May 27

Jay Rodriguez/Arturo O'Farrill Duo

Grammy nominated saxophonist Jay Rodriguez and Virtuoso pianist,  Arturo O' Farrill premiere new works written specifically for  this dynamic duo. The most dynamic composer/musician team  of New York City, Jay Rodriguez and Arturo O'Farrill will take you through a visual, sonic dream sequence that you will never forget...

Jay Rodriguez (Hernan Ramiro Rodriguez Sierra), tenor, alto, bari saxes, flute, bass clarinet, composer/arranger; born Barranquilla, Colombia, 9/17/67. Family moved to NYC 1971. At age 8 studied clarinet in grade school. From ages 10-15 studied in NJ with Tito D'Rivera, Paquito's father; also with Mark Friedman. Studied harmony, theory at High School of Performing Arts. Schoolmates were Bill Charlap; Justin Robinson; Stephen Scott. Then further reed study '82-4 with Phil Woods; summer classes with Joe Allard at Manhattan School of Music '84. Studied piano with Michael Wolff; flute with Julius Baker '84. Semester at Manhattan School '85. Attended New School's Jazz Program '86-9, included lessons from Jimmy Heath; George Coleman; Joe Lovano. First job was a rumba in Weehawken, NJ with vocalist Narcisso Valdes '81. Worked with Vincente Pacheco, Tito Puente '81; Butch Johnson, Marco Rizo '82. Jammed in Harlem with Victor Venegas, Bross Townsend, Herman Foster '83. From '86 played with funk ensemble, did studio work on jingles. Played with Charlie Sepulveda; Eddie Palmieri; in LV with Natalie Cole '86. Worked with Bill Ware '88, Bobby Sanabria '90; Dizzy Gillespie's United Nation Orchestra '91; Rashied Ali from '91; Ray Barretto '91-2; Gil Evans Orchestra '92-4; Groove Collective from '93; Medeski, Martin & Wood from '94; subbing in Mingus big band from '94. Played with Roy Hargrove big band, Chucho Valdez '98. Early influences include Charlie Parker, John Coltrane, Stanley Turerentine, Michael Brecker, P. D'Rivera, Rahsaan Roland Kirk. Favorites: Joe Henderson, Illinois Jacquet, Lester Young. Festivals: Montreux with Barretto '91, Groove Collective '94; Madarao with Groove Collective, CHBB '94; Montreal with Steps Ahead'95; Nice with Barretto, Groove Collective, own trio '97; Umbria, Baranquilla, Havana '98.  

Arturo O’Farrill, pianist, composer, educator, and founder of the nonprofit Afro Latin Jazz Alliance, was born in Mexico, grew up in New York, and was educated at the Manhattan School of Music, Brooklyn College Conservatory, and the Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College. Mr. O’Farrill played piano with the Carla Bley Big Band from 1979 through 1983.  He then went on to develop as a solo performer with a wide spectrum of artists including Dizzy Gillespie, Steve Turre, Freddy Cole, The Fort Apache Band, Lester Bowie, Wynton Marsalis, and Harry Belafonte. In 1995 Mr. O’Farrill agreed to direct the band that preserved much of his father’s music, the Chico O’Farrill Afro Cuban Jazz Orchestra, which recently concluded a 15-year residency at Birdland.  In 2002, Mr. O’Farrill created the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra (ALJO) for Jazz at Lincoln Center due to a large body of music in the genre of Latin and Afro Cuban Jazz that deserves to be much more widely appreciated.  His debut album with the Orchestra, Una Noche Inolvidable, earned a GRAMMY Award nomination in 2006, and the Orchestra’s second album, Song for Chico, earned a GRAMMY Award for Best Latin Jazz Album in 2009.  In 2011 Mr. O’Farrill and the ALJO released their third and newest album, 40 Acres and a Burro, which was nominated for a GRAMMY Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album.

The Jay Rodriguez/Arturo O'Farrill Duo will be featured at  The Uptown Tea Series, a monthly family art program at The Dwyer Cultural Art Center -258 St. Nicholas Ave. NYC 10027 (123rd St.)- May 27, Sunday at 2pm. The Uptown Tea Series is sponsored in part by the generous support of the Dwyer Cultural Center, International Communications Association and Harlem World Magazine. The Uptown Tea Series is A Loft Arts Productions, in association with Arts & Education Continuum.