[miho Sasaki Trio] at Five Spot Jazz

Miho Sasaki
Miho Sasaki is a jazz pianist and educator based in New York. She was born in Japan and began playing the piano at five. She continued to study music throughout high school and eventually discovered jazz, enrolling in a jazz program for two years. Miho has performed in many venues and taught in Tokyo. In 2015, she was awarded a scholarship from the Rotary Foundation to study abroad, which led her to the State University of New York, Purchase College, Music Conservatory, Jazz Studies. During her third year in the program, she was selected to receive the prestigious James Moody Scholarship. In 2018, Miho led her trio on tour in Japan, and they won the silver medal at the "38th Asakusa Jazz Contest," a historical jazz competition in Tokyo. Two years later, in 2020, she released her first album, "From My Heart." Miho has also performed with the Ryan Hollander Trio at the Newport Jazz Festival in 2022 and started playing at Fork n' Film NYC as a residential artist in 2024. She has been featured in "Hot House Magazine". She has played in different bands as a sideman while leading her group at major jazz venues in New York City, such as Birdland, Maureen's Jazz Cellar, Knickerbocker, Ornithology Jazz Club, Django, Nublu, and more....

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Miho Sasaki
Miho Sasaki is a jazz pianist and educator based in New York. She was born in Japan and began playing the piano at five. She continued to study music throughout high school and eventually discovered jazz, enrolling in a jazz program for two years. Miho has performed in many venues and taught in Tokyo. In 2015, she was awarded a scholarship from the Rotary Foundation to study abroad, which led her to the State University of New York, Purchase College, Music Conservatory, Jazz Studies. During her third year in the program, she was selected to receive the prestigious James Moody Scholarship. In 2018, Miho led her trio on tour in Japan, and they won the silver medal at the "38th Asakusa Jazz Contest," a historical jazz competition in Tokyo. Two years later, in 2020, she released her first album, "From My Heart." Miho has also performed with the Ryan Hollander Trio at the Newport Jazz Festival in 2022 and started playing at Fork n' Film NYC as a residential artist in 2024. She has been featured in "Hot House Magazine". She has played in different bands as a sideman while leading her group at major jazz venues in New York City, such as Birdland, Maureen's Jazz Cellar, Knickerbocker, Ornithology Jazz Club, Django, Nublu, and more.

Sean Smith
Bassist, Composer, Educator. Sean Smith has been an integral part of the international jazz scene for more than 30 years. He has appeared in many of the major jazz festivals, concert halls, and clubs all over the world.
Sean has performed with Gerry Mulligan, Phil Woods, Benny Carter, Flip Phillips, Clark Terry, Johnny Griffin, Lee Konitz, Art Farmer, Tom Harrell, Jacky Terrasson, Bill Charlap, Peggy Lee, Rosemary Clooney, Mark Murphy, Jimmy Scott, Andy Bey, Tracy K. Smith (winner of the 2012 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry), and many others. Sean is also a prolific composer whose works have been played and recorded by such artists as Phil Woods, Mark Murphy, Bill Charlap, Gene Bertoncini, Leon Parker, and Bill Mays. His music has also been featured in several films. Lyrical, melodic, cinematic, and songful best describe Sean's compositions. Ira Gitler has written “His originals are highly listenable and thought provoking music for both head and heart". Smith’s "Song For The Geese" is the title track of Mark Murphy’s 1998 Grammy nominated album for RCA/BMG. Sean's ensemble was awarded the CMA/ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming in 2015. In 2007 Sean received a Bistro Award for Outstanding Instrumentalist. Sean was a member of the Jacky Terrasson Trio for four years. His work with Terrasson and Emmanuel Pahud on Into The Blue (EMI/Blue Note) was nominated for a 2003 Grammy Award. For the last 20 years Sean Smith has been a leader of his own group. His dynamic working quartet includes John Ellis on the saxophones, Nate Radley at the guitar, Russell Meissner at the drums, and Sean at the bass. Their recordings include Sean Smith Quartet Live! (Chiaroscuro Records), and Poise (Ambient Records), both featuring his compositions. The Sean Smith Quartet performs regularly in New York City. Their newest recording, Trust, was released in 2011 and received rave reviews. Sean is co-leader of The Humanity Quartet, a newly formed group featuring Joel Frahm, Peter Bernstein, and Leon Parker. Their first recording, Humanity, was released in 2018 on Cellar Live. Sean Smith earned his Bachelor of Music from the Manhattan School of Music and lives in New York City.

Billy Mintz
was born in Queens, New York. By the age of 15 he was playing in the show bands of the Catskill Mountain resorts developing his musicianship.
In his twenties, while living in New York City, he played and recorded with the Lee Konitz Nonet (1978), Kundalini with Perry Robinson and Badal Roy, the Eddie Daniels Quartet, Gloria Gaynor, the Steve Tintweiss Quartet, and the Harold Danko Quartet. In 1981 Mr. Mintz relocated to Los Angeles where he was a member of the Mike Garson Trio with Stanley Clarke ; the Kim Richmond Sextet; the Bobby Shew Quintet, the Joey Sellers' Jazz Aggregation, and the Vinny Golia Quartet. He also performed several times with the Mose Allison Trio and with Mark Murphy, and did a stint with the Merv Griffin Show band.
In LA, Mr. Mintz was also the drummer for the Bill Mays Quartet, as well as for Road Work Ahead, with Mr. Mays, Bob Magnusson and Peter Sprague. In 1988 he toured Europe with saxophonist Charles Lloyd's band. Throughout the 1980's he performed and recorded with Bill Perkins, Frank Strazzeri, and Pete Cristlieb. Throughout his life Mr. Mintz has taught privately and done clinics at schools around the world, including the Berklee School of Music, NYU, California Institute of the Arts, North Texas State University the Dick Grove School of Music, Musikgymnasium in Innsbruck, Austria, Long Island Drum and Percussion Club, Eagle Rock H.S., Arizona State University at Tempe, and University of Arizona at Phoenix,. He also taught extensively while on tour with various artists in Sydney, Australia, Tel Aviv, Israel and Wellington, New Zealand. Mr. Mintz has written two books: Different Drummers (AMSCO Music Publishing) and Advanced Sticking and Sight-Reading (BM Publications). His articles have been published in Not Just Jazz and Modern Drummer magazines. Mr. Mintz currently lives in New York, where he performs with the Alan Broadbent Trio, Roberta Piket Trio, the Russ Lossing Trio, and Tony Malaby, among others. In recent years, Mr. Mintz has taken on new roles as a bandleader and composer. For the past 15 years he has led the Two Bass Band, a ten-piece ensemble which features his compositions and arrangements. He also leads the Billy Mintz Band (with Tony Malaby, Rich Perry, Adam Kolker, Hilliard Greene and Roberta Piket) and performs solo drumset concerts. As a soloist Mr. Mintz has performed extensively on both coasts of the US as well as internationally. Billy's third CD as a leader, Ugly Beautiful, is available on thirteenth Note Records.

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