Kaz Kilam Duo

WNY live instrumental music duo

Chris Malik is a a lifelong student of the piano, Chris’s early studies were with famed East Aurora piano pedagogue, George Kelver, and later as a piano major at the Crane School of Music at Potsdam College. While mainly focusing on classical piano studies, dabbling with popular and jazz stylings have always been a fun diversion. Chris has also always been captivated by the beauty of the instrument itself, from stunning grand pianos (a 1936 Steinway graces his living room), to unique uprights (he occasionally brings a miniature acoustic Cameo piano on gigs). He also loves exploring the latest in state-of-the-art digital instruments as well as vintage instruments of days gone by. His latest acquisition is a custom built Vintage Vibe piano which blends the old-school electromechanical design of a Rhodes piano with modern electronics for a truly unique and beautifully warm analog electric piano sound. Finding joy in music is often found in balancing the classic and modern aesthetic — the yin and yang in life.

Nate Zak is a bassist from Western New York. He plays on an original 1960s vintage Kay upright bass or an electric hollow-bodied. He has a professional certificate in Music Theory from Berklee School of Music and has research published in the academic music journal Music Perception. His diverse musical influences range from jazz, classical, electronic, to the avant-garde.