Thomas Lee is a founding member of the Oscuro Quintet. He studied piano at the Julliard Pre-College division in New York with Richard Fabre and Antonio Fermin, and later at Yale University with Elizabeth Parisot. From 2005-2006 he studied carillon with Eddy Mariën at the Royal Carillon School "Jef Denyn", where he was only the fifth student in the school's history to graduate with "Greatest Distinction". He received his carillon accreditation with the Guild of Carillonneurs in North America in 2006, and has been a regular performer in the United States, Belgium, and the Netherlands since then. He is also half of the carillon duo "Campana Nova" with Eddy Mariën. He has composed and arranged many pieces for carillon, and has been studying tango music with Juan Martín Fernandez, Tito Castro, and Juan Pablo Jofre in recent years.
Shinjoo Cho studied piano performance and pedagogy at the Westminster Choir College in Princeton NJ. In pursuit of music outside her discipline, she traveled to Korea, Serbia, and Argentina and added new idioms and instruments to her musical development. Since her relocation to Philadelphia in 2003, Shinjoo has been a versatile performer and improviser, collaborating in avant-garde music, dance, theater, and film projects. Her recording credits include F! and the West Philadelphia Orchestra.
June Bender earned her degree in violin performance from Temple's Boyer College of Music and Dance, where she studied with Yumi Scott of the Philadelphia Orchestra. Along with the Oscuro Quintet, June has worked with Matt Davis' Aerial Photograph, Hoots and Hellmouth, Suzy Brown, and many others. She now studies with Lisa-Beth Lambert, and has attended Suzuki teacher- trainings with Carrie Reuning-Hummel for the last three years. She teaches Suzuki and traditional violin throughout the Philadelphia area.
Alban Bailly is a multifaceted instrumentalist who studied composition, jazz, and improvisation in France. He performed extensively in Europe before moving to the United States in 2005. Playing rock music in his youth, Alban moved onto studying jazz, which led him to free improvisation. In 2001 he studied Arabic music and oud in Marrakesh, Morocco. After his return to France, he became an active performer, collaborating with various music and dance ensembles in Europe. Alban is in demand as an improvisor and continues to tour in United States, Canada, and Europe. He is a founder, composer, and guitarist of the trio Inzinzac.
Benjamin Blazer attended Temple University, where he attained a BM in music theory and double bass performance, as well as an MM in music composition. He studied double bass with John Hood of the Philadelphia Orchestra and composition with Matthew Greenbaum, Maurice Wright and Richard Brodhead. Benjamin currently thrives in the field of music education as a music teacher for Central High School in the School District of Philadelphia as well as a faculty member for the Temple Music Preparatory Division. He continues to compose and have his music performed regularly, and plans to write more for the Oscuro Quintet in the near future. His works include Sustenance for Double Bass, Five Pages for Piano, Dunbar Songs for baritone and piano and several works for strings.