Articles

Omar Sosa, Yilian Cañizares, Gustavo Ovalles at Fano Jazz By The Sea 2019

By Andrea Rotili

Omar Sosa: Building Bridges Not Walls

By Duncan Heining

Cuban-born pianist, Omar Sosa is a passionate man. Music, religion, family, his relationship to the planet—all these are inseparable to an artist whose musical world is steeped in the Afro-Cuban heritage that he draws upon so personally and individually in his work. Spinning culinary metaphors to describe the processes of music-making, he sings the praises of the musicians from so many different cultures with whom he collaborates. But most of all, he is passionate in his concern for the environment ...

Omar Sosa & Yilian Cañizares: Aguas

By Matt Hooke

Omar Sosa is an artist whose music is always in flux. With each new album, Sosa presents new aspects of himself and brings in new collaborators to expand his Afro-Cuban-rooted music. Aguas is no exception to this, as it sees Sosa moving in an opposite direction from his explorations in 2017's fantastic Transparent Water, which, at its core, is a roots music record, with Sosa, and Senegalese Kora virtuoso Seckou Keita, blending Afro-Cuban tradition with the West African. Aguas a ...

Omar Sosa: Es:sensual

By Dan Bilawsky

Cuban-born pianist Omar Sosa's music, be it presented in solo performances or conjured by a small-or medium-sized group, has always drawn on confidential mysticism. But that's not to say that his work doesn't lend itself to large-scale interpretation. With Ceremony (Otá Records, 2010) Sosa came out of the candlelit realms and shadows, bringing his music into full light by teaming up with Brazilian cellist-arranger Jaques Morelenbaum and Germany's NDR Big Band to stretch his worldly designs onto larger canvases. Now, ...

Omar Sosa At SFJAZZ

By Walter Atkins

SFJAZZ, Miner AuditoriumOmar Sosa TourSan Francisco CAApril 21, 2017 Acclaimed pianist Omar Sosa quietly took the unlit stage with only a single candle providing limited illumination. He silently started his show with a solemn keyboard solo. Respected SF Bay Area percussionist and educator John Santos then entered from the opposite side and joined in. The process continued until the last group member was onstage, contributing to the percussive mix. The full lineup consisted of: Sosa, ...

Omar Sosa Residency at SFJAZZ

By Harry S. Pariser

Omar Sosa Residency SFJAZZ Spring Season San Francisco, CA April 21-23, 2017 “You don't really listen to an Omar Sosa concert so much as experience it. The Cuban-born pianist's overall demeanor exudes a sense of calm and deep reflection, while a spiritual connection to music and his ancestors comes through in his piano playing." --NPR Music At the commencement of each evening of his four-night residency at SFJAZZ, Omar Sosa, clad ...

Omar Sosa & Seckou Keita: Transparent Water

By Dan Bilawsky

Omar Sosa would make an excellent global ambassador. He seems to make friends and erase boundary lines wherever he goes. Back in 2012, the Cuban pianist connected with Senegalese kora guru Seckou Keita through a mutual musical associate--drummer Marque Gilmore. Sosa and Keita struck up a quick friendship at that initial meeting, ultimately leading to the creation of this radiant collaboration. They laid down the basic tracks for the project in 2013 and added some other worldly (and otherworldly) voices ...