Artist Biographies

CJSS 2024 Honoree Regina Carter

Trying to fit Regina Carter into a neatly defined musical category is pointless. She enjoys performing many styles of music—jazz, R&B, Latin, classical, blues, country, pop, African, and on and on. In each she explores the power of music through the voice of the violin.

A recipient of the MacArthur “genius” award and a Doris Duke Artist Award, Regina has been widely hailed for her mastery of her instrument and her drive to expand its possibilities. She has been nominated three times for the GRAMMY award’s Best Improvised Jazz Solo.

Regina is on the faculty of the Manhattan School of Music, and past positions have included artist in residence at the Oakland University School of Music, Theatre, and Dance; resident artist for San Francisco Performances; and resident artistic director for SFJAZZ.

A winner of multiple readers’ and critics’ poll awards from DownBeat, JazzTimes, and other publications, Regina tours with her own group and has appeared frequently as a guest soloist, including with such performers as Kenny Barron, the late bassist Ray Brown, Akua Dixon, Steve Turre, Stefon Harris, George Wein, Mary J. Blige, Joe Jackson, Billy Joel, Dolly Parton, Omara Portuondo, Cassandra Wilson, and Chieli Minucci and Special EFX.

Featured Performers

Dorothy Carlos is an experimental cellist and electronic musician working in improvised performance and multi-channel sound in New York City and Chicago. Her work utilizes randomized electronics and extended techniques to explore fragility and imaginaries. Dorothy is the current Alba Artist in Residence at Experimental Sound Studio Chicago.

DoYeon Kim is a traditionally trained Korean gayageum performer, who has developed a uniquely broad approach to music that incorporates Korean music, jazz, improvisation, and more, and is credited with introducing the gayageum to the improvisational music scene worldwide. DoYeon is the winner of numerous international competitions, including the Dong-A Ilbo Traditional Music Competition (Gold Prize, 2009) and the On-Nala Korean Music Competition (Gold Prize, 2011). She holds graduate degrees from the New England Conservatory of Music and Berklee’s Global Jazz Institute. Her first album, GaPi (2017), was nominated for a 2018 Korean Grammy Award in the crossover album category. More recently, DoYeon was an invited music director for Gyeonggi Sinawi Orchestra, a traditional music orchestra in Korea, was recognized by Grammy.com as one of the 7 Musicians Pushing Ancient Asian Instruments Into The Future (2021), and is performing projects at Roulette as a Van Lier Fellow (2023).

Master kora player Yacouba Sissoko devotes his musical gift to expand the awareness of West African history and culture, spread the word of peace, and empower his listeners to take charge and realize their imagined futures. His performances have a magical effect on audiences as he skillfully transforms traditional songs and stories that he learned from his forefathers into modern day messages of peace, love, and harmony. Yacouba continues to blend his virtuosity effortlessly with other musical styles, whether in Indian ragas or Appalachian tunes. Currently, Yacouba can be seen performing regularly with Regina Carter and his own band, SIYA.

Joanna Mattrey is a violist and composer working in free improvisation, new music, and classical music. She uses extended techniques, modern compositional approaches, and electronic alterations to challenge the conventions of the viola. Joanna creates an embodied performance practice centered on ceremony and ritual. Recent solo works include, 'Soulcaster' (Notice Recordings 2023), ‘Dirge’ (Dear Life Recs 2021), 'Veiled’ (Relative Pitch Records, 2020). Residencies include Roulette, ISSUE Project Room, Banff's Creative Gesture, 14th Street Y, Wild Project, and MoMa PS1's ALLGOLD. Mattrey has performed with icons Tyshawn Sorey, Henry Threadgill, Marc Ribot, John Zorn, Billy Martin, Elliott Sharpe, Miya Masaoka, Crash Ensemble, and the International Contemporary Ensemble.

Janel Leppin is a picture of versatility. Not only has she been a pillar of Washington, D.C.’s creative music community for the last 20 years, but the cellist, composer, arranger, and singer has made significant marks in other scenes as well. She’s contributed cello arrangements to the Messthetics, played with punk outfit Priests, and records art-pop under the Mellow Diamond moniker. Leppin leans into a jazz-centric vision on the majestic and occasionally abrasive Ensemble Volcanic Ash, which affirms her place as a boundless musician who constantly leaves the listener intrigued. It’s a puzzle in which jazz, chamber musvic, contemporary classical, and punk seamlessly coalesce with bracing results. - Jazz Times

2021 MPower Grant Recipient and 2021TedX speaker Leslie DeShazor was named one of thirty Professional Movers and Shakers in the Performing Arts by Musical America in 2019. Violist, violinist, composer and arranger Leslie DeShazor is in demand as a soloist, teacher, clinician and recording artist. Though classically trained, Mrs. DeShazor is a talented and diverse musician. She is currently on tour with the award winning musical Hamilton on viola and violin. As a soloist she has performed with the Toledo Symphony and as a freelance artists she performs and has performed with The Sphinx Symphony Orchestra, Michigan Opera Theatre Orchestra, Michigan Sinfonietta, CutTime Simfonica, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Gateways Festival Orchestra, Flint Symphony, The River Raisin Ragtime Revue and Ann Arbor Symphony as well as jazz ensembles, Straight Ahead, the Detroit-based, Musique Noire and Straight Ahead. She has performed and recorded with international, Grammy award winning R&B stars, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson, and Aretha Franklin and Grammy award winning gospel artists Fred Hammond, Michael W. Smith and Donnie McClurkin. She has also had the pleasure of performing with jazz greats such as Roy Hargrove, Steve Wilson, Pat Metheny, Sheila Jordan, Diane Schuur, Regina Carter, Xavier Davis and Marcus Belgrave. In recent years Leslie has branched out as a solo artist and recorded her own project of original music called“Journey With Me”. With her band she has headlined festivals and jazz venues like the Detroit Jazz Festival, the Dirty Dog Jazz Cafe and Cliff Bells. An experienced instructor, she currently teaches students of Detroit with instructional music programs offered through the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Sphinx Organization and her own private studio. As a touring artists she also offers educational clinics and workshops. A native of Michigan, Mrs. DeShazor holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan.

Cellist and composer Tomeka Reid has emerged as one of the most original, versatile, and curious musicians in Chicago’s bustling jazz and improvised music community. A 2022 MacArthur and Herb Alpert awardee, 2021 USA Fellow, 2019 Foundation of the Arts and 2016 3Arts recipient, Reid received her doctorate in music from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign in 2017. From 2019-2021 Tomeka Reid received a teaching appointment at Mills College as the Darius Milhaud chair in composition.