Bass Guitar with Sam K.

Sam Kohler is a composer, educator, and multi-instrumentalist living in Baltimore, MD. A lifelong musician from a family of dedicated musicians, as a composer he has established an innovative harmonic voice and a uniquely evocative body of work. His music conveys scenes such as shards of rainbow lightning whipping back and forth across a hazy technicolor plane, or an alternate universe undergoing an epochal transition from a bleak black-and-white landscape to sudden bursts of radiant colors. His works Colorfields and Color Harmony explore the deep connection between color and sound. This year saw the release of the EP Harmonic Fugue, featuring a lush and energetic work performed by the Polymnia Quartet and recorded at the world-famous Esplanade Studios. ​A dedicated performer, Kohler has sought to develop deep relationships with his audiences and bandmates. Kohler was formerly the bassist for New Orleans-based neo-soul band Jank Setup, fusion band Skeptic Moon, and the Cumbia band Agua de Valencia, the latter of which could be seen every Sunday at the Apple Barrel on historic Frenchman Street in New Orleans before the 2020 Pandemic. From 2017-20 he served the congregation of St. Paul Lutheran in the Faubourg Marigny as their organist and choirmaster. Also a passionate educator, he taught string technique at Make Music NOLA, a New Orleans-based music education program. Previously he worked as a teacher's assistant at the Stanford Jazz Workshop, and has run a private lesson studio. As a teacher he strives to inspire a love of music-making in his students. From 2013-14, Kohler led his own ensemble, the Sam Kohler New Music Ensemble. The Ensemble released its debut recording, entitled Synchromy, in October 2014. In June 2016, Kohler recorded Synchromy No. 2 with the Cascade String Quartet and Kate Kohler. Kohler has studied composition with Barbara Jazwinski, Maxim Samarov, and Kevin George; and jazz with Jesse McBride and Jim Markway. He currently studies at the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins in the composition studio of Felipe Lara.