Ken Thomson (clarinet and bass clarinet), a staple of New York City’s contemporary music and jazz communities, is widely regarded for his ability to blend a rich variety of influences and styles into his own musical language while maintaining a voice unmistakably his own. Thomson has a growing catalog of music written for ensembles of differing sizes, and has toured with and released a number of albums with groups that he has created.  His latest project combining the sounds of jazz and contemporary music, Sextet, has toured across the US and Europe and garnered Top Recordings of 2018 placement from websites Second Inversion and AnEarful.  He released two albums with his previous project, a five-piece group called Slow/Fast, that were praised by The New York Times for their “intricate long-form compositions,” and garnered a five-star review in All About Jazz. He has two full-length CDs available of his chamber music compositions: in 2013 with JACK Quartet (Thaw) and in 2016 with cellist Ashley Bathgate and pianist Karl Larson (Restless). He is also active as a freelance clarinetist and saxophonist, performing with Ensemble Signal, International Contemporary Ensemble, Novus, and more. He is on faculty on the Bang on a Can Summer Institute; he is a D’Addario Woodwinds artist. www.ktonline.net.

David Cossin was born and raised in Queens, NY, and studied classical percussion at the Manhattan School of Music. His interest in classical percussion, drum set, non-western hand drumming, composition, and improvisation has led to performances across a broad spectrum of musical and artistic forms. David has recorded and performed internationally with Steve Reich and Musicians, Philip Glass, Yo-Yo Ma, Meredith Monk, Tan Dun, Cecil Taylor, Talujon Percussion Quartet, and the trio Real Quiet, as well as with Sting on his Symphonicity world tour. Theater work includes Blue Man Group, Mabou Mines, and projects with the director Peter Sellars. David was featured as the solo percussionist in Tan Dun’s award-winning score to the film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. As a soloist, he has performed with orchestras throughout the world including the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Orchestra Radio France, and more. His sonic installations have been presented in New York, Italy and Germany, and he is also an active producer, composer, and instrument inventor, expanding the limits of traditional percussion. David teaches percussion at the Aaron Copland School of Music and the Manhattan School of Music’s Contemporary Performance Program.

Hong Kong/Canadian pianist Vicky Chow (she/her) has been described as “brilliant” (New York Times) and “one of our era’s most brilliant pianists” (Pitchfork). Since joining the Bang on a Can All-Stars in 2009, she has collaborated and worked with artists/ensembles such as the Tania León, Meredith Monk, Steve Reich, Philip Glass, Terry Riley, George Lewis, Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Sasha Waltz Dance Company, BBC Orchestra, LA Philharmonic, Toronto Symphony Orchestra, International Contemporary Ensemble, Tyshawn Sorey, John Zorn, Kronos Quartet, to name a few. She has toured to over 40 countries and has performed in venues such as Carnegie Hall in New York, Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, Muziekgebouw in Amsterdam, Hong Kong Arts Centre, Royal Albert Hall for the BBC Proms in London, Teatro Colón in Argentina and many others. In 2023, her recording of Canadian composer Vince Ho’s Supervillain Etudes were nominated for a JUNO award. In 2022, she released Philip Glass: Piano Etudes Book 1 which Mr. Glass says, “”It’s a highly dynamic and expressive performance. There’s a certain energy that is uniquely hers.” The New Yorker wrote about her 2018 recording of Michael Gordon’s Sonatra: “Sonatra is a milestone of composition, and Vicky Chow’s recording of it is a milestone of pianism.” Her album Tristan Perich: Surface Image on New Amsterdam Records was among the top 10 Avant Music albums in Rolling Stone in 2013. Her other recordings can be found on Nonesuch, New Amsterdam, Cantaloupe, Tzadik,  among others. Originally from Vancouver, Canada, she is based in Brooklyn, NY. She serves as faculty at the Bang on a Can Summer Institute, Nief-Norf summer festival, and has been on faculty at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity. She is on the Board of Advisors for Composers Now, and is also a mentor at The Juilliard School. A graduate of The Juilliard School and Manhattan School of Music, Ms. Chow is a Yamaha Artist. www.vickychow.com