orchestra, as well as joining them for their 4 night 30th anniversary run at Dizzy's Club in NYC. Hanas was also selected by JAS Aspen in 2022 to spend two weeks all expenses paid in Aspen, Colorado studying with legendary bassist Christian McBride. Hanas was a two-time member of various national honor ensembles, including Carnegie Hall's NYO Jazz Band, Monterey Jazz Festival's Next Generation Jazz Orchestra and Women in Jazz Combo, and the Jazz Band of America, as well as an alumnus of the highly selective Vail Jazz Workshop. She also is the recipient of a DownBeat Magazine Student Improviser Award. Through social media, Hanas has amassed a following of over 200,000. She hopes to use her platforms to inspire, connect with others and spread joy.
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Introducing Trumpeter Kellin Hanas
by Sanford Josephson
This article previously appeared in Jersey Jazz Magazine. As a four-year-old, growing up in Wheaton, IL, Kellin Hanas was a fan of the TV show, The Wiggles. “There were four Australian guys in colorful shirts, and they would sing songs," she recalled. “In one of their shows, they brought out this guy with a little trumpet. I guess, from watching that, I had a dream one night that I was playing trumpet on a stage, and I was ...
read moreDiva Jazz Orchestra: "30": Live at Dizzy's Club
by Jack Bowers
The “30" in the title of the superlative all-woman Diva Jazz Orchestra's latest album stands for 30 years, which, believe it or not, is how long the orchestra and its remarkable drummer and leader, Sherrie Maricle, have been up and running and making beautiful music at home and abroad. Among U.S.-based big bands, it would seem that only Count Basie, Duke Ellington and Woody Herman have had longer runs than that. Fast company indeed. So is Diva ready for comparisons? ...
read moreNYO Jazz: We're Still Here
by Jack Bowers
The “NYO" in NYO Jazz is shorthand for National Youth Orchestra, a marvelous concept that should be cloned and shipped to as many cities, towns and villages as possible. NYO, comprising carefully chosen musicians, ages 16 to 19, from across the U.S.A. is based at Carnegie Hall's Weill Music Institute in New York City, and We're Still Here marks its first full-length recording. The NYO's artistic director is trumpeter, composer and educator Sean Jones who is featured ...
read moreGrace Fox Big Band: Eleven O'Seven
by Jack Bowers
In the long history of jazz, it is rare for a teenage musician to establish a big band, let alone lead one. In fact (historians will have to verify this), it may never have happened. One thing is certain—no teenage woman has ever formed a big band and become its leader. Until now. Meet trumpeter Grace Fox, a nineteen-year-old student at the Manhattan School of Music, founder and leader of the seventeen-member, all-female Grace Fox Big Band, which has recorded ...
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