Rob Burger is the accordionist in the chamber jazz group Tin Hat Trio and has toured with Bill Frisell, Don Byron, and Joey Baron, and appeared on Frisell's Tales From the Far Side soundtrack. Burger studied classical piano at Juilliard and explored different improvisational styles at the University of Massachusetts with Max Roach, Archie Stepp, and Yusef Lateef. He broadened his range to include Hammond organ, vintage keyboards like the Optigan and Chamberlin, toy pianos, modern keyboards, and the accordion. Since moving to the Bay Area, Burger worked with artists as diverse as Tipsy and Mix Master Mike; he became a member of the Oranj Symphonette and the Mark Orton project Old Joe Clarks. In the late '90s, he co-founded the Tin Hat Trio with Orton, who plays guitar, and violinist Carla Kihlstedt. The group's music is a unique blend of structure, improvisation, and contemporary classical, with folk, world, and jazz elements. The Tin Hat Trio's recording debut, Memory Is an Elephant, came out in early 1992 on Angel Records, and Helium followed in spring 2000.