Born on May 1, 1953, Ken had his first musical epiphanies when he heard Duke Ellington's "Cottontail," Charlie Parker's
"Thriving on a Riff," and David Holland's "Four Winds." Ken's biggest non-musical triumph was grocery shopping in Takayama
without the phrase book. He currently is obsessed with the impropriety of eating a cheeseburger without a pickle.
Of his accomplishments in life, Ken says "best thing I ever did: I married a woman smarter
than me."