It’s all about groove. 

The Brazilian Project plays Samba and Bossa Nova from Rio, sure, but also country dance music from the Northeast of Brazil and Jazz from Sao Paulo. It’s Samba, Bossa Nova, Samba-Funk, Baiao, Forro, Frevo, Choro, Mojo and more. 

Brazilian jazz is also about beautiful, flowing harmony and singable melodies. We play the music of great Brazilian composers – and some of our songs too.  It's danceable if you know how to Samba!

We can play party music or quiet jazz for dining.  

 BIOS 

The Project began in 2005 with a community of musicians getting together to play this music for ourselves. A lot of great musicians have participated.  The Project is currently working in two configurations. One is the original band, guitar, piano, bass, drums and vocals/melodica. The new version has guitar, alto saxophone, bass, drums and vocal/melodica. The newer version of the band also does, in addition to the same Brazilian repertoire, some Great American Songbook tunes, mostly sung by Lillian, but Rick sings a few when she isn't looking. 

Here are bios of some of our players. 

Lillian Yee (vocals, percussion, melodica)

Lillian is a musician with deep roots in Brazilian music, specializing in Bossa Nova, Samba, and Choro. With a degree in classical composition, her skills extend to playing the melodica, harp, and percussion, making her a versatile and dynamic performer in various genres.

She began her career composing in a classical style and later ventured into pop/rock and jazz. Lillian is a veteran of playing in bands where she skillfully interpreted songs from the Great American Songbook, Brazilian standards, Japanese pop tunes, and other global favorites. Currently, she is training to become a Certified Music Practitioner (CMP) to provide therapeutic harp and vocal music at the bedside of the ill and transitioning. 

Jarrell Irvin (keys) 

Jarrell Irvin grew up in Santa Barbara, CA, where he learned to play the piano by ear rather than practice his lessons. He received a B.A. in music composition at UCSB, where he also picked up an undergraduate composition award. He has studied composition privately with Paul Glass, arranging with Dick Grove, and piano with Marcos Silva.  

Jarrell has played keyboards and keyboard bass in innumerable jazz, pop, and funk bands over the years, and occasionally in other venues, such as the San Francisco based George Coates Performance Works show "Rare Area." After moving to the Bay Area in 1982, he started working in the software engineering field, primarily writing music software, including 11 years at Opcode Systems, Inc., Muse Research, and most recently at Danger Inc. His main focus these days is on Brazilian music and jazz. 

 Rick Pollack (guitar and a vocal here and there) 

After getting some career baggage out of the way, Rick devoted himself to music and, more specifically, Brazilian jazz.  Rick studied with Marcos Silva, Chico Pinheiro, and a number of other Brazilian masters.    

He compiled the current band book of over 200 arrangements, which include some of his compositions (he recorded "Muito Non" with Brazilian Master Drummer Kiko Freitas).  He is a  veteran of hundreds of gigs playing American and Brazilian jazz, and, back in the day, rock and blues.

 Jim Thorne (drums) 

Jim has been a professional drummer and drum teacher in the San Francisco Bay Area for decades. Many of his students have gone on to professional music careers. 

He has played thousands of gigs and is fluent in many genres such as: Jazz, Fusion, Rock, Brazilian, anTd more. 

He has played and/or recorded with: The Temptations, Pete & Juan Escovedo, Tom Fogerty (Creedence Clearwater Revival), the Tommy Dorsey Ghost Band, John Handy, Art Lande, Bud Shank, the Mike Vax and Full Faith & Credit big bands and many more.

 Karl Hartmann (bass)

Karl is a proficient and versatile bassist in the SF Bay Area. Fluent in many music styles, he plays double and electric basses as well as occasional cello. He  can be heard in jazz ensembles of all sizes and genres, orchestras both classical and theatrical, salsa, rock, top 40 and many others. 

Dick Mathias (alto Saxophone and clarinet)

Dick is an Oakland native with an extensive and multi-dimensional Bay Area career as a freelance musician, composer/arranger, and educator. Stylistically, Dick’s interests have included a wide range of jazz, band, orchestral and chamber music, avant-garde classical, musical theatre, opera, and various forms of commercial musics. He has worked in the pits of numerous Bay Area theaters with local and national companies. Dick writes and performs with several big bands, the Albatross Clarinet Quartet, his own wind quintet, and other chamber groups.