GLOBAL | LOCAL I:
with Arturo O’Farrill and the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra
June 15 at the PS21 PAVILION THEATER
The multi-Grammy winning Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra (ALJO) led by pianist and composer Arturo O’Farrill, blends the drama of big band jazz, the richness of Latin music, and the virtuosity of eighteen of the world’s most accomplished instrumentalists.
For nearly twenty years, the ALJO has enchanted audiences around the globe with their interpretations of music by Tito Puente, Frank “Machito” Grillo, Chico O’Farrill, among other jazz legends, and expanded the boundaries of the genre by commissioning and premiering new work from Antonio Sánchez, Miguel Zenón, Dafnis Prieto, Guillermo Klein, Pablo Mayor, Michele Rosewoman, Emilio Solla, Papo Vázquez, Vijay Iyer, Arturo himself, and other composers. The orchestra melds the dual sensibilities of Arturo’s love of contemporary, improvisational jazz and the Latin Jazz traditions pioneered by his father, the legendary Chico O’Farrill.
ALJO’s 2023 release, Fandango At The Wall In New York, was awarded the Grammy for Best Latin Jazz Album, their eighth, and The New Yorker singled the orchestra out as “a powerhouse outfit whose precise section work is enhanced by thrilling soloists.”
PATHWAYS Artist Workshop: Pursuing his passion for sharing the vital musical traditions of Afro-Latin jazz with a wide audience and, especially, aspiring young musicians and enthusiasts - Arturo O’Farrill will lead a group of school-aged children through a workshop in Latin rhythms at the Chatham public school on June 16, in partnership with Kids 4 Harmony.
for inquiries, please contact clare@ps21chatham.org
GLOBAL | LOCAL: Musical Worlds Meet at PS21
Our new season-long series features musicians from across the world and from our backyard. The series examines the intersection of two ideas: the continuing need to open our minds to international art and perspectives, and the growing importance of local community, place, and togetherness in an increasingly decentralized and digitized world. PS21 resides in a hotbed of creativity—the Hudson Valley—and many of its finest musicians will be presented alongside world-class international acts in this summer-long series.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
ARTURO O’FARRILL, pianist, composer, and educator, was born in Mexico and grew up in New York City. Arturo’s professional career began with the Carla Bley Band and continued as a solo performer with a wide spectrum of artists including Dizzy Gillespie, Lester Bowie, Wynton Marsalis, and Harry Belafonte.
In 2007, he founded the Afro Latin Jazz Alliance as a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the performance, education, and preservation of Afro Latin music. In December 2010 Arturo traveled with the original Chico O’Farrill Afro Cuban Jazz Orchestra to Cuba, returning his father’s musicians to his homeland. He continues to travel to Cuba regularly as an informal Cultural Ambassador, working with Cuban musicians, dancers, and students, bringing local musicians from Cuba to the US and American musicians to Cuba.
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About PS21
A vibrant center for contemporary performance in the Hudson Valley, PS21 “presents work that challenges and invites” (The New York Times): adventurous productions by leading and emerging American and international artists in music, dance, and theater, and visionaries creating entirely new genres. On our open-air Pavilion Theater stage, across our expansive, unspoiled grounds, and in the diverse surrounding communities, PS21 cultivates and presents productions that transcend aesthetic boundaries and revitalize existing artistic languages and grammars. Throughout the year, we host developmental residencies for dancers, musicians, actors, and creators of original, even unclassifiable new work. Rooted in community collaboration, PS21’s programming engages creatively with critical global and social issues. It is a mecca for innovative and original artistic voices, a destination for performance that can be experienced nowhere else in the region. PS21’s Pavilion Theater is a green-energy marvel surrounded by 100 acres of unspoiled meadows, trails, and woodlands that are a haven to wildlife and visitors across the region. Integrated into our unspoiled campus, the theater embodies our commitments to the public: open, inviting, and optimized for their enjoyment and encouraging citizen expression and participation.
Photography
PS21 will take photos of this event for use in social media and on our website. The photos sometimes include audiences. Your attendance at this performance indicates you consent to appear in PS21 photography. If you would prefer not to appear in any photos, please let a staff member know, and we will be glad to accommodate your request.
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