Dwayne Adell (performance): A true piano genius, Dwayne Adell is one of the new Jazz greats coming out of Washington, DC.

Akua Allrich (performance): Jazz vocalist Akua Allrich mesmerizes her audience with her powerful, crowd-moving passion and energy, and vocal range that rivals those of many jazz divas.

Larry Appelbaum (interview): Music librarian, jazz radio host, film curator, concert producer and jazz journalist in Washington DC. Larry is best know for discovering a large number of historic and "lost" jazz records, among them the famous recording of Thelonious Monk and John Coltrane recording at Carnegie Hall.

Tedd Baker (performance): Tenor saxophonist Tedd Baker brings raw energy to every performance and was chosen by the US Department of State to tour the world as a Jazz Ambassador.

Elijah Jamal Balbed (performance): Named Best New Jazz Musician by the City Paper, tenor saxophonist impresses the audience with his muscular tone and expressive solos.

Colombia Barrosse (interview): Director of the "Rhythm Road Abroad" program at the US Department of State. The Rhythm Road evolved from Jazz Ambassadors, a program established in 1955 by the U.S. Department of State to promote democracy through jazz music in emerging new democracies around the globe.

Joe Byrd (1934-2012) (interview): A lyrical bass player, creating melody and rhythm. For over 40 years, together with his brother Charlie Byrd and Stan Getz, Joe Byrd brought the new sound of Brazilian Bossa Nova to the US when they recorded one of the best selling jazz albums of all times, "Jazz Samba", in 1962.

Ravi Coltrane (interview): Saxophonist Ravi Coltrane stands in the legacy of his father John and mother Alice Coltrane, while leaving his own imprint as one of today’s formidable jazz musicians.

Lennie Cuje (performance and interview): Vibraphonist extraordinaire. Lennie Cuje was forced to attend an elite Nazi music school during WWII and found his freedom in jazz after he immigrated to the US in the 1950s. He has been a fixture in the New York City and Washington DC Jazz scenes since. Follow as he walks us through the Capitol's jazz speakeasy history.

Bernard Demczuk (interview): Assistant Vice President of D.C. Government Relations, civil rights expert, African-American scholar, and official historian of Ben's Chili Bowl.

Luis Faife (performance and interview): Jazz alto saxophonist and native of Cuba, Luis Faife is quickly making a name for himself with his swinging mixture of bebop and Latin jazz traditions.

Marc Fisher (interview): Senior writer at the Washington Post and winner of numerous journalism awards. After Butch Warren disappeared for more than 40 years, Marc Fisher went on a mission to found him.

Zach Graddy (performance): The house rocking tenor saxophonist from Atlanta reinvents every solo with his lush, delicious tenor saxophone tone.

Buck Hill (performance and interview): Legendary "mailman saxophonist" from Washington DC. He played with Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Charlie Byrd, Shirley Horn, and countless others. Hear through his own words why he declined the offer to go on tour with Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Cannonball Adderley.

DeAndrey Howard (performance): “The Original” trumpeter’s jam sessions on U Street are legendary and bring hordes to the venues. With just a trumpet, or a harmonica and a cow bell, DeAndrey Howard can fill entire halls with his positive vibe and makes the audience dance through the entire night.

Jimmy "Junebug" Jackson (1957-2012) (performance and interview): Original Motown Jazz drummer and 20-plus year member of the great organist Jimmy Smith's ensemble, Jackson's On My Way Home, 2006, launched his leading role as a drummer and vocalist in the Washington DC jazz scene.

Knud Jensen (performance): Since he immigrated from Scandinavia, Knud Jensen rocks the house with his soulful tenor saxophone, reminiscent of Lester Young’s hard swinging Bebop style.

Tamika Love Jones (performance): The expressive and soulful voice of singer Tamika Love Jones makes “DC’s Soul Bird” a rising star in the international soul scene.

William Knowles (performance): Pianist William Knowles’s superlative musicianship is deeply rooted in traditional jazz while stepping forward into the future with a big swing.

Eric Lewis (performance and interview): Rockjazz pianist, ELEW is known for his energetic piano style, shown recently in the America's Got Talent competition. Eric Lewis has rocked superstars, the jazz world, the TED conference, and the White House during a number of notable performances.

Brad Linde (performance): The Capitol’s “King of Cool” saxophonist and educator is currently leading his Brad Linde Ensemble, a 10 piece ensemble, the Bohemian Caverns Jazz Orchestra, and has been a constant leader in the DC metropolitan area jazz scene.

Maurice "Brother" Lyles (performance and interview): Jazz drummer Brother Maurice played his first gig in a show starring Stepin' Fetchit and went on to play with Billie Holiday, Philly Joe Jones, Jimmy Heath, Leo Parker, Earl "Fatha" Hinds, Roy Eldridge and Sarah Vaughn. In 1968, Brother Maurice invented the Rhythm Stick, featured in our film footage.

Donvonte McCoy (performance): Jazz trumpet, DC native and arguably DC's "number one hip-cat trumpeter."

Connaitre Miller (interview): Professor of Music and Coordinator of Jazz Vocal Studies at Howard University in Washington, DC where she also directs the award-winning jazz vocal ensemble "Afro Blue".

Antonio Parker (performance and interview): Antonio "Hot Potato" Parker is a Jazz alto and tenor saxophonist, educator, composer, producer and arranger, and native of Washington DC. One of the finest saxophone players of our generation, Parker plays straight ahead jazz as well as concert music, Latin, Funk, World and contemporary jazz. He has been touring the world as Jazz Ambassador as part of the US Department of State’s “Rhythm Road Abroad” program.

Chris Royal (interview): Professor, Jazz artist and head of the music department at Howard University in Washington DC.

Blair Ruble (interview): Director of the Kennan Institute at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington DC, Ruble is the author of the book "Washington's U Street: A Biography".

Mark Ruffin (interview): Sirius|XM Satellite jazz program director. With over 25 years in jazz broadcasting and journalism, Mark is a fixture in the jazz world. Mark has won two Emmy Awards for his efforts in bringing stories about jazz to the people.

Mark Saltman (performance): The bassist’s “Yesterday’s Man” album by Saltman/Knowles has been voted among the 25 best jazz CDs of the year by jazz critics and was one of the best selling jazz albums in 2009.

Brian Settles (performance): Saxophonist Brian Settles is one of the new powerhouses emerging from the D.C. jazz scene. Famous for his “whaling” saxophone sound and free-spirited avant-garde approach, Brian Settles made waves with his debut album “Secret Handshake”.

Esperanza Spalding (performance and interview): Jazz bassist, singer, and composer. First Lady Michelle Obama has invited her numerous times to play at the White House; President Barack Obama has asked her to perform during his Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in Oslo. In 2011, Spalding won the Grammy Award for Best New Artist, the first time a jazz artist has won in this category. Spalding won DownBeat Readers Poll Jazz Artist of the Year, and, in November, Jazz Artist of the Year, Boston Music Awards, 2011.

Billy Taylor (1921-2010) (performance and interview): Jazz pianist, composer, broadcaster and educator. Footage included in Oxygen for the Ears: Living Jazz, features some of the last footage and interviews recorded with the legendary Billy Taylor. While growing up in Washington DC in the 1930s, he went to see Jelly Roll Morton play at the Jungle Inn on U Street and tells us all about this encounter during his interview. Later in life he played with Ben Webster, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, Art Tatum, Miles Davis and countless others. Over the course of his life, Taylor had won countless awards, among them an Emmy, Grammy, and Peabody Awards, and received twenty-three honorary doctoral degrees.

Michael Thomas (performance): A pillar in DC’s jazz scene, Grammy nominated Michael Thomas soulful trumpet style is situated between hard bop and blues.

Chuchito Valdés (performance): Grammy nominated Valdés is a pianist, arranger, composer, and bandleader from one of Cuba's most distinguished latin-jazz families. He is recognized as a master of Cuban music styles, including Mambo, Danzon, Cuban Timba and Guaguanco. His extensive study of classical music, harmony and composition, is apparent. When he is not touring Europe, North and South America, Chuchito lives in Cancun, Mexico where he leads his Afro-Cuban based Latin-Jazz ensemble.

Patrick Warfield (interview): Professor of Musicology at the University of Maryland where he teaches classes in jazz history, the blues, concert and rap music.

Butch Warren (performance and interview): Legendary jazz bassist and native of Washington DC. With more than 35 Blue Note Record albums, Butch was a jazz superstar and one of the most sought-after bass players of the early 1960s. He recorded with Miles Davis, Hank Mobley, Joe Byrd, Sonny Clark, Dexter Gordon, Herbie Hancock, Joe Henderson, Jackie McLean and Stanley Turrentine. After going on tour with Thelonious Monk through Europe and Japan in 1963 and 1964, he moved back to Washington, DC. After an absence of forty years, Warren is now back on the Washington, DC scene with a new CD, French 5tet.

Ernie Watts (interview): Grammy award winning jazz artist. While noted for playing "The Mystery Horn" solo on a Frank Zappa album in 1972, Watts has worked on many movie scores and dedicated his life to jazz.

Andrew White III (performance and interview): Multi-instrumentalist and Jazz saxophonist, White was principle oboist for the American Ballet Theatre 1968-1970 and electric bass player backing Stevie Wonder at the same time. From Washington DC, White is also a musicologist and publisher. Among numerous accomplishments, Andrew White is known worldwide as "The Keeper of The Trane," a leading authority on the music of John Coltrane.

Steve Wilson (interview): Jazz saxophonist extraordinaire and educator. Artist in residence at the University of Maryland.

Ben Williams (interview): Bassist and native of Washington DC. In 2009, he won the prestigious Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition. Playing electric bass and piano as well, Williams' musical roots lie in various genres including hip-hop, R&B, gospel, and classical.