SHORT:
The Philippe Lemm Trio, comprised of Dutch drummer Philippe Lemm and American pianist and bassist Angelo Di Loreto and Jeff Koch, respectively, houses a dynamically creative, exciting, and fresh sound, spanning multiple influences from all of its members. The trio won the International B-Jazz competition in 2015 and the group’s performance of Di Loreto’s original composition “Salt Road” earned an ASCAP Jazz Composer Award in 2013. The three musicians met during their master’s degree at Manhattan School of Music in 2011, where they quickly realized that they had an undeniable musical chemistry and understanding of each other’s musical personalities. They began performing together in and out of the school, and eventually did a residency at the newly-formed True School of Music in Mumbai, India in August- December 2013, where they taught, gave masterclasses, and toured with Bollywood music star Shilpa Rao. Musically, the group’s sound draws influences from the classical, jazz, and prog rock idioms, to name a few. Their sound is captivating and exciting, and always strives to be fresh, original, and moving.

LONG:
The Philippe Lemm Trio, comprised of Dutch drummer Philippe Lemm and American pianist and bassist Angelo Di Loreto and Jeff Koch, respectively, houses a dynamically creative, exciting, and fresh sound, spanning multiple influences from all of its members, who are all based in New York City. The three members began their musical relationship in 2011 during their master’s degree studies at Manhattan School of Music, and have sinced performed together at notable venues such as the Bimhuis in Amsterdam and NYC’s Birdland. Besides original composition, the group’s sound draws from fresh and exciting re-imaginings of jazz standards, with liberties taken harmonically and to the form of the song, but always striving to create a clear, accessible sound that challenges and moves the listener.
Philippe Lemm, born and raised in Amsterdam, is quickly becoming one of the most versatile and expressive drummers in both Europe and the NYC area. At the age of 19 he was admitted at The Amsterdam Conservatory. In his second year at the conservatory Philippe started touring internationally with jazz trumpeter Saskia Laroo as well as leading his own group Wazabe. At the end of his studies in Amsterdam Philippe was extensively playing with renowned Dutch jazz musicians like; Karel Boehlee (Toots Thielemans), Jorg Kaaij (Jazz Orchestra of the Concert Gebouw) and Peter Tiehuis (Metropole Orchestra). In 2009 he started his second group as a leader: Philippe Lemm Groupwhere he released 2 records with and toured extensively with in Europe. He moved to New York in 2011 to pursue a master’s degree at the MSM, where he met Koch and Di Loreto and with whom he formed a friendship and musical partnership. Aside from the trio with Di Loreto and Koch, he is the co-founder of the NYC-based group Life Size, and frequently tours Europe with many different projects.

Angelo Di Loreto is a versatile and inventive pianist, born and raised in Buffalo, NY, and was a finalist in the 2012 Nottingham International Jazz Piano Competition. He is the recipient of three ASCAP Jazz Composer awards. He began his musical studies at age 8, playing percussion, and then started studying classical piano at age 12. He continued to play percussion in the Greater Buffalo Youth Orchestra throughout high school, while slowly discovering his passion for classical music, jazz, and composition, all based at the piano. He began attending the Manhattan School of Music for undergraduate studies in 2008, where he met Jeff Koch, and toured with him in an MSM collective quintet called Colony. He returned to MSM for his master’s degree, where he eventually started the trio with Koch and Lemm. Di Loreto’s music, while rooted in jazz, draws heavily from influences of classical music and progressive rock, particularly the music of Genesis, Maurice Ravel, Alexsander Scriabin, and the collaborative compositions of Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays. In addition, Angelo is a voice actor, and frequently narrates audiobooks for Audible.com.

Jeff Koch
is one of NYC’s most adaptable bassists in almost any idiom one can find. Equally proficient on upright and electric bass, Jeff was born and raised in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City, and began his musical career playing mostly in local rock bands with many of his friends and classmates. Jeff began attending the Manhattan School of Music in 2007 for his undergrad studies, where he and Di Loreto formed multiple collaborative efforts with different projects. Branching out into multiple musical avenues, Jeff can be found working as a sideman in many different groups, spanning many different musical styles. He and Di Loreto, along with two other classmates from MSM, were selected to perform at the Keep an Eye Jazz Competition in Amsterdam in March 2012, where the group took home the prize for Best American Band. Jeff’s reading ability, ears, and work ethic have earned him the respect of his peers and has allowed him to fit into any musical setting in which he finds himself, and is one of the most adaptable and strongest bassists in the NYC area.