Baritone saxophonist Marcus Bartelt lives in Cologne/Germany and is active with his own projects as well as a sideman and studio musician, frequently doubling on a number of other saxes and woodwinds. He has performed and recorded with Bob Brookmeyerʻs New Art Orchestra, the Lionel Hampton All Star Celebration Band, Belgian pianist/composer Michel Herr and the Paul Kuhn Big Band as well as all German radio big bands, to name just a few. In addition he accompanied popular artists such as Chilly Gonzales and since 2015 he is a member of the legendary German band and musicians' collective De-Phazz. In 2002 he founded the Cologne Contemporary Jazz Orchestra (CCJO), an important and continously active ensemble on the German jazz scene which he still is a co-leader of.