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Jazz Articles about Arturo O'Farrill
Arturo O'Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra: Four Questions
by Jack Bowers
The Four Questions addressed by composer / pianist Arturo O'Farrill's Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra on its latest album were first posed in 1903 by W.E.B. DuBois in his book The Souls of Black Folk and are answered herein by the esteemed educator / historian / social activist Dr. Cornel West. For the record, the questions are “what does integrity do in the face of adversity and oppression, what does honesty do in the face of lies and deception, what does ...
Continue ReadingSix Great New Albums
by Bob Osborne
All new music this week with six great new releases. Arturo O'Farrill's Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra. Their latest recording and the first album in his famed recording catalog to exclusively include all originally written compositions. Weaving together empowering messages for the times, the album portrays the pioneering pianist as outspoken as ever on the obligation of artists to speak truth to the great injustices occurring across the globe. Daniel Carter, Patrick Holmes, Matthew Putman. A remarkable ...
Continue ReadingArturo O'Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra at the Sandler Center
by Mark Robbins
In 2007 Arturo O'Farrill founded the Afro Latin Jazz Alliance to “preserve the music and heritage of big band Latin jazz." An integral part of the Alliance is the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra. The large jazz orchestra, led by O'Farrill on piano, stopped at the Sandler Center in Virginia Beach, VA with a smaller version (eight musicians) but with just as big a sound as the full orchestra. The family friendly show was a journey through Cuban music that many ...
Continue ReadingArturo O'Farrill, Chucho Valdes: Familia: Tribute to Bebo & Chico
by Angelo Leonardi
Dizzy Gillespie ricordava con amarezza il modo con cui la critica jazz aveva trattato la sua collaborazione col conguero Chano Pozo, giudicandola un'eccentricità marginale. Il trombettista la giudicava invece il momento culminante della sua carriera. Quell'atteggiamento verso il cosiddetto Latin Jazz è ancora diffuso e il multiforme terreno d'incontro tra jazz e musiche dei caraibi è spesso collocato in una nicchia, considerato tanto spettacolare quanto marginale rispetto all'evoluzione della musica afro-americana. Questo doppio album guarda sia al passato che al ...
Continue ReadingArturo O'Farrill and the Chico O'Farrill Afro Cuban Jazz Orchestra: Final Night at Birdland
by Jack Bowers
On June 26, 2011, Arturo O'Farrill and the Chico O'Farrill Afro Cuban Jazz Orchestra ended a fifteen-year run at New York City's Birdland, and--to our good fortune--had the foresight to record that very special event for everyone to hear and appreciate. The orchestra's scion, the great Chico O'Farrill, was still living when the ensemble made its debut at Birdland 1997. When he passed away four years later, son Arturo took the reins, guiding the orchestra for more than thirteen years ...
Continue ReadingArturo O'Farrill: The Noguchi Sessions
by Dan Bilawsky
Pianist Arturo O'Farrill has been around the block a few times and is rightly respected for his role in elevating the Latin big band genre, but he has shied away from the idea of recording a solo piano album for a long time. In the fall of 2011, O'Farrill found himself sitting behind a Steinway piano in a museum, ready to finally take the plunge, but he wasn't really alone as he placed his fingers on the keys. He was ...
Continue ReadingArturo O'Farrill: 40 Acres And A Burro
by Edward Blanco
Founded in 2002 by Artistic Director Arturo O'Farrill, The Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra of New York's Lincoln Center was created to perform compositions from Latin music masters including the pianist's father Chico O'Farrill, as well as Machito, Tito Puente, Antonio Carlos Jobim, and others. The group separated from Lincoln Center on 2007, becoming part of the new Afro-Latin Jazz Alliance (ALJA), a non-profit organization dedicated to developing a new audience and educational opportunities for young performers. 40 Acres And A Burro, ...
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