Avery Scanlon Quartet featuring Joe Manis, Eli Hansen, and Ken Mastrogiovanni perform at the Jazz Station - Eugene
- Avery Scanlon guitar
- Joe Manis tenor sax
- Eli Hansen bass
- Ken Mastrogiovanni drums
Contemporary jazz standards and originals
Born and raised in Thousand Oaks, California, a suburban city approximately thirty miles north of Los Angeles, Avery Scanlon is a guitarist, composer, and arranger. Son of reputable Los Angeles woodwind player Brian Scanlon, Avery found his way to the guitar at the early age of five and began studying seriously at the age of ten. At the age of twelve, Avery began studying privately with legendary Los Angeles session guitarist Mitch Holder.
Avery prides himself as an exceptionally versatile guitarist, being able to sound comfortable and expressive in a number of different music genres and styles. Avery has played with or performed in masterclasses with noteworthy musicians such as Bennie Maupin, Dave Liebman, Steve Lehman, Gordon Goodwin, Alan Ferber, Tim Hagans, Katisse Buckingham and many others. Additionally, he has had the opportunity to study with notable guitarists such as Gilad Hekselman, Julian Lage, Peter Bernstein, and Andrew Synowiec. In conjunction with his work as a performer, Avery is also an avid composer/arranger who often puts groups together to play his music. His compositional work spans from personal projects to commissioned pieces.
In 2016, Avery began his collegiate studies at Eastman School of Music of the University of Rochester in Rochester, New York, where he studied with guitarist Bob Sneider. In 2018, upon completion of his sophomore year, Avery transferred to California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, Santa Clarita, California, where he studied with guitarist Larry Koonse and graduated with a BFA in Jazz Guitar (2020). Avery also attended the University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon, where he concurrently pursued a MM in Jazz Studies (2022) and taught as a graduate teaching assistant in the Jazz Studies and Popular Music areas. Avery is now a Pro-Tempore Instructor of Music at the University of Oregon and splits his time between the Eugene, OR and Los Angeles, CA areas.
Originally from Dexter, Oregon, SteepleChase recording artist Joe Manis is noted for the strength of his "intense, updated take on the glorious Rollins-'Trane tradition." (Willamette Week) Manis was the recipient of a 2013 Oregon Arts Commission Individual Artist Fellowship. His album for SteepleChase Records, The Golden Mean, features George Colligan on organ, Kevin Congleton on drums, and Lillie Manis on viola and was released in 2015. North By Northwest was released by SteepleChase Records in 2013.
He released his debut album Evidence in 2009 features Manis on tenor saxophone, Kevin Congleton on drums, and Portland luminary Dave Captein on bass: the Willamette Week called the album "explosive,” and said “(Manis) makes Pink Floyd's 'Money' sound like something a young John Coltrane might have played"; the Eugene Weekly said: "Fabulous... Will thrill fans of Monk, Rollins."
The Joe Manis Trio was featured at Rontoms during the 2010 PDX Jazz Festival, a high-energy performance that was a featured Willamette Week "Pick" and received praise from local music critics and bloggers; the Trio returned to the Festival in 2011, 2013 and 2020. Recent Joe Manis Trio appearances include Fat Cat NYC, the Shedd Institute’s jazz series, Jimmy Mak's, Tula's, the Cathedral Park Jazz Festival, and the Montavilla Jazz Festival.
Manis has toured Europe as a duo and in a trio with David Friesen, where they recorded Structures, a live album. He currently plays with Friesen's Trio. He also appears on Risky Notion (Four stars & Best Albums of 2015, DownBeat Magazine) on Origin Records with George Colligan's Theoretical Planets. Manis has played with Thomas Mapfumo and the Blacks Unlimited, including a performance at Carnegie Hall's Zankel Hall, and appears on their album Rise Up! on Real World Records. He has also performed with the George Colligan Quartet, the Chuck Israels Jazz Orchestra, the Ken Schaphorst Big Band, “Weird Al” Yankovic, Johnny Mathis, the Temptations, comedian Bob Newhart, Wayne Newton, the Oregon Symphony with Gladys Knight, the Oregon Bach Festival Orchestra, the Portland Opera, the Sunriver Music Festival Orchestra, the Eugene Symphony, and the Eugene Opera. Manis has performed on NPR’s Jazz Night In America, hosted by Christian McBride.
Manis has presented jazz masterclasses across the country, including at University of Nevada, Reno, California State University, Northridge, Whitman College, University of Texas at Arlington, University of Oregon, Ferris State University, Central Washington University, Willamette University, Portland State University, Southern Oregon University, Oregon State University, Western Oregon University, Pacific University, Lower Columbia College and Mesa, Glendale, Portland, Spokane Falls, Mt. Hood, Clackamas and Lane Community Colleges. He received a Master of Music in Jazz Studies-Performance with Academic Honor from the New England Conservatory and a Bachelor of Music in Jazz Studies from the University of Oregon. Additional studies were at the Eastman School of Music. He is a current faculty member at the University of Oregon and Lane Community College and a former music faculty member at Portland State University and Umpqua Community College. Manis is the Director of the Oregon Jazz Workshop in Eugene. His article "Rhythmic Analysis: Jeff 'Tain' Watts - 'Housed From Edward'" was published in the March 2012 edition of JAZZed Magazine. Manis also has written for the Jazz Society of Oregon's Jazzscene. He is married to violinist/violist/educator Lillie Manis, with whom he has a son, Ellery.
Eli Hansen is an upright and electric bassist, synthesist, and educator from Roseburg, Oregon. He is currently attending the University of Oregon for Jazz Studies and Spanish Literature and Culture, and is an active member of the Pacific Northwest music scene. As a freelance musician, he has supported artists such as Julia Logue, Neil Gregory Johnson, The Graduating Class, and The Monarch Hotel. In addition to being a live performer, he is a private educator of electric and upright bass.
Ken Mastrogiovanni is a musician based in Eugene, Oregon. He holds a Master of Music in Jazz Studies and a Bachelor of Arts in Popular Music Studies/Japanese from the University of Oregon. There, he studied closely with teachers including Gary Hobbs, Steve Owen, and Paul Krueger.
During his time at the University of Oregon, he was a part of the Oregon Jazz Ensemble (OJE) and the Herbert Merker Scholarship JazzArts Oregon Combo. As a member of OJE, he received the 2015 Reno Jazz Festival Outstanding College Performer award, and performed at the Oregon Jazz Festival, Reno International Jazz Festival, the Western International Band Conference (WIBC), and renown European Jazz Festivals including the Vienne, Montreux, Umbria, and La Spezia Jazz Festivals.
Mastrogiovanni has established himself as an important member of the Eugene music community. He is actively performing in Oregon with various groups, and around the country with The Daddies. In addition to performing, he also currently maintains a private lesson studio and is the drum set instructor at Lane Community College and University of Oregon. As a producer, you can find him collaborating with Eugene and Portland based hip hop artists.
