Jazz Nights: Nancy Reed Group

Vocalist and bassist Nancy Reed was born in Brooklyn to Marcus Wilbun, a jazz and classical pianist who sat in at the historic Minton's jam sessions in Harlem in the 1940s. Lillie Wilbun, who sang opera.

Nancy has performed for the last thirty-five years in various settings. Artistically consistent and always the consummate professional, Nancy has performed in Japan with the Nancy Reed Jazz Show, Mexico's Cancun Jazz Festival with the Nancy and Spencer Reed Sextet, has over thirty annual appearances at the Delaware Water Gap Celebration of the Arts Jazz Festival and performed at countless private and club engagements in northeast Pennsylvania where she resides.

Ms. Reed's most adventurous project is the recording Neighbors, a collaboration with renowned saxophonist David Liebman. This critically acclaimed album features Phil Markowitz on piano, drummer Bill Goodwin, and bassist Steve Gilmore (the latter two from the Phil Woods Quartet).

Nancy is honored to have a long-time association with pianist John Coates. Their collaboration resulted in recording John Coates, Jr. and Nancy Reed at the Deer Head Inn on Vectordisc Records.

Skip Wilkins is an American jazz pianist who splits his time between Eastern Pennsylvania and Central Europe. While in the U.S., he makes his home in Delaware Water Gap, living at the famous jazz club Deer Head Inn. In his adopted hometown Skip is a regular presence in the club and at the annual COTA Festival of the Arts.

For many years, Skip has maintained an active international career as a pianist, composer, vocalist, workshop presenter, jazz choral director, and college professor. He has many CD releases, including multiple international recordings, and has enjoyed performances with many international luminaries. He often performed with Phil Woods and is a featured soloist on Phil's final big band release, New Celebration. He and Phil were neighbors in the Gap. Wherever he has lived, he has performed and collaborated with top stars whenever they came to town – Phil Woods, David Liebman, Plas Johnson, Mark Murphy, Clark Terry, David Sánchez, Stanley Turrentine, Bobby Watson, Bob Dorough, Conte Candoli, Peter Erskine and Zuzana Lapčíková, among so many others.

A seasoned creative and working musician, Ian Froman moved to the US from  Ottawa, Canada, where he began playing drums in his early teens, to  study Jazz Performance, first at Berklee College of Music (B.M., 1984;  selected to attend the Atlantic Center for the Arts in Florida to study  with Elvin Jones), and then with Miroslav Vitous at the New England  Conservatory (M.M., 1986). Ian is a faculty member at Berklee College of Music, Drummers  Collective, New School University and City College of New York. Ian  lives in New York City, where he has performed and recorded with many of  the city ‘s top artists. His extensive touring in North America,  Europe, and Asia has included club, concert, and festival appearances,  as well as television and radio broadcasts with such artists as: John  Abercrombie, Jerry Bergonzi, Michael Brecker, Gary Burton, Marc Copland,  Garry Dial, Mathew Garrison, George Garzone, Larry Goldings, Mick  Goodrick, Larry Grenadier, Tim Hagans, Craig Handy, John Hart, Kevin  Hayes, Dave Holland, Dave Liebman, Rick Margitza, Cecil McBee, Ron  McClure, Ben Monder, George Mraz, Mike Stern, John Taylor, Mirosolav  Vitous, and Kenny Wheeler. He has received two Canadian Juno Awards  (1998, 1999), two Jazz Report Magazine awards (1998, 1999), and a West  Coast Music Award (1998) for his work with the Canadian group Metalwood.