Shane Allen plays at the Jazz Station in Eugene
- Shane Allen piano
- Rick Carter bass
- Matthew Mayhall drums
- & many surprise guests!
With a buoyant touch at the keyboard, Shane Allen's approach to joyous, communal music-making builds upon a vibrant working relationship with dancers (vernacular jazz, ballet, and contemporary) that he has cultivated for nearly two decades.
He and his group (a rock-solid trio featuring several stellar guests) weave supposed opposites into a spellbinding whole, combining a trickster's refusal of strict categories with a folk musician's regard for durable tradition. In their hands, contemporary and classic standards crackle with life, humor, and an undeniable beat.Shane has been a performing pianist and dedicated student of American music since his time at the acclaimed High School for Performing and Visual Arts in Houston, TX, where he was blessed with the opportunity to learn from modern giants and classic masters, including Robert Glasper, Jason Moran, Helen Sung, Eric Harland, Chris Dave, Dennis Dotson, Sebastian Whittaker, and many others.
He continued his studies on scholarship at St. Olaf College in Minnesota, where he recorded a piano feature that won the 2011 Downbeat Magazine Award for Best Large Ensemble. Shane lived in Minnesota for 8 years, constantly performing in the local jazz community, accompanying with St. Paul Ballet and the St. Olaf Dance Department, and moonlighting on the avant-noise house show circuit.In 2019, he moved to Eugene, where he now performs and teaches locally. He serves as the music coordinator for Track Town Swing (a 501c3 non-profit dedicated to Lindy Hop and vernacular jazz dance), as an accompanist at the University of Oregon Dance Department, and as pianist/organist at First Presbyterian Corvallis.
Matt Mayhall is a percussionist, composer, session musician and educator based in the Pacific Northwest. In a career spanning over two decades, he has worked with an eclectic range of world-renowned performers in jazz, improvised music, singer-songwriter, folk, indie rock, indie pop, American roots music and performance art.On his 2020 self-released album Fanatics he led a trio with Jeff Parker on guitar and Chris Speed on tenor saxophone and clarinet. Stereogum named it one of the best jazz releases of February 2020. The album was produced, engineered and mixed by GRAMMY-winning producer Paul Bryan.
In addition to Parker and Speed, Mayhall has gigged with many internationally-known improvisers including Bennie Maupin, Brad Shepik, David Binney, Todd Sickafoose, Eyvind Kang, Anthony Wilson, Adam Benjamin, Ralph Alessi, George Colligan, Dan Rosenboom, Vinny Golia, Eric Revis and Tim Lefebvre.Mayhall’s professional duties have also taken him outside the jazz world, touring with Aimee Mann in support of her GRAMMY-winning album Mental Illness, with The Both (a power-pop trio with Aimee Mann and Ted Leo), and with folk singer Dar Williams. He starred alongside Fred Armisen and Bill Hader in the IFC series Documentary Now! as a member of the Blue Jean Committee. He has performed on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, CONAN, and Late Night with Seth Meyers.
Mayhall also spent several years in Josh Haden’s band Spain, appearing on three albums and a handful of European tours. He appears alongside the Haden Triplets on Spain’s The Morning Becomes Eclectic Session, and alongside legendary bassist Charlie Haden on Sargent Place.Originally from Reno, NV Mayhall started his professional career while pursuing an undergraduate degree in percussion from the University of Nevada Reno. He moved to Los Angeles after college and attended California Institute Of The Arts in nearby Valencia, where he earned an MFA in Jazz Studies. There he studied drums with Joe La Barbera, improvisation with Charlie Haden and Wadada Leo Smith, and West African drumming with Alfred Ladzekpo. He spent over a decade as a freelance musician in Los Angeles, appearing on dozens of recordings and becoming a regular sideman in the jazz, indie-pop and singer-songwriter scenes. Now, he primarily works and teaches in Portland, Oregon.
