David Cheung has played drums since the ripe old age of 13. From 1995-2005, he was the resident drummer at East West Players, playing in such shows as Pacific Overtures, Beijing Spring, and Follies, and both 1995 and 2005 productions of Sweeney Todd. He also played with the Big Band at UC Irvine where he spent a bit of time on stage with jazz greats James Newton, Lanny Morgan, and Bobby Shew. In the daytime, he makes pretty pictures of things that sometimes people build.
Tracy Wannomae was born in Hawaii and raised in Los Angeles. He went to Dorsey High School and graduated with honors in music from Los Angeles City College. He studied saxophone privately with Phil Sobel and Vernon Martin.
A versatile multi-instrumentalist, Tracy has performed/recorded with: Josef Leimberg, Kamasi Washington, Yusef Lateef, Adam Rudolph, Meshell Ndegeocello, Keefus and Jade, Rickie Lee Jones, Vernon Martin, Ziggy Marley, Mia Doi Todd, and is part of the Crenshaw quartet, LosAKAtombros.
Taiji Miyagawa‘s music career has been one of extending the Japanese American countering of forced assimilation which intensified during WWII. In his youth, he studied classical and flamenco guitar, and started playing blues harmonica in his teens.
During the 1980’s, initially inspired by the Los Angeles band, Hiroshima and exposure to taiko, he collaborated with late pianist/composer Glenn Horiuchi in San Diego to record several albums which incorporated Japanese music with the impulse of modern “jazz improvisation.” He studied bass under the late M’Chaka Uba, of Chicago’s Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians and later, in Los Angeles, with Vonnie Holt.
From the 90’s to today he has collaborated with performance artists, poets and other musicians, including many other important artists within the Japanese American community.
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