Leah Natale Quintet

Sophistication and beauty of the Golden Era of Jazz, is the combination of the smooth vocals of Leah Natale, the deep rich sound of the acoustic bass, the warm and engaging lines of the jazz guitar, and the sound of woodwinds.

Leah Natale (vocals) Jazz Vocalist, Leah Natale won the 2013 Seattle/Kobe Female Jazz Vocalist of the year. She has freelanced with several bands throughout Chicago and Minneapolis. Leah studied with Richard Davis, bass player for Sarah Vaughn. She has produced three CDs, including My Someday which was recorded with a 10-piece jazz orchestra and Swing Easy. Her songs can be heard on several radio stations throughout the country and have been well received throughout Japan.

George Stone (guitar) performs regularly in the Northwest with a variety of great players in the Seattle area. In the last few years he has been in-demand as a Jazz and Brazilian guitarist. George plays a custom-built 7-string guitar. In addition to Ambience George has performed with the Buck-Stone Guitar duo, the Stone Trio and the Nilza Lessa Brazilian Trio.

Chris Busa (winds) played in bands throughout Southern California and has played the college and amusement park circuit along with various Hollywood and Vegas club venues. He opened for Tower of Power, and was asked by the head of Jazz Studies to become the lead soloist for the Pepperdine University Jazz Band. Chris played with LA recording artist Plas Johnson (famous for recording Henry Mancini’s “Pink Panther Theme.”) Chris now resides in Seattle where he is making his reputation as the premier wind synthesizer player in the area.

Jeff Busch (drums/percussion) performs with a variety of groups in the Seattle area including the Jovino Santos Neto quinteto; Carlos Cascante Y Su Tumbao led by pianist Julio Jauregui; The EntreMundos Quarteto, the Bill Anschell Trio and Blues singer Frank Anderson. Jeff has recorded two albums of original jazz with his quintet, the second album ‘Song for the Ninth Ward’ was written for the play ‘Katrina – I Too Am Worthy’ which was performed at the Langston Hughes Performing Arts Center. This past year Jeff has worked as an accompanist for Brazilian singer Maucha Adnet, from the Antonio Carlos Jobim group, as well as Brazilian guitarist extraordinaire Romero Lubambo. Jeff is currently working on completing an album of Brazilian music, as well as a new set of music for jazz trio!

Cary Black (bass) performance and recording credits include work with Howard Alden, Laurindo Almeida, Ernestine Anderson, Frankie Avalon, Cyd Charisse, Petula Clark, The Harry James Orchestra, Dan Hicks, Rebecca Kilgore, The Kingston Trio, Laurie Lewis, Rose Maddox, Mark Murphy, Mollie O’Brien, Mark O’Connor, Van Dyke Parks, Kay Starr, and Ernie Watts. Cary has made numerous radio and television appearances including The Grand Ol’ Opry and A Prairie Home Companion. His bass playing has been heard recently on episodes of Inside Amy Schumer and Jerry Seinfeld’s Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee (with President Obama). He is currently a member of the Kathy Kallick Band.