North London’s Cuba Solidarity Campaign presents Omar Puente’s ‘Making Music The Cuban Way’ – a talk. Followed by an evening of jazz with a Cuban spirit.
Profits go to the Music Fund for Cuba charity.
Omar Puente
Omar Puente is a Cuban-born violinist and jazz musician, currently living in England. He has been called “a classical violinist with a heart that beats with a Cuban rhythm, a soul that is African, and a home in West Yorkshire”.
He plays with Courtney Pine, and in 2006 released the CD ‘Bridges’ with Robert Mitchel and completed an Arts Council supported tour focused on performing in rural areas across the UK. He and Robert were also involved in developing a fusion project ‘Nuance’ with members of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and he worked with Dennis Rollins on a commissioned work for Ensemble 360 culminating in a well-received performance at Doncaster Minster in February 2006. Playing with these artists as well as others such as Rod Youngs, Jason Yarde, Cameron Pierre and Byron Wallen, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, (the list goes on and on) has allowed Puente to develop his own sound, drawing together elements of jazz, classical and Cuban music.
John Etheridge
John Etheridge rightly enjoys a glowing reputation throughout the jazz world and beyond and has been described by Pat Metheny as, “One of the best guitarists in the world”. He is a prodigiously gifted and creative player whose approach to music can only be described as ‘eclectic’ as he refuses to accommodate or even acknowledge artificial musical boundaries. His range is well illustrated by his years of touring and recording with the iconic Stephane Grappelli while simultaneously doing likewise with the legendary jazz-fusion group, The Soft Machine. John is equally at home on acoustic and electric guitar and his willingness to engage with so many styles is matched by his ability to excel in any of them. He has played with John Williams, Yehudi Menuhin, Dizzie Gillespie, Herb Ellis, Mundell Lowe, Nigel Kennedy, Pat Metheny, Birelli Lagrene, Barney Kessel, Vic Juris and countless others.
Gary Crosby
Gary Crosby OBE is a leading jazz double bassist, music arranger and educator in the UK. He is also the Artistic Director of Tomorrow’s Warriors.
A founder member of the original Jazz Warriors, Gary Crosby is a professional musician and bandleader, composer/arranger, record producer, company director and facilitator. He leads Gary Crosby’s Nu Troop, Gary Crosby Trio, Guava, Jazz Jamaica and Jazz Jamaica All Stars – and has worked with many top international artists. Gary is the nephew of guitarist Ernest Ranglin, who performed with Jazz Jamaica at Ronnie Scott’s in October 2009 as part of the club’s anniversary concert series.
In 1991, Gary established Tomorrow’s Warriors, providing a platform for talented young musicians who wished to pursue a career in jazz. Over the following 13 years, the Tomorrow’s Warriors Jazz Café Jam Session became an institution and developed four generations of Warriors, including Denys Baptiste, J-Life and Soweto Kinch.