Adam Lee-Morgan - Bandleader, Reeds

Adam Lee-Morgan started down his swing path in the 2nd grade when he started playing clarinet, and his grandmother bought him his very first record, which happened to be a Benny Goodman record. He added on the saxophone two years later and never looked back. Growing up as a jazz musician, the addition of Lindy Hop to his life was a natural one.  Adam started dancing in 1997 just a few months before the infamous GAP ad and was dancing five nights a week. In 2001 he moved to Beijing, China where he started the Lindy Hop scene and led a 17 piece big band, the Beijing Big Band. In 2010 he returned to the USA to do a Master’s degree in Music Education at NYU, and a few years later moved back to his home state of California, where he taught high school band and was the bandleader and music director for the LA Swing Barons, focusing on the Kansas City big band style. It is through that work that his love and appreciation for Mary Lou Williams’ composing and arranging began. 

He presently is working on his Ph.D. in Jazz Studies at the University of Pittsburgh, teaches band at Chatham University and the Afro American Music Institute, and leads the house band for the Pittsburgh Swing Dance Community. 

Howard Cespedes - Reeds

After a 30+ year career in the SF Bay Area, Howard Cespedes relocated to the Pittsburgh area in 2022.  He has performed with Patti Austin, California Pops Orchestra, Pete Escovedo, Clare Fisher, Four Tops, Josh Groban, Roger Kellaway, Gladys Knight, Patti Lupone, Johnny Mathis, O’Jays, Pacific Mambo Orchestra, Linda Ronstadt, Santa Cruz Symphony, Bobby Short, Temptations, and many others. Big Band affiliations include Louis Bellson, Contemporary Jazz Orchestra, Full Faith & Credit, Jimmy Dorsey, Jamie Davis, and Mike Vax. As a pit musician, Howard has played on national tours of Annie, Secret Garden, and West Side Story. He has written numerous works for jazz orchestra that have been recorded, published, and performed at Jazz festivals of Montreux, Vienne, Umbria, San Jose, Monterey, and Hollywood Bowl   Howard is currently teaching woodwinds at the Waldorf School of Pittsburgh 

Adam Janssen - Trombone

Mr. Adam M. Janssen is a musician, composer, and educator native to Pittsburgh, PA. Mr. Janssen is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University where he studied Music Performance (Trombone, Violin), Music Education, and Business Administration. Mr. Janssen completed his graduate studies at Boston University, where he completed a Master of Music in Music Education degree with an in emphasis in Composition/Arranging and Urban Music Education.

He maintains an active freelance performing schedule, and has performed with the Altoona, Washington, Westmoreland, and Butler, Youngstown, and Akron Symphony Orchestras. As an avid Violinist and Violist, he performs chamber music with Radiant Strings and other event ensembles. He  also performs with a number of jazz/pop/rock ensembles.

As a composer, Mr. Janssen writes and arranges extensively for orchestra as well as string, brass, and vocal chamber music. His most recent release is Long Way Down, a collection of original songs that blends the genres of classical, jazz, pop, and rock.

Mr. Janssen currently teaches Instrumental Music at Shady Side Academy and is also the Adjunct Professor of Brass Studies at Washington & Jefferson College. He aspires to encourage, educate, and inspire a future generation of music appreciation.

Laura Lynn Crytzer - Trombone

Laura Lynn Crytzer is a local freelance trombonist and brass teacher, teaching students in the North Hills of Pittsburgh in person as well as maintaining an online studio for students across the United States. She currently plays with Butler and Greenville Symphonies, and has performed as a soloist with the Mercer Community Band. Prior to her return to her hometown of Butler, she resided in Malaysia for four years. There she taught brass instruments and directed a variety of music ensembles at the British School of Kuala Lumpur. She also performed with the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, Borderless Brass Quintet, and Q Sound and the 2nd Line.

Laura holds two Master of Music degrees in Trombone Performance and Chamber Music respectively from the University of Michigan. She obtained her Bachelor of Music in Trombone Performance from the Baldwin Wallace Conservatory of Music.