U to Z

The talented keyboard player and leader of the Bulgarian band “ТЕ” has been playing the piano since he was 4 years old. In his childhood, Yassen played in many concerts and won numerous awards in Bulgarian and at international music events , like “Svetoslav Obretenov”, the national competition for Bulgarian music in 1982; “Virtuosi Per Musica Di Pianoforte”, Czechoslovakia in 1984; the international competition for young piano players in Marsala, Italy 1986, etc. He also composed most of the successful hits of “TE’s” repertoire.

Trumpeter Allen Vizzutti is a versatile performer and composer best-known for his jazz prowess, although his work in the classical realm is also fairly extensive.

Like Steve Gadd before him, Dave Weckl spawned an army of imitators with his breathtaking playing on Chick Corea’s first Elektric Band album, released in 1985. Playing elegantly structured, complex compositions alongside sequenced accompaniments required a new level of technical mastery. Dave became a role model for a new generation of fusion drummers with his invention, uncanny precision and beautifully tuned Yamaha drums.

Sheona White is Yamaha Artist and Tenor Horn tutor at the University of Salford, University of Liverpool and University of Manchester and holds the position of Head of Music at Lowton High School.

One of the true masters of the bop vocabulary, Phil Woods has had his own sound since the mid-1950s and stuck to his musical guns throughout a remarkably productive career. There has never been a doubt that he is one of the top alto saxophonists alive, and he has lost neither his enthusiasm nor his creativity through the years.

Performer Zivkovic completed his master's degrees in composition, music theory and percussion in Germany. His consistent duality, his untiring work - both as composer and performer - account for his unique artistic personality. His concert tours have taken him through many European countries, repeatedly to the USA, Japan, Taiwan, Korea and recently Mexico. Contemporary music is an important part of Zivkovic's repertoire, and many composers have written works dedicated to him. His own music can best be described as "New Music with flesh and soul" and specially his works for marimba and percussion published in the USA and Germany have entered the standard repertoire of many percussionist world-wide.Zivkovic has also made a number of radio recordings in Germany and abroad, as well as several TV appearances.

Ivaylo matriculated for the Conservatory in Rouse with oboe, but a year later his career was declared futureless by the Professors. So he left the Conservatory and started playing bass guitar on his own. Ivailo turned his disappointment into a personal ambition that three years later, in 1992, he presented himself brilliantly as № 1 at the National Music Academy majoring in his instrument “bass guitar”. In 1996 Ivailo graduated with an excellent GPA.