Dr. Aaron Prado is a pianist, composer, educator, and radio personality based in San Antonio, Texas. Prado received a Doctorate of Musical Arts in piano performance at the University of Texas at Austin’s Butler School of Music in 2014. Prior to doctoral study, Prado attended Columbia University for undergraduate study and New York University for a Master’s Degree. From 2003-2009, Prado was Music Director and announcer at Trinity University’s jazz radio station – KRTU 91.7FM – and is currently the host of “Aaron Prado Presents” – heard Sundays 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. In 2011, Prado debuted his “San Antonio Jazz Suite” – a large-scale composition scored for big band, string quartet, and narration depicting the story of San Antonio. In 2015, Prado published a book of transcriptions of solo recordings by jazz pianist Bill Evans (published by Hal Leonard).

In 2018, Prado received the Paul Elizondo Grant for the Performing Arts from The Artist Foundation of San Antonio to compose a concert work called “The Hero’s Journey” and the piece premiered at Luminaria 2018 at the Instituto Cultural de Mexico, as well as “Sister Cities”, a jazz ensemble work commissioned by Musical Bridges Around the World that brought together musicians from San Antonio’s Sister and Friendship Cities to celebrate SA’s 300th Anniversary. In 2019, Prado released two new CDs “Live at Jazz, TX” with his sextet and a trio album of original music titled “And Now…” Prado teaches music at Northwest Vista College and performs regularly in the South Texas area with his ensembles.

In 2023, Dr. Prado was hired by Musical Bridges Around the World to be the Music Director and backing soundtrack composer of their documentary film “The Quilt: A Living History of African American Music“. In 2024, he was also commissioned by MBAW to compose an ensemble piece for Round III of The Gurwitz International Piano Competition, for which he wrote the Aztec myth-inspired “El Colibrí y la Cempasúchil“, paying homage to San Antonio’s cultural heritage. Prado is currently a regular performer at Jazz, TX at the Pearl and other San Antonio venues with various ensembles.

George Prado is a veteran bassist and cornerstone of the San Antonio jazz community. A native of the city’s West Side, Prado has built a career of more than five decades as a performer, bandleader, and mentor. After serving in the 279th Army Band in France and studying music in Los Angeles with acclaimed bassist Ralph Peña, he performed with a wide range of jazz, blues, and R&B artists including Cab Calloway, Eartha Kitt, Mose Allison, Chuck Berry, and Clifford Scott. Since returning to San Antonio in 1980, Prado has led the Regency Jazz Band and created the long-running Holiday Saxophones concert, both beloved local traditions. Known as a champion of the American songbook and a guiding presence for generations of musicians, he remains one of the city’s most respected jazz ambassadors.