Caris
Hermes

Pennsylvania native Billy Test is a pianist, composer, arranger, and educator. Currently holding the piano chair in the Grammy award winning WDR Big Band in Köln, Germany. Billy’s piano playing blends the joys and sorrows of jazz and blues with the finesse and harmonic depth of classical music. His warm touch and clear tone can roar with excitement or sigh with woe. His improvisations are always in the moment, preferring to take risks and be daring rather than play it safe.

The Cologne tenor saxophonist, composer and arranger Paul Heller has been a member of the internationally renowned and Grammy-winning WDR Big Band Cologne since 2005. The list of musicians Paul Heller has worked with during his career reads like a “Who’s Who” of jazz: Johnny Griffin, Dusko Goykovich, Jimmy Cobb, Jasper van’t Hof, Volker Kriegel, Eddie Gomez, Vinnie Colaiuta, Biréli Lagène, Bill Evans, Al Foster, Adam Nussbaum, Franco Ambrosetti, Steve Swallow and with his wife, the multi-award-winning (including the “Golden Record” and the “German Record Critics’ Award”) Dutch jazz singer, Fay Claassen.

Born 1964 in Baden near Vienna. Studied classical trumpet in Vienna, then studio musician and soloist in big bands and smaller formations. 1985-1988 Radio Big Band Zurich (DRS). Since 1986 P. Herbolzheimer Big Band. Since 1988 WDR Big Band Cologne. Since 1999 professor of jazz trumpet at the Cologne University of Music, workshops at home and abroad.

Cologne-based trombonist Jonathan Böbel has played in the BundesJazzOrchester and numerous other renowned bands such as the hr-Big Band, the WDR Big Band, the Subway Jazz Orchestra, Fantastischen 4, Heavy Tones and Tom Gaebel.

Philipp Brämswig is a highly active and sought-after member of the vital Cologne and German jazz scene. Besides leading the „Philipp Brämswig Trio“ and the „Mengamo Trio“ he is among others member of the following bands: „Subway Jazz Orchestra“‚ „Soulcrane“, „Luciel“, „Kiki Manders“, „Florian Ross Big Company“, „Vagabond souls“ and more. Concerts and tours led him to South Korea, Belgium, Denmark, China, Albany, Bulgary, France, Poland, Romania, the Netherlands, Austria and Switzerland. He participated in numerous radio-, TV- and theaterproductions in Germany as well as the Netherlands and performed with a.o. the WDR Big Band, Jim Black, Seamus Blake, HR Big Band, Charlie Mariano, Bob Mintzer, Tony Lakatos, Richie Beirach, John Goldsby, Marshall Gilkes, Benjamin Herman, Candy Dulfer, Warren Vache, Paul Heller, Jesse van Ruller, Caro Emerald, Pete Philly & Perquisite a.m.m

US-American Ben Fitzpatrick (May 9, 1998) is a saxophonist, composer and teacher. Since 2022 Ben has been the first tenor saxophonist and thus the youngest member of the WDR Big Band. He has played with Jimmy Heath, Jimmy Greene, Joe Lovano, Bob Mintzer, Dick Oatts and Wynton Marsalis.

Martin Schulte, Jazz-Guitarist based in Cologne, „belongs without doubt in the premier league at least of the german Jazz-Guitar-Players – and Composers“ (JazzPodium)
With his guitar rifts, this “brilliant instrumentalist” (Westdeutsche Zeitung), traverses the spaces between modern jazz, pop and improvised music and creates his own style.
Also he is a much asked for sideman, played with artists like Theo Bleckmann, Antonio Hart, Nils Wogram and played on stages all over the world. Besides his love for small ensembles, he is also a regular guest in the WDR-Big Band, the Cologne Contemporary Jazz Orchestra and the HR-Big Band.