Franz is one of the few active musicians who was there when jazz was an infant. He's been playing professionally for more than 70 years and is one of the great tenor sax players of all time. His clarinet skills are also tremendous - one night he filled in for George Lewis for a gig at Chicago's Red Arrow club which resulted in a ten year stint. Franz has worked with Roy Eldridge, Fats Waller, Fletcher Henderson, Cootie Williams. They have a large & loyal following all over the U.S. as a leading exponent of West Coast traditional jazz.