Darmstadt Community Groove

Get ready to groove with VHS, a trio that combines over 115 years of jazz experience into one unforgettable performance. Pianist Lionel Haas, bassist Charles Sammons, and drummer Eric Vaughn bring together the best of the Big Band era with a fresh, modern swing that’s impossible to resist. Like the vintage VHS tapes, we capture the timeless essence of swing and give it a new spin—nostalgic yet forward-thinking. Our sound is a mix of classic rhythms and energetic beats that transport dancers back to the smoky jazz halls of yesteryear while keeping them moving to today’s pulse.

Eric Vaughn – drums

Eric Vaughn is a dynamic and highly versatile jazz drummer, composer, and bandleader hailing from Savannah, Georgia. Raised in a musical family, he developed his craft early on with the influence of renowned jazz figures like pianist Freddy Cole and bassist Ben Tucker. Vaughn’s innovative “Naked Jazz” concept gained him recognition in the U.S. and Europe, where he has been a major player in the jazz scene for decades. After serving as the artistic director of the Atlanta Jazz Festival, Vaughn toured internationally and worked on projects for major outlets like CNN and Walt Disney. As a drummer, Vaughn has performed with an impressive roster of jazz legends, including James Moody, Cedar Walton, Freddy Hubbard, and Nicolas Payton. Since moving to Berlin in 2010, Vaughn continues to make waves in the European jazz community, blending his traditional roots with contemporary styles and maintaining his reputation as an electrifying performer and thoughtful composer.

Lionel Haas – piano

Lionel Haas was born on December 27, 1971 in Bonn, Germany. He had his first piano lesson at the age of 9 and developed an interest in jazz, blues and rock at an early age. Lionel’s first formal study of jazz was during a series of jazz workshops at the Richmond College near London, UK, at the age of 13 to 15. During his four-year stay in the US, he became increasingly involved in the Washington jazz scene and was frequently booked for gigs at restaurants, hotels and clubs. To advance his musical development, he attended some summer clinics at the Berklee College of Music. For his activity in the big band at Georgetown University, where he was studying, he was recognized with an honorable mention as „Outstanding Contributor for Fine Arts.“ Lionel was also part of the renowned Washington- based traditional jazz youth band, the Federal Focus Jazz Band, playing not only in clubs and festivals but also at government functions, including the White House and Senate Buildings. The band also released several CDs. Lionel participated in the 1994 release Renewing the Tradition, Vol 2.hi Back in Germany, Lionel Haas was a founding member of Blues by Five, a successful blues band in Bonn which is now known as Back to Back. He was active in groups such as the Bonn- based Swing’n’Tonic Jazz Band and was also the pianist for a Cologne- based Voices of Praise Jubily Gospel Choir. In late 1998, he met Jamaican saxophonist and composer, Fitz Gore who became his mentor and who played a considerable part his growth as a jazz pianist. He released his first own CD, Breaking Free (and a Tribute to Fitz Gore), which includes original compositions as well as his own arrangements of some of Fitz Gore’s music. He moved to Berlin at the end of 1999 where he began making a name for himself by performing in Berlin’s jazz venues. From 2000 until 2002, he worked part time as Internet Journalist at JazzRadio, Berlin interviewing local and visiting artists and writing features about them. Lionel Haas has been involved in a vocal jazz sextet formation with singer Yamil Borges since May, 2000, performing in some of the finest Berlin jazz clubs as well as in venues nationwide. The group released its debut CD, Yamil Borges & Friends, berlin at nite, in the fall of 2002. Since 2001, Lionel has toured with various projects in places like China, Ireland and Switzerland. Recently he has toured in Spain, France and Italy with the renowned blues artist, Big Joe Turner. He formed the Lionel Haas Quintet in the spring of 2002. It evolved into the sextet formation, BLOWING FRONT in 2007 which features three-horn arrangements of his original compositions in the styles of straight-ahead jazz as well as groove music. Blowing Front won the 2007 Jazz and Blues Award competition. The Lionel Haas Trio is his latest project which released the CD “Going and Going” in 2013. In that same year, he was a founding member of the quartet, Berlin 21, which now has released 3 CDs (‚Capital Letter‘ 2014, ‚Odds On‘ 2016, ‚THREE!‘ 2020). This trio project has extended to Berlin 21 Streetworkers adding a guitar player and vocalist. Both project variants tour Germany to this day. In addition, Lione Haas works as a supporting artist of various notable band projects around Berlin, further developing his musical versatility.

Charles Sammons – bass

Charles Sammons is an acclaimed American instrumentalist, composer, and educator known for his innovative techniques on the double bass, electric bass, and cello. Rooted in tradition but always pushing boundaries, Sammons has collaborated across genres, from jazz to electronica and rock to pop, with artists like Parliament Funkadelic and the Indigo Girls. Currently based in Berlin, he leads projects like manifest._Pocket and VSS, blending jazz, funk, and electronica with an electrifying stage presence. As a composer and founder of Alt-Materials Comprovisation, Sammons continues to share his unique approach to improvisation and composition with the next generation of musicians.