Jeff Lorber Fusion 2026 China Tour
Grammy-Winning Master · Keyboard Legend · Fusion Icon
[A Defining Fusion Sound]
He is a benchmark in jazz fusion and a luminary of today’s music scene. For decades, Jeff Lorber has moved across jazz, funk, R&B and pop, helping define an unmistakably urban Funk Jazz。
- Grammy honors: Seven career nominations, including a win for the album Prototype at the 60th Grammy Awards.
- Discoverer and mentor: He discovered saxophone great Kenny G, who became a formative influence on Lorber’s musical path.
- Top-tier collaborations: He has worked closely with leading artists such as Chris Botti and Brian McKnight, both in the studio and on major festival stages.
[A Sound of Flowing Urban Neon]
Jeff Lorber’s music is essential listening for jazz fans and a textbook for instrumentalists.
- Fluid and vivid: With a producer’s ear, he uses fresh, flowing musical language to evoke the shimmer and energy of a city at night.
- A masterclass in groove: Unexpected syncopations and surprising riff-based grooves unfold alongside beautiful melodies and deep jazz solos.
- Always innovating: From 2005’s Flipside to the 2014 hit Hacienda, he has stayed at the forefront of the style.
[2026 China Tour · Special Shanghai Shows]
On this tour, Jeff Lorber will join top musicians Artem Dubyna and Jair Mayorga for performances in China.
A JZ Club Shanghai exclusive:
- Date: May 8–9
- Special guests: The May 9 show will feature Zhu Mang and Li Shihai for a one-of-a-kind “Fusion Jazz Legends Night.”
[National Tour Schedule]
| Date | City | Venue |
| 5.03 | Beijing | Taihu Jazz Festival |
| 5.06 | Dalian | Hertz Space |
| 5.08-09 | Shanghai | JZ Club |
| 5.10 | Hangzhou | (To be announced) |
| 5.12 | Nanjing | 1701 Live House |
| 8.03-04 | Macao | International Modern Music Arts Festival |
True masters are best experienced live.
A jazz celebration spanning five decades—don’t miss it.
Career
Born in Philadelphia and a graduate of Berklee College of Music, Jeff Lorber had already set his sights on becoming a fusion musician before releasing his first album in 1976. Throughout his career, he has explored ways to bring different musical elements into jazz, even helping fuel a second wave of fusion. That spirit is evident from his 1976 debut through his 1978 album with Chick Corea and his 1979 landmark Water Sign, whose celebrated track “Rain Dance” has been sampled by artists including Mariah Carey.
In the 1980s, as he entered his thirties, Jeff Lorber began moving from fusion toward the smoother, more relaxed sound of smooth jazz. Step by Step (1985) and Private Passion (1986) both produced popular tracks that charted on the U.S. Billboard charts. His ideas about smooth jazz continued to mature through the 1990s and blossomed in the new millennium. On He Had a Hat, recorded for Blue Note Records in 2007, critics heard a mature command of many jazz styles: Lorber’s music can be funky one moment and swing the next, bringing striking vitality to modern jazz. The album reunited him with another jazz legend, Herbie Hancock, at the Grammys, where they were both nominated for Best Contemporary Jazz Album.
In 2010, Jeff Lorber reunited with longtime friend and veteran bassist Jimmy Haslip to relaunch the Jeff Lorber Fusion band. Haslip had stood alongside Lorber during the competitive fusion era, and his other group, the Yellowjackets, won two Grammy Awards in the late 1980s. The pair’s easy chemistry helped produce the hit album Hacienda, which appeared at the 56th Grammy Awards.
Critical Acclaim
In the West, a bee is often used as a symbol of someone who works hard. Among contemporary jazz musicians, one of the finest examples is Philadelphia-born pianist and keyboardist Jeff Lorber.
His résumé makes the comparison clear. Since 1976, this fusion-jazz pianist has released more than 40 albums under his own name, while also performing and recording on many other artists’ projects—often five to ten albums a year. A versatile musician, he plays piano, electronic keyboards, organ, synthesizers, bass and drums, and is also a skilled arranger, mixer and Grammy-winning producer.
A smooth-jazz pioneer, Jeff Lorber has been an influential American keyboardist, composer and producer since the late 1970s. He became a leading figure in jazz fusion, a movement that brought traditional jazz together with rock, R&B, funk and other electronic elements. With his band Jeff Lorber Fusion, he began in clubs in Portland, Oregon, before taking this music across the United States and onto the international stage. Through complex chords, unconventional meters and propulsive rhythms, Lorber helped lead the style that came to be known as contemporary jazz. He continued to explore new forms of improvisation within jazz. Contemporary jazz has achieved great commercial success around the world over the past two decades, and Lorber has become a leading voice in smooth-jazz innovation, combining funk and fusion with irresistible melodies. His music comes especially alive onstage, where his performances are celebrated for their funky energy.
Jeff Lorber is more than a jazz innovator: he is a bridge between tradition and modernity, art and commerce. His career shows that improvisational spirit and technical mastery can thrive together, and that jazz’s boundaries are always expanding.
What critics say about Jeff Lorber:
A Grammy-winning fusion-jazz master, Jeff Lorber is a pianist, composer and producer who has received seven Grammy nominations and won the award. Hailed as a “legendary contemporary-jazz keyboardist” and the “king of funk jazz,” he is admired by jazz giants including Herbie Hancock and Joe Sample. He is among the most innovative musicians in contemporary jazz.
Live Shows / Albums
About Jeff Lorber’s latest album, Elevate (2024):
Jeff Lorber’s musical journey began with admiration for legends such as Chick Corea and Herbie Hancock. He studied jazz history and drew inspiration from masters including Wynton Kelly, Thelonious Monk and Keith Jarrett, laying the groundwork for one of modern jazz’s most notable careers.
From his 1976 debut with Jeff Lorber Fusion, Chinese Medicinal Herbs, to Pacific Coast Highway—a 1984 radio hit that earned his first Grammy nomination and cemented his place in fusion—and Grammy-winning album Prototype, the list of standout tracks goes on.
“Jeff continues to redefine the genre.”
Released in 2024, Elevate is a polished, passionate project featuring outstanding collaborators and a distinctive creative partnership with Claude Villani of SRG Jazz. More than an album, Elevate is an invitation to lift your spirits and change your mood.
02 Band Lineup
Jeff Lorber Fusion
BASS
Artem Dubyna
Bassist / Music Educator / Composer
Artem was born in Orzhytsya, Ukraine. He began studying music at age five, focusing on accordion and piano. He later took up bass and graduated from Poltava College of Music.
With more than 15 years of experience in original and cover projects, Artem has recorded and performed live with many artists. He has won awards at music competitions in Ukraine and abroad and has played at festivals, on television and at commercial events throughout Ukraine and China. In Ukraine, he taught music at the Poltava Small Academy of Arts.
He has worked at A-Star Music in Chengdu and performed at jazz clubs across China, including Big Jazz, Vinoteca, JZ Club, LAVO Jazz/Funk & Soul, Link Jazz Club and On the Way Jazz. He is a member of the progressive fusion group Epíkourostan, led by German bassist Bodo von Zingler, and recorded the album Hylozoism with the band.
He has shared the stage with Chinese jazz pianist Zhu Mang, Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz competition winner Evgeny Pobozhiy, and the American soul and funk duo James & Black.
He loves a wide range of styles, from jazz and rock to pop, reggae, funk and Latin music.
Now based in China, he loves the local culture and is always looking for opportunities to create and perform.
Bassist whose collaborators include Cai Xukun (KUN) and the funk/R&B band
Artem is currently a member of the jazz-fusion projects Artem Dubyna Quintet, JArT Trio, Apollo Project and Modern Talk Group. He also works as a session and touring bassist and teaches masterclasses and private lessons.
DRUMS
Jair Mayorga
Drummer / Venezuelan Musician
Jair Mayorga is a highly skilled drummer and classical percussionist whose musical journey began with an innate love of rhythm at age two. Born in Venezuela, he performed for more than 15 years with the country’s leading classical orchestras and received formal training in drum set and classical piano at the Maracay Music Conservatory.
At age ten, Jair began studying with renowned Venezuelan drummer Andrés Briceño. That mentorship, together with numerous masterclasses and workshops, sharpened his technique and broadened his musical outlook. He has studied with John Patitucci, Brian Blade, Danilo Pérez, Mike Stern, Karl Perazzo, Nene Quintero, Gustavo Dudamel, Edgar Aponte and members of Venezuela’s Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra.
In 2013, at 22, Jair began an international tour across Asia, performing in China, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore. His command of funk, pop, rock, metal and jazz fusion established him as a versatile presence on the international music scene.
A sought-after recording artist and educator, Jair has contributed to projects including Apollo IV, Sonic Odyssey and Jart Jazz Fusion Trio. He is also an educator for Ludwig drums, sharing his knowledge and technique with drummers around the world through clinics and performances.
Jair has also judged several major drumming competitions, including China’s Good Drummer contest, alongside industry professionals such as Kaz Rodriguez.
Jair’s performances with Grammy-winning fusion keyboard master Jeff Lorber in 2024 and 2025 further strengthened his reputation as a world-class musician.
May 9 Special Guests
Special Guest
Li Shihai
Li Shihai is one of China’s most influential saxophonists, composers and arrangers. A JZ Music signed artist, he earned a bachelor’s degree in jazz saxophone from the Shanghai Conservatory of Music and a master’s degree in jazz saxophone from the New England Conservatory. In 2015, he received the inaugural JZ Awards’ Best New Artist award. In 2016, he recorded his first original jazz album, Inner Rhythm, at Wellspring Studio in Boston. In 2018, he won two Chinese jazz awards: Best Live Performance and Best Fusion Musician. His second original album, Jet Lag, came out in 2020 and was nominated for Best Jazz Performance Album at the 2021 CMA Awards. He is now a saxophone instructor at Nanjing University of the Arts and secretary-general of the Jazz Committee of the Jiangsu Popular Music Association.
Special Guest
Zhu Mang
A professional jazz pianist and keyboardist, Zhu Mang has extensive performance experience and is based in Shanghai, where he works across a range of musical styles. His talent has earned praise from many jazz masters, and he has shared stages with international artists such as Swedish trombonist and singer Nils Landgren and American alto saxophonist Alex Han. In 2017, Zhu moved to the Netherlands to pursue a master’s degree in jazz at the Prince Claus Conservatoire, deepening his understanding of improvisation and composition. He earned praise from jazz artists including Don Braden, Joris Teepe, Gene Jackson, Freddie Bryant and JD Walter. During his studies, he also spent six months as a visiting scholar in New York, receiving guidance from pianists Kevin Hays, John Escreet and Taylor Eigsti. He graduated with distinction in June 2019.
03 Show Information
Jeff Lorber Fusion
May 8
May 9
– May 8 / May 9 –
Showtime: 7:30–9:00 p.m.
(Doors open at 7:00 p.m.)
– Lineup –
Keyboards: Jeff Lorber
Bass: Artem Dubyna
Drums: Jair Mayorga
————————————
– May 9 special guests – Zhu Mang and Li Shihai
– Ticket Prices –
Single ticket: RMB 268
(Includes one selected drink, choice of four, plus a snack)
Two-person table ticket: RMB 668
(Includes one bottle of Iriarte Rosado red wine or Serenade Vermentino white wine, plus fragrant chicken wings)
Four-person booth: RMB 1,888
(Includes one bottle of Macario Barolo red wine or Caiston Chardonnay white wine, a mixed fruit platter, a four-compartment assorted nut tray, grilled veal chops and two bottles of VOSS water)
Six-person booth: RMB 2,888
(Includes one bottle of Iriarte Primitivo red wine, one bottle of Caiston Chardonnay white wine, a mixed fruit platter, a six-compartment assorted nut tray, a seafood platter and two bottles of VOSS water)
* For private-room reservations, please contact customer service.