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Frank Villafranca
is originally from Buffalo, NY. He attended Berklee College Of Music majoring in jazz performance in the late 1970's. As a saxophonist, Frank's musical career started as an arranger/performer in the Boston area where he performed with numerous top 40 bands including the pop group "Tavares" famous for their top 40 hit "Penny For Your Thoughts". He also arranged and composed for local groups in the Boston area while recording with the "Fresh Tracks" studio where he acquired many TV and radio credits.
He arrived on the L.A. scene in 1984 and has performed in too many groups to list here. He is an accomplished soloist and is the author of two instructional jazz books, "Outstanding Jazz Saxophone Solos" published by A.D.G. Productions, www.adgproductions.com. In addition to performing with San Gabriel Seven, he is also working a jazz CD with keyboardist Andrew D. Gordon, due for release in 2006 as well as a solo CD in his recording studio at home.
Frank plays Selmer Mark VI alto and tenor saxophones, both low 100,000 series. His soprano sax is a curved Yanagisawa. He has played LaVoz reeds since he began playing. Recently he has tried many different brands of reeds but returned to LaVoz. His mouthpieces are all Beechler Metal Bellite, Tenor: #8 with medium soft Lavoz, Alto: #7 with medium LaVoz and Soprano: #6 with medium LaVoz. Ligatures are all “Oleg” and he has also added several Oleg pro sax enhancers on tenor and alto saxophones.
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Jim Lewis
is the Trombone player and founding member of SGS. He studied jazz under Bill Watrous and is a regular on the L.A. jazz scene. He started as a session player in Muscle Shoals, Alabama and is a graduate of the University of Alabama Jazz Program. In Alabama, he led several groups throughout the early 90's and appeared as a guest soloist with Gene Bertencini. He moved to L.A in September of 2001 and, immediately after 9/11, was sent to Afghanistan for 18 months as a Special Forces Team Leader with his National Guard unit. Upon his return in 2003, Jim focused his attention on starting SGS and currently performs in many of the local rehearsal bands around town. Jim works full time as an engineer at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena and spends much of his free time coordinating activities for SGS.
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Matt Weisberg
was convinced that playing rock guitar was going to be his life's work until his first exposure to jazz at a Berklee College of Music summer camp. Weisberg was enticed by the sounds of Keith Jarrett, Bill Evans, and Oscar Peterson, and decided to further pursue it in a university setting. Within eight months he was a competent jazz pianist and received a scholarship to study at the acclaimed University of Miami's school of music. In Miami, Matt had the opportunity to hone his skills with some of the best educators in the world. After his stint in South Florida, Matt made the move to the West Coast in late '05. He teaches and produces music out of his home studio, which includes a Yamaha C1 grand piano.
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Steve Gregory, while a student at Cal State University, Northridge, was the winner of the prestiges Los Angeles Jazz Society's New Talent Award. Steve's jazz group began playing around L.A. as well as gigs at clubs with a top 40 cover band.
Steve's first major gig was touring with the legendary, soulful Ray
Charles, with whom he travelled throughout western and eastern
Europe, Japan, Brazil, the Caribbean, and North America.
Since he has toured internationally with American pop icon Frankie
Valli, Chanteuse and Leonard Cohen protege Anjani, and Jazz legend
Alphonse Mouzon.
Currently Steve does studio work in Los Angeles for TV, film and
records, as well as teaching part time at the Los Angeles Music
Academy. More details can be found at www.stevegregory.net.
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Peter Kastner
was born and raised in Austria and is a recent graduate of the Los Angeles Music Academy. At the age of eight, he began playing the piano. Later, he developed a love for rhythm and at the age of twelve took up the drums. Four years later, he bought his first bass, and fell in love with the instrument. He studied with several well known teachers in Vienna and played in several local funk and rock bands. From 2000-2002, Peter was the bass player for master jazz saxophonist, Michi Erian. He then continued his musical education at the Conservatory of Carinthia in southern Austria. In 2004, as a member of the group Five Alarm, Peter opened for the Beach Boys and, more recently in September of 2005, completed a European tour as the bass player for the musical Dance Baby Dance.
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Randy Drake
began playing drums at age twelve. After graduating from Goffstown High School in New Hampshire, Randy moved to Denton, Texas, and studied music at the University of North Texas, graduating cum laude with a Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Studies.
After moving to Los Angeles in 1988, he began performing with Dan Siegel, Bill Watrous, John Novello, Pat Kelley, and Gregg Karukas. Between 1990 and 1992, he performed and recorded with artists including Birds of a Feather, the Mark Masters Jazz Orchestra, Uncle Festive, Ralph Carmichael, and many other Los Angeles artists. After touring Japan with Japanese guitarist Masayoshi Takanaka and the United States with Englebert Humperdinck, Randy performed, recorded, and toured with the jazz-pop artist Daniel Ho and Kilauea. Recently, he has been performing and recording with Shelly Berg, Jennifer Leitham, Carmen Bradford, the jazz-pop group Kombo, and Suzanne Buirgy.
In 1999 and 2000, Randy worked with aspiring young musicians at Bill Murphy’s Summer Jazz program in Jackson, Mississippi. Currently, he teaches private drum set students at California State University Long Beach.
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Katie Campbell’s musical experience ranges from classical choral scoring sessions for film to touring as a background singer with Sheryl Crow and Elvis Costello. Her debut television performance was with Gnarls Barkley on the 49th Annual GRAMMY Awards, and debut film performance was as a dancer in “Seven Days of Grace”. She is also featured on the Bobby McFerrin Choral Album (not yet released), sings with Pasadena’s Latin jazz ensemble “San Gabriel 7”, and is the lead soprano in “The Ron McCurdy Vocal Jazz Experience”. Katie was the stand-by for both female roles in the off-Broadway show “Loudmouth” with “Toxic Audio” (New York City). She continued performing with “Toxic Audio” in the Caribbean and Mexico. Katie has been a featured vocalist with “The Wee Trio” (New York City), the “New West Guitar Quartet” and the “Matt Roberts Group” (Los Angeles), and was named "Best Collegiate Jazz Vocalist" in the 2004 Downbeat Awards.
Katie earned her Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies from Western Michigan University. While a student at WMU, she toured France, Belgium, South Africa, Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, and Latvia with the “Gold Company Sextet,” “Gold Company,” and the “University Chorale.” Katie has also performed in Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center and Birdland (New York City), and The Jazz Bakery and Catalina Bar & Grill (Los Angeles). She has performed with Bobby McFerrin, Janis Siegel of the Manhattan Transfer, and Darmon Meader of the New York Voices. She also studied acting (Darryl Hickman), and dance (Michael Owens, Dean Barlow), and is a certified yoga instructor. She currently teaches at Musicians Institute in Hollywood, CA, and is pursuing a Masters Degree in Spiritual Psychology at the University of Santa Monica.
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Special Guest Artists
Bill Watrous, Trombone
Steve Snyder, Alto Sax
Bruce Lofgren, Guitar
Jeff Bunnell, Trumpet
Steve Huffsteter, Trumpet
Pete Christlieb, Tenor Sax
Harry Smallenburg, Vibes
Steve Treseler, Tenor Sax
Eric Marienthal, Saxes
Sal Lozano, Saxes
Jennifer Gates, Vocals
David Whitfield, Vocals
Nick Mancini, Vibes
Andy Martin, Trombone
Kevyn Lettau, Vocals
Katie Campbell, Vocals
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