Five Brothers is a quintet formed during the Ann Arbor Public Schools Summer Jazz Camp (2018) directed by Sean Dobbins. The group consists of Jake Lee (piano), Austin Aldrich (bass), Matthew Dobbins (drums), Jibreel Johnson (trumpet) and Nathan Lee (tenor sax). The overall sound of the group has mostly been influenced by Art Blakey.
Jake Lee
Jazz trumpet player Jake Lee is currently a Junior attending Ann Arbor Huron High School and Community High School. He started playing the trumpet in 6th grade and was first introduced to jazz by AAPS Summer Jazz Band directed by Sean Dobbins. His playing was mostly influenced by his favorite trumpet player, Clifford Brown and his private teacher, Paul Finkbeiner. He has privately studied with Marcus Printup, Etienne Charles, Kris Johnson, and Paul Finkbeiner. In 2018, Jake was selected to be one of the 45 people to be part of Jazz at Lincoln Center’s Summer Jazz Academy, where he had the privilege to work with the faculty from the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. Not only was this a tremendous experience for learning but, he was able to meet incredible musicians across the world his age. Jake was a 2018 Grammy Jazz Band Finalist and he has also been a part of the Michigan School Band and Orchestra Association (MSBOA) All State Jazz Ensemble and MYAF Michigan Honors Jazz Band for the past two years. In 2018, he has been recognized in multiple competitions as he was awarded the prize of “Most Outstanding Soloist” in the 2018 Central Michigan University Jazz Competition and 2018 Western Michigan University Jazz Competition. Jake was a part of the 2018 Downbeat winning combo So Fly Zone and MPrize Competition 2nd place winning combo, The Quintet. Jake is a multi-instrumentalist and in addition to trumpet, he plays bass and piano.
Austin Aldrich
Austin Aldrich started music at a young age with the bass guitar. He liked to play rock and funk and was in many different bands as an elementary student. As he grew up he took up the double bass and played in the orchestra. At the start of high school Austin began to study jazz. He found a love for the music and it plays a very big role in his life. Some of Austin’s achievements include playing at the Midwestern intensive strings festival in his freshman year, Playing in the 2018 Michigan Allstate Orchestra, being recognized as a member of the 2018 Michigan Youth Jazz Combo of the year, and numerous proficiency awards in the MSBOA state solo and ensemble competition.
Matthew Dobbins
Matthew Dobbins is a 14 year old drummer attending Pioneer High School. His talent for music started at the age of two when his father got him a baby drum set and he played it so hard that it broke. By age 11, Matthew was serious about music and decided that he wanted to play music for the rest of his life. Matthew’s playing was mainly influenced by his father, Sean Dobbins, but ever since a young age, he was also influenced by jazz legends such as Rodney Whitaker, Diego Rivery, Randy Gillespie, and Marion Hayden. Matthew has previously won first place with his band at MSU Jazz Spectacular Essentially Ellington and he has had the chance to play with the legendary jazz pianist Emmet Cohen.
Jibreel Johnson
Trumpeter Jibreel Johnson attends Huron High School in Ann Arbor and has been playing since he was 5 years old. He has already played at some of the best jazz venues in Detroit and Ann Arbor. He has studied with Rayse Biggs and is currently studying with Jimmy Smith. Additionally, much of his development has come from the Spartan Youth Program run by Sean Dobbins and the Community High School Jazz Band.
Nathan Lee
Born in 2000, Nathan Lee started his music career earlier than many of his peers. At the age of six, Nathan learned violin and then soon switched to piano. However, his true passion of music started in second grade with his new instrument, clarinet. After studying with Cecilia Kang, Trevor Young, Dan Silver, and Jay Devries, Nathan was nominated for multiple principal clarinet positions in 2014 and 2018 MSBOA All State Band, Intermediate Symphony Orchestra, Michigan Youth Symphony Orchestra, and Huron Symphony Band and Orchestra. Although classically trained, Nathan was drawn into the beauty of jazz. Starting tenor saxophone in high school, Nathan has then been received numerous awards and recognition from MSBOA Jazz Festival, Central Michigan University Jazz Competition, Western Michigan University Jazz Competition, and Jazz at Lincoln Center. Nathan hopes to continue his jazz journey throughout the rest of his life.