The Artists' Quarter's hottest night opens with an exciting band featuring Zach W. Schmidt, Cory J. Wong, Cassie Meyer, Jose Pena and Dan M. Musselman starting at 7:00 P.M. These young, talented musicians provide the perfect prelude to the AQ's longest standing engagement. Check this recent video

Then, for the main event sample some 'organic cookin' with the Tuesday Night Band. Hammond B-3 organ lovers have been flocking to the AQ on Tuesday nights for over a decade to get a soulful dose of funky jazz.   The Tuesday Night Band features "Downtown" Bill Brown (Hammond B-3), Billy Franze (guitar), and Kenny Horst (drums) + guests!  Anything can happen - and frequently does.  Check out these videos:  "Soulful Drums" www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGnLyYYPspE  and  "Rock Candy":   www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcoIeG7RkAM  - then come on down and join the fun. It's nothing but a party every Tuesday night. There's no stopping the groove.

 An early set at 7 p.m. features "The Tesfa Quintet" with Dejen Tesfagiorgis on Saxophones, Adam Meckler on Trumpet, Jesse Mueller on Piano, Adam Tucker on Bass, and Jaky Nyberg on Drums.

The Atlantis Quartet features Brandon Wozniak on Tenor Saxophone, Zacc Harris on Guitar, Chris Bates on Bass, and Pete Hennig - Drums. Atlantis Quartet formed in October 2006 and has become one of the Twin Cities' premier voices in modern creative jazz. Dwight Hobbes of Pulse of the Twin Cities credits Atlantis Quartet with "strong compositions and insanely serious chops" - Jazz ImprovMagazine calls the Atlantis Quartet: "highly skilled musicians who have invested themselves heavily to develop their individual approaches...together, they sound genuinely inspired."

There will be an early show at 7 with the Alternates, an amalgam of talented high school jazz musicians from the Twin Cities.  They all have rich musical backgrounds and are prime players in their age group.  Their set includes tasty originals, fresh arrangements, and standards played from the perspective of the next generation. The players: Caleb McMahon (Perpich Center for Arts Education), trumpet; Peter Nyberg (St Paul Central HS), sax; Chris Misa (Perpich Center for Arts Education), piano; Cory Grindberg (Minneapolis South HS), bass; and Rob Fletcher (Eden Prairie HS), drums.

Pianist Phil Aaron is a beloved musician at the core of the Twin Cities jazz scene. Drawing inspiration from Bill Evans, Cedar Walton, Tommy Flanagan, Keith Jarrett, and many others, he has built a deep repertoire of original & classic jazz tunes that highlight a swinging approach to jazz classics and standards.  Phil Aaron attended the Berklee School of Music and the University of Illinois. Aaron served as music director in the dance department at UCLA and also taught music at Santa Monica College. He is a preferred pianist among vocalists and national touring acts, including Frank Morgan, Byron Stripling, Bob Sheppard, Lee Konitz, Sammy Davis Jr., John Patitucci, Scott Colley, Jeff Clayton, Ray Drummond, Barbara Morrison and Jackie Allen. Phil has five CD releases as leader. Check out this video of Phil from April 2007: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zm7pNdIFl1o

The Phil Hey Quartet was originally assembled around the year 2000 when Artists' Quarter owner (and fellow drummer) Kenny Horst suggested to Hey that the four jazz veterans perform a "one off" gig.  Needing to print the AQ's monthly calendar, Horst listed the band as the Phil Hey Quartet.  Finding that they shared a chemistry and love for the hard bop material, the PHQ dug in with monthly AQ gigs and regular rehearsals to hone their unique sound.  Performing a songbook usually driven by a horn player, the PHQ features piano (Aaron) and vibes (Hagedorn) on the lead lines with the equally expressive rhythm section of Tom Lewis (bass) and Phil Hey (drums).  Whether by virtue of the band's "assigned" name or otherwise, Hey took on the role of leader.  Phil is quick to point out, however, that "this is a real band.  Everyone in the group is a band leader in his own right and we have really come together as an ensemble." 

Now the Phil Hey Quartet has been an Artists' Quarter favorite for the past 8 years. No surprise really.  This is a no-nonsense, uncompromising band of local jazz greats regularly performing the tunes of Kenny Wheeler, Bobby Hutcherson, John Coltrane, and Wayne Shorter and others.  Over the years they have attracted a loyal following of hardcore jazz fans and students who show up on the monthly Thursday night when they perform. Check out these videos clips from recent AQ performances:  "Mahjong" www.youtube.com/watch?v=g33htn0TNvc
and  "Equinox" 11/13/08 www.youtube.com/watch?v=3TUnRvRwMMw