KASAN BELGRAVE

Multi-woodwind-instrumentalist and Detroit native Kasan Belgrave holds a unique stance in the city as one of the young torchbearers of the Detroit jazz collective. His father, the late maestro trumpeter Marcus Belgrave, laid a foundation for him as he continues to carry on the legacy of Detroit jazz royalty. Following close to his father’s strides, Kasan takes pride in contributing to Detroit’s rich pedigree of musical mentorship, as he strives to continue passing down the knowledge and exposure of jazz music to generations after him.

The graduate of University of Michigan also currently holds a graduate assistantship under bassist Prof. Rodney Whitaker at Michigan State University. Belgrave has shared the stage with many greats such as Nicholas Payton, Barry Harris, Benny Green, Rodney Whitaker, Theo Crocker, Robert Hurst, Karriem Riggins, Dee Dee Bridgewater, and the Jazz @ Lincoln Center Orchestra w/ Wynton Marsalis.

Kasan has performed around the globe. He attended a jazz summer clinic that his father ran at the University of California-Berkeley in 2011, where he met flautist Elena Pinderhughes, trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire, and Walter Smith III. He traveled to Barbados in 2013, along with saxophonist Marcus Elliott and pianist Ian Finkelstein, where they performed a masterclass and concert sponsored by the U.S. Embassy. He’s performed frequently at the Detroit Jazz Festival, as a sideman for Wendell Harrison, Rob Pipho, Rick Margitza, Nicholas Payton, and Detroit bassist Ali Bey.

In 2017, he performed a duet with the Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin in her last ever live Detroit performance at the Music Hall.