Brian Felix Organ Trio
Performing live in the corner at Little Jumbo, 241 Broadway, Five Points, Asheville. No cover. Pull up a seat.
Admission no cover · ever
The Brian Felix Organ Trio is the jazz/funk organ group of the future. Rooted in the deep traditions of organ-driven jazz, funk, and soul, the trio blends reggae, samba, surf rock, gospel, and ambient soundscapes into a unified and forward-looking musical vision. Known for its telepathic interplay, deep grooves, and daring spontaneity, the trio has been captivating audiences throughout the southeastern United States. The group’s most recent release, Level Up (Slimtrim Records, 2025), a collection of all-original compositions, has been described as “delightful and eclectic” (Noah Baerman, noahjazz.com) and its title track appeared as All About Jazz’s “Jazz Song of the Day.”
Based in Asheville, NC (USA), Brian Felix is an internationally recognized jazz keyboardist and organist whose work spans groove-based improvisation, jazz-rock, and contemporary creative music. He was co-leader of OM Trio, an acclaimed San Francisco–based jazz-rock group that toured internationally from 1999–2004. Felix has performed at venues and festivals including the Fillmore Auditorium and Great American Music Hall (San Francisco), the Bowery Ballroom and Mercury Lounge (New York City), and the Aberdeen Jazz Festival (Scotland). His performance history includes collaborations with Joshua Redman, Charlie Hunter, Umphrey’s McGee, Sara Caswell, Billy Hart, Joe Russo, Kelly Sill, and Dave Fiuczynski.
Felix is also a Professor of Music at UNC Asheville, where he teaches jazz theory and improvisation, jazz ensembles, music business, keyboard skills, The Beatles, and The Grateful Dead.
When Brian Felix sits behind a Hammond B3, gospel church pews start swaying in jazz clubs, and cocktail lounges suddenly feel like revival meetings where the only salvation comes through swing. As the beating heart of the Brian Felix Organ Trio, Felix doesn't just play organ—he channels the entire history of American soul through drawbars and Leslie speakers, creating sonic sanctuaries where Jimmy Smith's bebop athleticism meets Jimmy McGriff's bluesy gravitas. His left hand walks bass lines that make upright players jealous while his right hand preaches sermons in chords, and when his feet find those bass pedals, the floor becomes a congregation that can't help but move. This isn't just organ jazz—this is spiritual transportation disguised as entertainment, proving that sometimes the most authentic musical experiences happen when you stop trying to be cool and start trying to be truthful.
Dr. Tim Fischer exists in that rarified space where USC doctoral precision meets street-level groove, where European touring experience fuses with American jazz DNA to create something entirely his own. This guitarist-composer-educator doesn't just play jazz fusion—he reimagines what happens when classical technique meets electronic experimentation, when rock energy collides with bebop sophistication. From Los Angeles studios to St. Louis classrooms to his current faculty position at Coastal Carolina University, Fischer has built a career on proving that the most interesting music happens at the intersection of seemingly incompatible styles. His collaboration with Brian Felix on 'Level Up' and his co-authorship of 'Jazz Guitar Duets' demonstrate a musician who understands that teaching and performing aren't separate activities—they're two sides of the same creative coin, each informing the other in an endless cycle of musical discovery.
Ryan Ptasnik honed his drumming skills in Pinedale High School band classes in Wyoming, a foundation that would eventually carry him from garage bands to performing at the Opera and Ballet Theatre in Shymkent, Kazakhstan. This jazz-trained drummer has become a versatile force in multiple musical worlds, from his work with the experimental group Moyindau—where he performed Kazakh poetry settings at the base of Pik Lenin in southern Kyrgyzstan on a stage constructed from two pickup trucks—to anchoring the Asheville-based Grateful Dead tribute band Clouds of Delusion.
Ptasnik's musical journey includes traveling to Central Asia with pianist Alex Kreger, where they presented music in Tajikistan with Norwegian saxophonist Mette Henriette, and recording with Moyindau—a group that blended jazz with arrangements of popular and folk tunes from Macedonia and Tajikistan. Now based in Asheville, he maintains an active presence supporting local artists like Whitney Monge and Rick Cooper at venues like Highland Brewing, while also serving as the rhythmic backbone for Batdorf & The Brother Wolf.
From Wyoming band rooms to makeshift mountain stages in Kyrgyzstan to Asheville's vibrant music scene, Ptasnik proves that the best drummers don't just keep time—they become the adaptable foundation that allows wildly diverse musical visions to flourish, whether channeling Jerry Garcia's spirit or bringing Kazakh poetry to life through rhythm.