Baptiste Stanek tenor saxophone, clarinet and composition · Olga Amelchenkor alto saxophone · Wes Georgiev piano · Thiago Duarte double bass · Juan Ibarra drums
Some music begins with an idea. This music begins with people.
The quintet has grown over years of friendship, shared stages, and countless conversations on and off the bandstand. Every piece is written with these musicians in mind—their sound, their personalities, their freedom. The writing is deeply shaped by the musical worlds we have explored together, from contemporary jazz to the rhythmic sensitivity and openness of Uruguayan music, always leaving space for the unexpected.
The music unfolds patiently. Melodies return like familiar voices, revealing something new each time they reappear. Moments of quiet suspension give way to sudden release, only to settle again into spaces where listening becomes as important as playing.
Basel Smash, released on LOUMI Records in May 2025, marked the beginning of the quintet’s journey and captured the first chapter of its shared musical identity. Until You’re Here, scheduled for release in 2027, is born from a deeply personal experience that I chose to preserve through composition. Rather than telling that story literally, I offer the music to the band, trusting each musician to inhabit it, reshape it, and ultimately make it their own.
The album will be released in early 2027 on LOUMI Records.
