LAKE HUNTINGTON – Jazz artist Kazzrie Jaxen, and poet/musician Eric Baylin weave together an innovative program of improvisational music combined with stories and poetry in a performance that takes place at the Arts Nest at the Delaware Valley Opera in Lake Huntington on October 11 at 2 PM.

The two artists, adventurers at heart, delve into their individual histories of learning piano at a young age and follow through to the present when they reach beyond boundaries to unleash sounds unmoored from old patterns. Along the way they revisit Bach, Beethoven, and Chopin and together with two keyboards springboard into new improvisational territory. 

Pianist/Vocalist/Composer Kazzrie Jaxen has been a vital part of the improvising music scene for many years.  Her musical expression ranges from free improvisation and jazz standards to original songs. She has recorded numerous CDs and performed at NYC venues such as Lincoln Center and Carnegie Recital Hall. She is a 2026 DVAA grant recipient in "Compositional Arts" for her upcoming recording/performance project entitled "BioImprovising: Tuning into the Biorhythms of Biology, Biography, and the Biosphere.”

Eric Baylin, poet, musician, and sculptor served as Sullivan County Poet Laureate for 2021-22. After many decades pursuing his work as a sculptor and poet, he recently returned to playing piano. As a recipient of a 2024 Literary Grant from DVAA, his ventures into rhythmic experimental poetry led to collaborative vocal performances with Jaxen and more recently to their improvisational “conversations” with two keyboards. 

The two have been collaborating for over two years having performed at DVAA Krauss Hall and the Tusten Theatre as well as at the Arts Nest a year ago with a program entitled “Confluence of Dreamers.” 

Tickets for the performance are available for $20 at Buy Now on My River Tickets or $25 at the door, 6692 NY-52, Lake Huntington.