Saxophonist and composer Emile Parisien is a figure who brilliantly emblematizes the vitality and originality of the contemporary jazz scene in France and Europe. After performing alongside the likes of Wynton Marsalis and Jonny Griffin at a very young age, he attained success in the early 2000s with his bold compositional style inspired by Igor Stravinsky, John Coltrane and Richard Wagner.

The German pianist, saxophonist, and composer Joachim Kühn has remained a major figure in jazz and improvised music since the late 1960s. During his prolific career, he has played jazz, avant-garde jazz, rock, contemporary, and classical music, collaborating along the way with Stan Getz, Michel Portal, Martial Solal, Marc Ducret, and Ornette Coleman, among others.