John Hench

John Hench is an upright bassist and occasional pianist living and working in the Bay Area. His musical education began as a child in a musical family - first on piano, then on trombone, and then on the bass. As a student at UC Berkeley in the 1980s, he sang bass in the university Jazz Choir and was a bassist in a Jazz quartet that played at a number of local venues, including Ruthie's Inn, or as backup musicians for the Motown musical covers band, the Vosonics.

It was at graduate school in Santa Barbara when John made the switch from electric to upright bass, studying briefly with now Seattle-based Jazz artist Chris Symer. He was a founding member of the Avant-Gardeners, which featured Nate Birkey on Trumpet. Presently, he can be found performing with various groups in the South Bay and Santa Cruz area, including Bossa Classique, with singer Corinna Girard. 

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