The Team

The Producers

Working together to create this extraordinary project and album Robert Short and Jon Burlingame combined their passion and resources to create a true labor of love. Having set out to recreate, for the attendees of "The Man from U.N.C.L.E." 50th anniversary event, what it would have been like to be on the recording stage during the run of the original series they created a concert worthy of its own album.

Robert Short - Producer

Academy Award winner, Robert Short has fostered a unique blend of styles and techniques in the design and creation of his characters. From the outrageous "Beetlejuice" afterlife inhabitants to the enchanting mermaid from "Splash" to the man eating sharks of "Lethal Weapon 4", to the inspirational heart light of “E.T.” and development of the terrifying design of "The Predator". Short won his best make-up Oscar for the creature effects in"Beetlejuice" which redefined the boundaries of horror and humor. His other makeup and VFX projects include WarnerBros. "The Man from U.N.C.L.E.", Lionsgate feature film “Punisher; War Zone”, NBC’s “SURFACE”. “Herbie Fully Loaded”, "COCOON", "Kindergarten Cop", "Ace Ventura, Pet Detective", " "The Flash" TV series (1990), "Piranha", "Close Encounters of the Third Kind Special Edition" and "The Return of the Man from U.N.C.L.E".. As a WGA writer Short created the story for the Disney Channel Movie of the Week “The Scream Team” starring Eric Idle, Cathy Ngimy and Kat Dennings. As a DGA director Short helmed multiple episodes of the syndicated live action series "Super Force" and the American sequences of TWE's "Programmed to Kill", which he also wrote.

Jon Burlingame - Producer

Jon Burlingame is the nation’s leading writer on the subject of music for films and television. He writes regularly for Variety and, over the past 30 years, has also written on the topic for such leading newspapers as The New York Times, Los Angeles Times and the Washington Post; and such magazines as Premiere, Emmy and The Hollywood Reporter. Burlingame is the winner of two major industry awards: ASCAP’s Deems Taylor Award for outstanding music journalism (2013, for The Music of James Bond), and BMI’s Special Citation of Appreciation (2014, “for being a sincere and respected champion to so many in the film and television music community”). As a producer, Burlingame is responsible for four volumes of music from the classic spy series The Man From U.N.C.L.E.; another of music from Dr. Kildare (both on the Film Score Monthly label); and a recently issued, widely acclaimed 6-CD box set of music from Mission: Impossible (on La-La Land Records).

The Summit Six Sextet

Brought together by band leader David Lamont, this exceptional assemblage of talent captured the essence of the hit '60s series in 14 astounding tracks played from the original sheet music used during the scoring sessions.

David Iwataki - Keyboards

“Music is emotion,” says Dave Iwataki.

“My strongest, early influence was Herbie Hancock,” the veteran arranger/composer/keyboardist notes. “I aspired to play, write and evolve like him. I felt he had the gift for putting true emotion into music.”

For Iwataki, who has collaborated with major artists such as Peabo Bryson, Barry Manilow, Kenny G, The Pointer Sisters, Tom Scott, Marilyn McCoo and Billy Davis, Olivia Newton-John, Paul Anka, and The Fifth Dimension, music is also culture.
As an early member of the iconic jazz group Hiroshima, Iwataki broke new ground in cross-cultural contemporary music. While enjoyed by mainstream audiences, his work was shaped by deeply personal forces of his Asian heritage.
Japanese and Japanese American influences have permeated Iwataki’s career. A versatile artist, he has worked in many areas of music performance and production, from live concert performances to composing and arranging for record, radio, stage, television and film.
Iwataki composed the scores for the Japanese American National Museum’s documentaries Harsh Canvas: The Art & Life of Henry Sugimoto; Toyo Miyatake: Infinite Shades of Grey; and Words, Weavings and Songs.
“Being able to pop in a musical idea from one genre into a work of a different style kind of keeps things fresh,” says Iwataki.
“I become restless if I stay on one thing for too long,” Iwataki adds. But he notes that while his continually evolving repertoire includes Latin/Brazilian music, salsa, funk and R& B, it’s jazz that often brings him back to the heart of his inspiration.
“At home, I love to play jazz ballads because I can fool around with re-harmonizing the melodies,” says Iwataki. “That helps me pull out the different emotions. And for me, emotions are what music has always been about.”

Dean Koba - Drums

Dean Koba is native of Honolulu, Hawaii. He has performed with numerous jazz greats, which include: Benny Bailey, Bud Shank, Jeff Clayton, John Clayton, Bill Cunliffe, Dee Daniels, Walter Norris, Bob Sheppard, Gary Foster, Fareed Haque, Makoto Ozone, Roberta Gamborini, Jackie Ryan, and Tamir Hendelman. His tours have taken him all around the United States as well as Europe. He is featured on numerous recordings with artists including Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, Christoph Luty, the Acoustic Jazz Quartet, The Bayou Brass Band, Brent Jenson and the Greg Reitan trio.

Dean studied music at Northwestern University (BA) and at USC (MM). He also studied privately with Jeff Hamilton, Joe Labarbera, and Greg Field. Dean currently resides in Cerritos, California and freelances in the greater Los Angeles area. In addition, he has worked for Disneyland for over twenty years. He is also the percussion instructor at Long Beach City College and the jazz drumset instructor at El Camino College.

Dean Koba plays Aquarian Drum Heads, Crescent Cymbals, Gretsch Drums, Gibraltar Hardware and Innovative Percussion sticks & mallets.

David Lamont - Band Leader / Flute

David Lamont is a native Angeleno.

He started piano at four, flute at eight, going on to earn a BA from UCLA in flute performance where he studied with Sheridon Stokes. He then attended Cal State University, Northridge, where he earned an M.A. in Musicology. Subsequent teachers include James Newton, Charlie Shoemake, Ira Shulman, Bill Greene, Mark Carlson and French horn legend Fred Fox. He has participated in master classes with Eddie Daniels and the late Julius Hemphill (World Saxophone Quartet).

David has recorded the Claude Bolling Suite For Flute and Jazz Piano, http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/davidlamont and has been a member of The Escovedo Project, featured on their CD and video. He has been featured in many other recordings including film, television and radio. David has composed for short film and radio and is currently scoring his first feature film, Symphoria.

He has worked with such artists as Richie Cole, Nedra Wheeler, Stanley Jordan, Larry Goldings, and performed in nearly every venue in the Los Angeles area. Musical theatre performances include the EastWest Theatre (now the Union Center of Performing Arts) and the Malibu Playhouse. He is a regular member of the Los Angeles Flute Orchestra and also performs regularly with various chamber groups and jazz combos throughout the Southern California area while maintaining a busy teaching schedule of flute, piano and saxophone students in Malibu, CA. Instruments include: Flute, Piccolo, Eb flute, Alto flute, Bass flute, Contrabass flute, Baroque (1 keyed) flute, Irish (8 keyed) flute and keyboards.

Yu Ooka - Guitar

Yu Ooka was born in Osaka, Japan. He started playing the guitar at the age of 13 and has played at many venues through out the years.

Since a child, his dream was to move to Los Angeles so could open his heart & mind in allowing the American Culture & Music enter his soul. In 2006, his dream came true and during his stay, he has met many local musicians, started hanging out and playing his guitar at local live clubs. Soon after, a friend introduced him to Legendary Jazz Pianist “Billy Mitchell” which led him to perform with the ‘Billy Mitchell Group’ along with many other 'Amazing' musicians.

In 2007, “A.P.B”, was formed and Yu is the lead guitarist. The music is a mixed variety of genres including: Country, Pop, Ambient and Classical. “A.P.B.” has won the ‘Best Performance’ prize at Hori Production Audition in the United States.
He is also the band music arranger for “Minyo Station”, a Fusion Japanese Folk Music group, which is combining traditional instruments with Guitar, Bass, Drums, Conga, Harmonica & etc. His arrangements are inspiring with different styles, such as, Jazz, Reggae, Rock, Swing & etc. With the creativity of Yu & his fellow band mates, Minyo Station is continuously moving forward with much energy & spirit!

Also, recorded several insert songs for ABC channnel, Campany's commercial songs.

I've had great opportunities during the past couple of years and have been blessed to play with Amazing musicians: Billy Mitchell, Quentin Dennard, Munyungo Jackson, Rober Kayle, Dr.Bobby Rodriguez, Tony White, John Heard, Weeping Willow Tetsuya, Kenny Elliot, One of the greatest jazz singers, Barbara Morrison...
Now he offers Guitar, Ukulele, Shamisen, Taisho Koto Lessons in LA and South Bay Area.

Steven Rosenblum - Saxaphone

Originally a be-bop alto saxophonist in the melodically rich Charlie Parker-Cannonball Adderley vein, Steve Rosenblum now plays mostly tenor sax. And his heroes are such musical descendants of John Coltrane as Michael Brecker, Jerry Bergonzi and Rick Margitza, players known for their edgy, energetic approach more than their singing melodies.

Rosenblum, who grew up in Encino, Calif., likes the zip and surprise of his current tack. "My style gives me more freedom harmonically, so I can be more spontaneous," says the horn man, 33, who plays Sunday at Common Grounds.

Rosenblum applies his modern-minded manner to a variety of material and at Common Grounds, he, trumpeter Jeff Bunnell, pianist Robert Van and two others will delve into originals and arrangements that Bunnell has done on tunes reminiscent of the great Horace Silver.

"I love Horace's sound, with tenor and trumpet blending," says Rosenblum, who has played and/or recorded with Louie Bellson, Matt Catingub and Dick Berk. "It's a cross between a gospel-blues thing and the complexity of be-bop. It grooves with hip changes."

Rosenblum has had an interesting career: When he was just 21, he'd already had it with the jazz life. "I didn't want to spend the rest of my life in smoky clubs," says the sax man who had played with Bellson's big band while still a senior at Reseda High School. He moved to Santa Cruz, studied piano, and started playing on cruise ships. He still does. It's a great opportunity to practice, read and still have money coming in."

Nedra Wheeler - Bass

Nedra Wheeler is a bassist with a Masters of Fine Arts and Bachelors of Fine Arts in Music Performance from California Institute of the Arts. She has 16 years of teaching experience and 25 years of professional performance experience. A native of Los Angeles, she is an educator and volunteer in the South Central community and teaches bass for the Thelonius Monk Institute of Jazz.

Other teaching assignments include: Los Angeles Community College District, UCLA Department of Ethnomusicology, and El Camino Community College. She has taught subjects in String, Wind and Jazz Ensembles, Improvisation, the History of Western Music, the Survey of Jazz, Introduction to World Music, Fundamentals, Solfeggio, and String Bass.

She is a role model for inspiring instrumentalists, she heads her own quartet, and her debut disk, "Gifts: Live at Birdland West" features her original compositions. She has performed with stellar musicians such as Ella Fitzgerald, Billy Higgins, Cedar Walton, Billy Childs, Karen Briggs, Ravi Coltrane, and Alice Coltrane. She is heard on the film soundtracks for "Menace to Society," "Malcolm X," "Chick Peas," and "Clockers."

Nedra recently performed with her quartet June 17 at the Willowbrook Senior Center, June 19 at the William Grant Still Center, and July 8 at Summer Nights at MOCA.
Nedra has worked with Great Leap's Upward Bound program and will be participating in “To All Relations ‘99.”

The Production Team

The band and their performance is supported by this top notch group of technical artists.

Nathan Strasser - Arranger

ComposerNate began his music career early in life, discovering his passion for music at the age of 4 when he began to study piano. At 8 years of age Nate was selected to perform at the International Music Workshop in Scotland and again in Austria at the age of 10. Over the years, he has pursued additional training in the areas of composition, cello, organ, and songwriting. He received his Bachelor's Degree in Jazz Studies from West Virginia University.

Nate has done extensive work as a studio musician, orchestrator, arranger, and composer. He has had a wide variety of clients. As an arranger, he has done music prep work for Dave Matthews and Seth Macfarlane As a studio musician and pianist, he has worked with faculty from Belmont University and played piano on a number of film scores. Nate has recorded at the renowned Oceanway Studios and Warner Brothers Studios. Nate has also had the privilege of performing with Grammy-winning artists Riders in the Sky and Brent Mason.

In 2013, Nate was one of twenty students worldwide accepted into the Scoring for Motion Pictures and Television Program at the University of Southern California. Since graduation, he has scored a number of films and has worked in the music department for a film accepted into the Emerging Filmmaker Showcase in Cannes, and has provided orchestrations for the musical "Open Mike" which made its world premiere at the Hollywood Fringe Festival.

Douglas Schwartz - Engineering / Mix

Mulholland Music & Sound
www.mulhollandmusic.com
Doug Schwartz, mastering engineer, started listening to music literally at conception.

After recording as a child with icons like Burt Bacharach,Richard Harris, Johnny Mann, and Jimmy Joyce, he began a career behind the glass at famed Whitney Studios in Glendale, assisting on sessions as diverse as Hanna-Barbera scoring dates and Barry White records. Good fortune brought him the chance to work with Mike Chapman, engineering records for Blondie, Suzi Quatro, and Pat Benatar. Sessions at United-Western Studios, Sunset Sound Factory, and Cherokee brought projects withFishbone, Los Lobos, T-Bone Burnett, and Motley Crüe.

MCA Records hired him on to begin remastering their vault gems at the dawn of the CD era, and Grammy awards soon followed for his work on Billie Holliday and Chuck Berry box sets. Independence beckoned, though, and his credit list diverged ever wider, responsible for an extraordinary run of highly successful Now That’s What I Call Music projects, M-G-M music soundtrack restorations, film audio restoration, and independent jazz, rock, pop, and remarkably diverse cultural works from far-away Cambodia and Iran.

Shaun Chasin - Live Recording.

Shaun Chasin is an award winning composer for film, TV and video games. He studied at Berklee College of Music where he majored in Film Scoring with a minor in Video Game Music. Following this, he attended the University of Southern California’s Scoring for Motion Pictures and Television graduate program. There, he studied with composers such as Bruce Broughton, Garry Schyman, and Christopher Young.
Shaun’s music has been featured on FOX, CNN, The Discovery Channel, Teletoon, The History Channel, Play TV, The Hallmark Channel, The Smithsonian Channel, BET, PBS, FYI, Lifetime, CTV, Rogers Channel 10, CBC, TV One, News One, Oxygene, Dawn News, ATV, APlus, Filmworld, Waqt TV, AAJ, Dunya TV, PTV Home, Geo Entertainment, CNBC Pakistan, ARY Musik, ARY News as well as streaming services such as Netflix.

Special Thanks

Jon Heitland
Lisa Lazarus
Michael Thomas
Barbara Short
Marilee Bradford
Cynthia Walker
William Koenig