Live Recording Session with Kahlil Childs

Museum Members are invited to an exclusive, behind-the-scenes event with The Kahlil Childs Quartet, an exciting young jazz ensemble bringing fresh energy and artistry to today’s jazz landscape. Join us in the Museum’s intimate concert space for a live open recording session as this extraordinary group captures their debut album, Mergence. This will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to witness artistry and inspiration unfold in real time. Led by 16-year-old saxophonist and composer Kahlil Childs, recently selected for the Next Generation Jazz Orchestra which appeared recently at the 68th annual Monterey Jazz Festival, the quartet features some of the most gifted young players in California.

Their album Mergence signifies deep connection between past and present, “traditional” and “modern,” but with the understanding that the greats, even as they carried the past deep within, always envisioned and lived as original voices: the new breath reaching upward, outward, unbound—creating liberated sound for those who demand to live and be truly free.

Space is limited! Don’t miss this special opportunity to be part of the recording of Mergence—and to share in a moment that celebrates the ever-evolving spirit of jazz.

About the Quartet

The Kahlil Childs Quartet is an exciting jazz band from San Diego featuring some of the top young players in the state of California. Its leader, saxophonist Kahlil Childs, was recently chosen for the prestigious Next Generation Jazz Orchestra which was featured at the 68th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival. He and the other band members have performed at some of the top jazz venues in Southern California, including the Rady Shell at Jacobs Park, Dizzy’s Jazz Club, The Jazz Lounge, and the Conrad Prebys Performing Arts Center in San Diego and La Jolla; The Merc in Temecula; and the Leimert Park Jazz Festival in Los Angeles. The band plays original compositions by Kahlil Childs and other band members, along with a compelling repertoire of works by groundbreaking players from modern jazz to hip-hop, including John Coltrane, Wayne Shorter, Immanuel Wilkins, Ambrose Akinmusire, Marquis Hill, and Kendrick Lamar. The quartet’s performance at the Museum of Making Music will be on the heels of its European debut at the Szeged Jazz Days Festival in Szeged, Hungary—a festival that has been running since the 1970s and has featured jazz greats such as Joe Henderson, Kenny Garrett, Ron Carter, Mulgrew Miller, and Chief Adjuah.

About the Artists

Kahlil Childs is a 16-year-old saxophonist and composer from San Diego. Along with leading his own combo, he is a member of the Rob Thorsen Quartet, which features some of the finest professional musicians in San Diego. He specializes in alto saxophone and also plays soprano and tenor saxophone, as well as bass clarinet and flute. He currently studies with Charles McPherson—a Detroit legend and one of the greatest living masters of the alto saxophone—and Grammy Award-winning musician and producer Kamau Kenyatta. Kahlil was chosen for the J.C. Heard All-Star Band in 2024 and 2025, performing at the 45th and 46th Annual Detroit Jazz Festivals. He was also selected for the Next Generation Jazz Orchestra—one of the best youth orchestras in the country—and performed both with the orchestra, and as a side man for the great composer and pianist Christian Sands, at the 68th Annual Monterey Jazz Festival. 

Quincy Reyes is an 18-year-old pianist, composer, and music producer from San Diego. He has been playing the piano for 12 years, studying both jazz and classical music, and producing music for seven years under the name “q the music.” On platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music, he releases jazz-leaning alternative electronic hip-hop music. Notable accomplishments include remixes played by Joe Kay on Apple Music Beats 1 Radio. In addition to performing with The Kahlil Childs Quartet, Quincy is a member of the Young Lions Jazz Conservatory and currently studies with some of San Diego’s finest professional musicians while performing with Rob Thorsen and Gilbert Castellanos. Among his recent notable performances was a set at San Diego’s Rady Shell at Jacobs Park, opening for a world-class ensemble that included Gilbert Castellanos, Charles McPherson, Gerald Clayton, and Joe Farnsworth. He recently began his undergraduate studies in the Jazz Program at San Diego State University.

Luke Little is a 19-year-old bassist from North County San Diego. Performing on both upright and electric bass, he is a member of The Kahlil Childs Quartet and has also performed with Gilbert Castellanos in several settings, including the 2023 San Diego Music Awards and the 2024 Jazz on Tap Festival. A former student of the Young Lions Jazz Conservatory, Luke has been mentored by Gilbert Castellanos and has studied with bassist Rob Thorsen. He made his professional debut with Castellanos at the age of 16. Luke is currently an undergraduate in the Jazz Program at San Diego State University, where he studies with Brian Levy and Lucca Alemanno. He also performs professionally with top San Diego bands led by artists such as Castellanos, Mikan Zlatkovich, and Kamau Kenyatta.

Zollie Wariner is a 16-year-old drummer from San Diego, California. He plays in the Young Lions Jazz Conservatory under the direction of Gilbert Castellanos. In addition to being a member of The Kahlil Childs Jazz Quartet, he leads the ZCK Trio, which is currently in residency at Public Square Café in La Mesa, California. Zollie has performed at top venues such as Dizzy’s Jazz Club and The Jazz Lounge in San Diego, Jazz at The Merc in Temecula, and the Leimert Park Festival of Masks in Los Angeles’ Crenshaw District. He studies with Grammy Award-winning producer and musician Kamau Kenyatta and first-call drummer Richard Sellers. Zollie approaches the drum kit with a rhythmically unique style influenced by great maestros such as Tony Williams and Elvin Jones.

Special Guests

Jordan Davidson is a composer and visual artist inspired by her black ancestry. Jordan’s music transports you to a multisensory experience that is as poignant as it is creative. She is classically trained as a composer and cellist and consistently produces new visual art – often to accompany her compositions. Her work is oriented toward world-building and layers of melody and texture. As a recent graduate summa cum laude of the Boston Conservatory at Berklee, she worked closely with Patrice Jackson-Tilghman on cello. She worked with Jonathan Bailey Holland, Marti Epstein, Eun Young Lee, and Tina Tallon for composition. With skill in writing for a variety of performing forces and a deep interest in Black spirituality and choreosonics, she is now a Ph.D. student at UC San Diego’s Music—Integrative Studies program. She studies with Anthony Davis, Matana Roberts, King Britt, M. Myrta Leslie Santana, and Jade Power-Sotomayor.