Jazz Articles about Pat Prouty

About Pat Prouty

Album Review

Tumbao Bravo with Paul Vornhagen: Joy of the Mambo

Read "Joy of the Mambo" reviewed by Dan McClenaghan

by Dan McClenaghan
March 25, 2026

Dance music means a good time. The mambo, the cha cha, 'rhumba' and bolero beats challenge the feet to stay still, they challenge the butt to stay in the chair. The music is pure joy, and reed man Paul Vornhagen and his sextet, Tumbao Bravo, exploit that joy to the max on the fittingly titled Joy of the Mambo. The tone is set with the opener “Firefly Mambo." It is a percolating stew of sound, smile-inducing and dance-friendly, ...

Album Review

Paul Vornhagen: Live at the Blue LLama

Read "Live at the Blue LLama" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
May 19, 2025

Saxophonist and composer Paul Vornhagen, a durable pillar on Detroit's jazz scene for almost three decades, puts his working quartet straight to work on this inspiring concert date, recorded in November 2023 at the Blue Llama Jazz Club in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The group's precision and empathy are clear from the outset, as pianist Pat Cronley, bassist Patrick Prouty and drummer Larry Ochiltree put their heads and hands together to lend Vornhagen unwavering support on every number, ...