Doors 3pm
Show 4pm
First meetings rarely play out in public, but they will at this unique show. Nice To Meet You brings together two world-class musicians who have never played together and puts them in front of an audience that can watch in wonder as they navigate this new musical relationship in real time.
1st Set: Nice to Meet You! Trombonist Mariel Bildsten (USA) meets guitarist Ray Walker (WA)
In this performance, New York City based trombonist Mariel Bildsten and Perth’s legendary guitarist Ray Walker will take to the stage under these unique circumstances. Will these two hit it off and swing their way into your hearts? No-one will know until they hit the stage of the atmospheric and intimate Ellington Jazz Club.
2nd Set: Nice to Meet You! Saxophonist Sarah Hanahan (USA) meets Pianist Tal Cohen (WA)
In this performance, New York City – based alto saxophonist Sarah Hanahan will meet Miami-based pianist Tal Cohen. Will these two powerhouse players create musical fireworks, or slip into subtle, sonoric serenity? No-one will know until they hit the stage of the atmospheric and intimate Ellington Jazz Club.
You could be among the only people to witness these premiere performances. Because there can never be another first time!
Sarah Hanahan
Sarah Hanahan is an up-and-coming jazz alto saxophonist based in New York. Sarah is a graduate of the Jackie McLean Institute of Jazz at the Hartt School of Music where she received her bachelor’s degree in 2019, as well as the Juilliard School where she received her master’s degree in 2022. She has had the privilege of studying with well-known musicians Abraham Burton, Nat Reeves, Steve Davis, Billy Drummond and Marc Cary. Recently, Sarah has worked with many renowned musicians including Jeff “Tain” Watts, Nat Reeves, Peter Martin, Emmet Cohen, Steve Davis, Dee Dee Bridgewater and many others. Sarah tours the US and internationally with her own band and plays regularly in renowned venues around New York such as Dizzy’s, Smoke Jazz Club, Smalls and more. Sarah has toured with Joe Farnsworth, Peter Martin, Ulysses Owens Jr. and Generation Y, Sherrie Miracle and the Diva Orchestra, and the Grammy Award–winning Mingus Big Band. Sarah was recently featured in the first-ever class of NPR Jazz Night in America’s Youngbloods alongside Samara Joy, Immanuel Wilkins, Isaiah J. Thompson and Sean Mason. The series features “five up-and-coming jazz geniuses who are revolutionising their genre” – all under the age of 30. A generational talent on the rise, Sarah’s debut album, Among Giants, is out now on all platforms.
Tal Cohen
Tal Cohen is an Israeli jazz piano player (now based in the US) infusing jazz and traditional Jewish music. In recent years, Tal was featured on a three Grammy–winning album as well as touring extensively around the world. After studying at WAAPA, Cohen took his master’s at the Frost School of Music in Miami, during which time he won the Barry Harris National Piano Competition held at the Detroit Jazz festival in 2014; the following year he was the winner of the 2015 Freedman Fellowship, performing to a sold-out crowd at the Sydney Opera House. In 2017, Tal again performed at the Sydney Opera House, and the concert was televised nationally and received over a million views on different online platforms. That year he released his album Gentle Giants, featuring jazz legends Robert Hurst and Greg Osby and receiving overwhelming reviews as well as 4 stars from the acclaimed DownBeat magazine. Tal has been playing many jazz festivals and clubs around the world with the Greg Osby Quartet as well as Terence Blanchard, Randy Brecker, Joe Lovano among others. With his own group Tal has had the pleasure of playing the Detroit Jazz Festival, Melbourne International Jazz Festival, Reno Jazz Festival, Miami Jazz Festival, Guatemala Jazz Festival and many more. In 2022, he released The Art of Duo Vol. 1 with trumpeter John Daversa.
Mariel Bildsten
DownBeat magazine calls New York–based jazz trombonist Mariel Bildsten “irrepressibly spontaneous”. Bildsten has earned global distinction through her performances with Jon Batiste, Roy Hargrove, Jennifer Hudson, Dee Dee Bridgewater and the Mingus Big Band at venues such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Radio City Music Hall, the Newport Jazz Festival and the Apollo Theater. Her lyrical and swinging style has thrilled audiences around the world. Mariel Bildsten’s band has performed for sold-out crowds at Jazz at Lincoln Center, Times Square, the Bickford Theatre and the Caramoor Jazz Festival. She is featured in a monthly residency at the Django Jazz Club in New York and released an album Steppin’ Out! in August 2023, the follow-up to her 2020 debut Backbone. Along with the Perth International Jazz Festival, this year Mariel Bildsten’s band has performed at the Montreal Jazz Festival and the Tilles Center Jazz Festival, among other prestigious venues.
Ray Walker
With a career spanning more than 50 years in the industry, Ray is one of Western Australia’s leading professional guitarists. A versatile and accomplished player across many styles, Ray has performed in duo format with many world class guitarists including Martin Taylor, Peter Leitch, Gary Potter, John Pisano, and the late Emily Remler. A veteran of thousands of recording sessions for radio and TV, Ray has also appeared with the WA Symphony Orchestra in numerous concerts since 1965, including a performance as soloist on classical guitar in Rodrigo’s ‘Concierto de Aranjuez’. In 2000 he recorded his own CD ‘Affinity’ in Los Angeles with well-known American guitarist John Pisano.
