NYC-based violinist Brendan Speltz, second violinist of the world renowned Escher String Quartet, has toured the globe with groundbreaking ensembles such as Shuffle Concert, the Manhattan Chamber Players, A Far Cry, and the Harlem Quartet. As founder of FeltInFour Productions, Mr. Speltz has produced innovative concert events across the New York City area that have been described by The New Yorker as “Thrilling, poignant, unexpected, and utterly DIY.” Most recently, Mr. Speltz co-created a cross-disciplinary presentation of Steve Reich’s Different Trains with aerial dance troupe ABCirque which was sponsored by Meyer Sound Labs.

In NYC he has performed as guest with the New York New Music Ensemble, Mark Morris Dance Group, American Ballet Theatre, the American Symphony, the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, and as a founding member of the conductorless string orchestra Shattered Glass. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California and his Master’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music. Mr. Speltz plays a 1925 Carl Becker violin.

Port Mande (formerly Duo Process), is the collaborative partnership between clarinetist Mark Dover of Imani Winds and pianist/producer Jeremy Jordan. The name Port Mande is a play on the linguistic term “portmanteau” – a word blending the sounds and combining the meanings of two others, like the word smog (itself a blend of “smoke” and “fog”). Much like a portmanteau, Dover and Jordan’s artistic partnership is a blend of all of their vast musical influences –  having worked prolifically in classical, jazz, hip hop, gospel, pop, electronic and world music scenes. Port Mande’s mission is to bring all cultures of people together by embracing music of every genre.

Both Dover and Jordan on their own have individually amassed a wide array of musical collaborations, having performed and/or recorded with many of today’s most prominent artists, including Yo Yo Ma, Anthony McGill, Gil Kalish, Imani Winds, Vulfpeck, Edward Simon, Brian Blade, Scott Colley, David Binney, Cyrille Aimee, Charles Yang, The Temptations,  and many others. Recent performances include a performance of Port Mande’s original music at National Sawdust as part of Chris Gryme’s Open G Series, as well at National Sawdust live on air at WFMT, Chicago and WKCR, NYC, premiering Jonathan Ragonese’s Non-Poem 4 as part of the Live at National Sawdust Series and Relevant Tones. The duo has also performed at Emerald City Music in Seattle, Lyrica Music in New Jersey, and the other NYC venues such as DROM, Spectrum, and Rockwood Music Hall. Port Mande’s self produced and released debut EP, “Is This Loss?” was released in July of 2020.