Alex Anest Organ Trio | North Star Lounge

Name: Alex Anest Organ Trio | North Star Lounge
Start: 2025-08-30T18:30:00-04:00
End: 2025-08-30T19:45:00-04:00
Location: North Star Lounge

Schedule

Sat Aug 30 2025 at 06:30 pm to 07:45 pm

UTC-04:00

Location

North Star Lounge | Ann Arbor, MI

The Alex Anest Organ Trio presents an evening of exciting repertoire for the classic combination of guitar, organ, and drums. Original tunes as well as works by the likes of Duke Pearson, Emily Remler, Ernie Krivda, Christine Jensen, Wes Montgomery and Herbie Hancock have found their way into the set list. The lineup includes Annie Hayes on drums and Robert Mason on organ. The focus is on working together and connecting with the audience through improvisation, groove, and feel. Music should be fun to listen to as well as to play, and this trio is all about enjoying the music. The Alex Anest Organ Trio has lately been performing around the Midwest including dates at clubs and festivals in Detroit, Grand Rapids, Pittsburgh, Columbus, Cleveland, Cincinnati and more.
Alex Anest is a lifelong guitarist and musician who is fascinated with the endless possibilities of improvisation. He has been teaching, performing, and recording in the Southeast Michigan area since 1996. Over the years he has been a founding member of various jazz oriented groups including the Ann Arbor Guitar Trio, Nomad, Giraffe, and Never Nebula. Since 2018 he has played with Gayelynn McKinney in her McKinney Zone project, which won a Detroit Music Award for Outstanding Jazz Recording. Alex has studied with Miles Okazaki, Chris Buzzelli, Benny Green, Mark Kirschenmann, and Ellen Rowe. He has also appeared on over 30 albums, including most recently The Alex Anest Organ Trio at Trinity House. His discography is available on Bandcamp.
Robert Mason is a pianist, teacher, and organist from Columbus, Ohio. His personal group, the Robert Mason Trio released their debut album, “State of Soul” in 2019, featuring a blend of jazz and soulful sounds. Robert is excited to debut his newest project as an organ trio, “State of Groove”. Robert has performed at venues and events such as: Creekside Blues & Jazz Festival, Columbus Jazz and Ribs Festival, the Lincoln Theatre (Columbus, OH), Blu Jazz+ (Akron, OH), The Refectory (Columbus), Natalies Music Hall & Kitchen (Columbus). As an artist, he has performed with musicians such as: James Gaiters, Dwight Adams, Bobby Floyd, Kevin Turner, Reggie Jackson, Cedric Easton, Milton Ruffin, George Delancey, Tony Mcclung, Shawn Wallace, Eddie Bayard, Dwight Bailey, Jim Rupp.
Annie Hayes is a drummer and educator based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She is well versed in a variety of musical styles and techniques, including hard bop, classical percussion, indie pop, big band, and musical theatre. Her style of playing behind the kit is greatly influenced by her musical inspirations such as Ben Riley, Elvin Jones, Steve Gadd, and Vinnie Colaiuta. Annie has had the privilege of studying under Michael Gould, Nate Winn, David Alvarez III, Dennis Wilson, Robert Hurst and Andy Milne. She is currently in her fourth year at The University of Michigan, earning a Bachelor's degree in Jazz & Contemplative Studies. Annie has a passion for education as well as performance, and has worked as a private instructor since 2016. In 2023 she completed a year-long mentorship program with the Detroit Civic Youth Ensembles, working under Vincent Chandler. She is inspired by her teachers, mentors, and the communities that surround her.
Tickets: https://www.nstarlounge.com/tickets/p/alexanesttrio