Concert

Omar Sosa and the Afreecanos Quartet

Date: 25 Mar 2009

Time: 6:30 PM

Location: Washington, DC, United States

The IDB Cultural Center present jazz pianist Omar Sosa and the Afreecanos Quartet
Featuring percussionist John Santos

Three-time GRAMMY-nominated Cuban-born composer and pianist Omar Sosa brings his unique style of Latin jazz to the Inter-American Development Bank Cultural Center in Washington, DC on Wednesday, March 25, 2009.  Rooted in the Afro-Cuban tradition, Omar Sosa continues to explore the African roots of folkloric music throughout the Diaspora, using modern jazz harmonies and the latest audio technology.  Sosa’s new Afreecanos ensemble features noted percussionist and educator, John Santos, Mozambican electric bassist, Childo Tomas, and New York-based saxophonist and flute player, Peter Apfelbaum.  The ensemble fuses the folkloric with the contemporary, the ancestral with the urban - all with a Latin jazz heart.

Howard Reich of the Chicago Tribune commented, “few have been more stylistically adventurous than Omar Sosa.  Though deeply schooled in jazz improvisation techniques, Sosa always has pushed beyond jazz orthodoxy.  At his best, his art encompasses a remarkable range of influences:  European symphonic repertoire, religious music of Gnawa, traditional sounds of Senegal and other far-flung idioms have coursed through his work.  All of which piques one’s interest in his newest ensemble, Afreecanos Quartet.”

On his current CD, “Afreecanos”, Omar weaves his own artistry with traditional elements from across Africa and the Americas, producing a thoroughly contemporary jazz idiom that blends and celebrates the many and diverse voices heard on the recording.  Downbeat magazine describes it as “an ocean of quiet beauty.”