"Sarah Buechi was raised in a musically active family and started playing the violin and piano at the age of five. After an award for a self-written musical theater she decided to take music as a profession. After graduating from Lucerne's prestigious Musikhochschule with two distinctions, she took a lengthy sabbatical in Bangalore immersing herself in South Indian Classical Music and Rhythm with concerts on festivals, radio and television. The results are apparent in her use of its demanding rhythmic and vocal techniques in a Jazz context. Out of her own projects THALi (Unit Records, 2010) is the first one that brought Sarah Buechi to the attention of the Swiss Jazz Scene and intern to international musical collaborations with outstanding personalities like Steve Coleman, Dave Liebman, Lucas Niggli, Nils Wogram, Ronan Guilfoyle, Christy Doran, Christoph Haberer and Christoph Stiefel. This brought her onto concerts, workshops and tours within Europe, South Amercia, USA, Canada, China and India. Sarah has been head of the Jazz vocal department at Newpark Music Centre, Dublin for four years (2008-2012), lived after that in London (2013-2015) and studied at the Complete Vocal Institute, Copenhagen (2012-2015). In Switzerland in 2005 she was awarded the Friedl-Wald-Foundation prize and three times she was awarded the Irish Travel and Training award for musical researches in Ghana, Paris, New York and Copenhagen.

Back in Switzerland, she taught at the MKZ, Zurich (2015-2018). Currently she is working at the Jazz vocal department of the WIAM, Winterthur (since 2016) and will start teaching at the vocal department of the Musikhochschule, Lucerne (HSLU) in September 2018.

In 2018 she is releasing her fourth album as a band leader on Intakt Records and collaborates with established musicians in various other projects."

Franz Hellmüller:

"1996-1997 He studied at the American School of Modern Music, Paris.

1999-2003 He attended the Musikhochschule in Lucerne, where he graduated summa cum laude.

2002 International Scholarship Award: Together with 50 other students from all over the world, he took part in the IASJ meeting (International Association of Schools of Jazz) in Helsinki, under the direction of Dave Liebman.

He studied and attended workshops and masterclasses with Jamey Haddad, Frank Möbus, Peter O'Mara, Mark Turner, Glenn Ferris, Pedro Moreira, Simon Nabatov, Rick Margitza, Mark Soskin, Jeff Richman, Pandit Suresh Talwalker, Maria Schneider, Christy Doran, Wolfgang Muthspiel, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Vinz Vonlanthen, John Abercrombie, Nat Su.

He was named the recipient of the Axelle and Max Koch's Recognition Prize.

He was named the recipient of Pfeiffer Foundation Prize.

2014 Hellmüller Sisera Renold, Roots nominated for Deutscher Schallplattenpreis Jazz International

2015 Nominated for BMW Jazz Welt Award

2016 Werkpreis Kuratorium Aargau

He performed in concerts and at festivals in Switzerland, Germany, France, Poland, Lithuania, Finland, Austria, Montenegro, Russia, Italy, Armenia, Ukraina, USA, Belgium."

"With a burgeoning international career, Rafael Jerjen is a bass player, composer and educator. Currently based in Lucerne, he was educated in Australia (Bachelor of Music in Jazz Performance (Honours) at the Australian National University under bassist Eric Ajaye), the USA (New York with John Patitucci), Berlin, and Switzerland (Master of Arts in Jazz Performance at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Lucerne with bassist, Heiri Kaenzig). Rafael also studied composition with renowned composer and big band leader, Ed Partyka."