Kelsey Mines

Kelsey Mines is a Seattle-based bassist, vocalist, and composer known for her innovative approach that blends activism, community, and art through original music. Raised in the Pacific Northwest, she developed a deep connection to the local music scene and pursued rigorous training in double bass performance with degrees from the University of Washington and Arizona State University, followed by advanced studies in the Netherlands at the Prince Claus Conservatoire supported by the Holland Scholarship. Since 2017, she has contributed to over a dozen recordings and toured widely across jazz, experimental, and pop genres, establishing herself as a versatile and captivating performer.

Her work often explores improvisation and post-bop jazz, infused with influences from Brazilian music and avant-garde traditions, as heard on her acclaimed album *Everything Sacred, Nothing Serious*, which features her compositions alongside flute, trombone, piano, guitar, drums, and percussion. Recognized for her fearless and expressive style, Mines has received the Earshot Jazz Golden Ear Award for Emerging Artist in 2019 and won the Earshot Jazz Call for Composers commission in 2022. She remains deeply involved in education, teaching bass and music theory at Cornish College of the Arts and other institutions, while actively performing and leading projects like EarthToneSkyTone.