Jump Off This Bridge is a free improvisation collective formed in 2019 by four virtuoso musicians of different musical backgrounds, all living in the same Harlem neighborhood. With no preconceived ideas and no leader, this combination of viola (Judith Insell), trumpet (Eli Asher), piano (Virg Dzurinko), and percussion (Leonid Galaganov) often leaps into the unknown, allowing the shape and color of the music to reveal itself as it’s being played. The group has performed at a number of venues in New York City and has been featured in the concert series Celebrating Women Composers. JOTB has also toured in Europe, with performances in Switzerland and Austria.

Judith Insell has collaborated with such artists as Beyoncé, India.Arie, and Larry Harlow, and has played with the jazz ensembles Soldier String Quartet and Sojourner. She was the catalyst behind the Twisted Standard Trio and a founder of Jump Off This Bridge. Leonid Galaganov is a composer, improviser and multi-instrumentalist. Originally from a remote Russian Old Believer settlement in Estonia and now based in New York, he has an eclectic background in jazz, classical, world, and spiritual music. He has done interdisciplinary work with dance, poetry, theatre, film, and paintings. Trumpeter Eli Asher is adept in a variety of styles from the traditional to the avant-garde. For over fifteen years he has played with the Respect Sextet, earning raves from Newsweek, the New Yorker, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Times. Virg Dzurinko is equally at home with jazz standards and free improvisation. She has performed throughout the NYC area and has composed music for documentary films, television, and cartoons.