Musicians come from all different backgrounds; they travel the world to make recordings, give performances, and offer master classes, all the while building relationships with fellow artists.

Coming to play at The Harker School, Taylor Eigsti and two members of the jazz community, Collin McDaniels and Reuben Rogers, performed as a trio. Unlike Taylor’s accomplished background, nineteen-year-old university student Collin was invited to perform with Taylor. Enrolled at Brubeck institute in Davis, Collin first met Taylor as a guest artist for the program. A few months after the performance, Taylor contacted Collin to join him to play in the Bay Area.

Reuben Rogers, old time friend of Taylor for six years, first met Taylor through Taylor’s manager. His lifestyle incorporates flights to Italy, North Carolina, and Boston to name a few. Beginning his career in church as a child, Reuben experimented with various instruments before discovering his passion to play the bass.

Though Reuben and Taylor have worked together on multiple occasions, this is the first time Collin has joined the pair. Despite their backgrounds, Reuben views this event as another opportunity to broaden his network with jazz musicians.

As he explained, “to build connections, you need to build relationships over the years. ..We all speak the ‘same language’ and we come together to talk.”