Christian Wiggs and Mike Sailors have joined forces with a singular purpose: to create an unrivaled platform for showcasing the finest talents in the Central Texas Jazz scene. Both individuals possess an unwavering passion for music and a deep-rooted desire to bring joy and inspiration to audiences and events everywhere. Read below to learn more about their respective journeys.
Mike Sailors playing for a Vanity Fair event hosted by fashion icon Anna Wintour, Easthampton, NY - 2017
with the Hot Sardines at the Newport Jazz Festival, Newport, Rhode Island - 2017
Live at Luca’s Jazz Corner, 89th and 1st in New York City - 2016
Mike Sailors spent nearly a decade in New York’s most well-known jazz haunts honing his chops, eventually working with some of Jazz music’s most celebrated stars and organizations, including Wynton Marsalis and Jazz at Lincoln Center, as well as newer bands like Postmodern Jukebox and The Hot Sardines.
During his tenure with the Hot Sardines, Mike toured the world as well as the Continental US. He appeared at the world’s most prestigious jazz festivals, including the Newport Jazz Festival, the EFG London Jazz Festival, The Tokyo Blue Note Jazz Festival and the Detroit International Jazz Festival, to name a few. The band also performed at the 2018 Dolce and Gabbana Spring Fashion Show in Milan, Italy, as well as served as the house band for the Turner Classic Movies Classic Cruise from 2014-2018.
In 2015, his expertise was called upon by producers from the Broadway world, most notably the show Sleep No More - an immersive theatre experience set in 1939 that relies heavily on vintage aesthetics and music from the golden era of Jazz. He remained with the show as musical director until 2018.
In 2019, Mike was offered a position in the prestigious Butler School of Music at the University of Texas. He is the Professor of Jazz Trumpet at UT, where he mentors young people who’s dream it is to tour the world and make a living playing Jazz music.
Providing music for private events and weddings has always been an area of enjoyment for Sailors. Operating in the high stakes, high stress world of private events in NYC, he maintained a thriving private event company that played at venues ranging from the Carlyle Hotel (2015 National Down Syndrome Society Gala) to Grand Central Station (2016 Common Ground Annual Gala).
Taking inspiration from luminaries such as Kurt Elling, Christian Wiggs is a vocalist, bandleader, lyricist, producer, director, artist manager and founder of Bandstand Presents, an Austin-based production company, committed to the inclusivity, visibility and collaboration of jazz scenes across the nation.
Born to a choreographer, Christian was raised in the theatre from an early age where he first became familiar with standards and the Great American Songbook. After opening for Tony DeSare and the Houston Symphony Orchestra at seventeen years of age, Wiggs went on to receive his undergraduate degree from Texas State University. Since then, Wiggs has performed on celebrated stages including Birdland, Dizzy’s Club (Jazz at Lincoln Center), Jazz TX, Monks Jazz and The Elephant Room.
Christian has shared the stage with acclaimed musicians such as Benny Benack III, Martina DaSilva, Bryan Carter, Chad Lefkowitz-Brown, Steven Feifke, Aubrey Logan, Dan “Chimy” Chmielinski, Mathis Picard, Daniel Foose, Clark Sommers, Andre Hayward, George Fludas, Geof Bradfield, Mike Sailors, John Lake, Max Darché, Tatiana “Ladymay” Mayfield, Robert Edwards, Chris Madsen, Ron Wilkins, Altin Sencalar, Matt Gold and Robert Ellis.
Wiggs has released three studio albums and serves as the host and producer of “Off The Bandstand”, a series of conversations that features local and national jazz musicians.
Off stage, Christian serves as an active producer and director, his work behind the camera being featured by ABC News, NPR Live Sessions, Playbill, Queerty, Pride.com, and WRTI 90.1. Committed to education, Wiggs has performed and conducted lectures as a guest artist for institutions such as Texas State University and the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor.