"Wonderful festival--Jim Kanas is a monster clinician....I'm impressed."
Lee Tomboulian
Instructor of Jazz Piano and Improvisation
Lawrence University

Additional biographical information specific to early jazz training

At age fourteen Jim was fully immersed in pursuing competence as a jazz guitarist. His interested was spawned by attendance at a number of Stan Kenton concerts which did not include a guitarist. It was the swing, melodic and harmonic elements that attracted him to this genre and is naturally highly influenced by horn and piano players. He was transcribing Wes Montgomery solos note for note and at age fifteen, and was introduced to eighteen year old guitarist Pat Metheny at the Aebersold Clinics one year later. Jim was placed in a group with Pat's friend and drummer, Dan Gottlieb and was inspired and motivated by the clinicians at the Aebersold camps, many of whom who were teaching at Berkeley School of Music. Jim performed with young saxophonist Bill Evans locally and "older cats" from Northwestern University and the Chicago area. Jim studied and played the music of Joe Pass, McCoy Tyner, Oscar Peterson, Blue Mitchell, Freddy Hubbard, Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, Chick Corea, George Benson, Rahsaan Rolan Kirk, Stanley Turrentine, Charlie Parker, Tal Farlow, Pat Martino and others. He heard and played popular music by Jimi Hendrix and the Beatles. Early blues influences included Muddy Waters who lived several miles from Jim's home. Jim won the "Outstanding Guitarist Award" two years running at a Chicago area jazz festival. He had a profound interest in performace kenetics related to improvisation (the unconscious takeover of motor skills) and corresponded with vibraphonist Gary Burton about that. Jim studied with Chicago's George Allan and performed with Rich Matteson's "All Star Big Band". He continued to attend the Aebersold Jazz clinics and received a scholarship by Jack Peterson (North Texas State) to do so. Kanas met George Benson and consulted with him about the study and impact of classical guitar on jazz improvisation. At the age 17, in 1974, Jim left home and played guitar for a theater company in Colorado and formed a jazz group which brought in rock, blues and country influences. As per Pat Metheny's recommendation, Jim went to school in Boston to be acclimated to that environment. Later, he went to Northern Illinois University and played with the lab band and small combos there. He studied fretboard theory with George Christensen, a master student of Dennis Sandoli (Pat Martino studied with Sandoli). At NIU Kanas studied arranging with Frank Mantooth and composition with Oscar Haugland and earned an interdisciplinary music degree with emphasis in contemporary improvisational guitar skills and American music. During this time Jim's guitar performances took somewhat of a back seat to make room to explore other genres on other instruments. He maintained his chops but was driven to bring a broader influence to his guitar music including western swing, bluegrass and of course folk music. All this in an attempt to claim an unique identity and not be cast into some of the musical stereotypes and copy cats associated with students of jazz guitar. Thus, the influences of Bob Wills, Django Reinhardt and Norman Blake filtered in. It all made sense in the big picture things, that is to say, to create original music that was "root based", eclectic and threaded by the process of improvisation. Following this period, Jim played gigs with jazz violinist Randy Sabien who founded the Berkeley School of music string department at age 21. After this, he collaborated with Howard Levy, Larry Gray, Ron Dewar, Rubén P. Alvarez , Johnny Frigo and others. Currently Jim is still bringing ethnical and Americana influences into his original creations. The lines between the genres are less noticeable these days but the guitar improvisation still resonates with the earliest influences.

-"[Kanas] ...is a consummate veteran jazz guitarist...Measure after measure, their music [Jimmy and the Swingers] is simply a true joy of life! In music, as in life, playing the changes can be challenging. Jimmy and the Swingers embrace it, and these chordmasters navigate without ever getting lost or disoriented on challenging pieces like “Baboo’s Blues.” The result, with its abundant reward, is a spiritual and emotional depth to their music. Joe Pass would be proud of them." Joe Ross, Bluegrass Now