On April 26th, Steinway Artist and Grammy-nominated Cuban jazz pianist and composer Elio Villafranca returns to the Aaron Davis Hall, City College, with his group The Jass Syncopators, featuring singer Brianna Thomas to explore the connection between spiritual and musical crossroads in Cuba and New York. This concert, Crossroads from Cuba to New York, explores the rich diaspora of several Afro-Cuban musical forms and their intersection with jazz.

In Cuba, religions are very intertwined with the cultural fabric. Santeria, Arará, Abakuá, Congo, Tumba Francesa, Gangá, albeit different, have two things in common— the veneration of their deities and how they see the Crossroads as a place of great significance. In Elio’s case, the spiritual and musical crossroads of his experience growing up in Cuba, inside the Congolese tradition of Tambor Yuka, and living the experience of jazz in New York influenced his music the most.

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What people are saying….

“Pianist and composer Elio Villafranca is an inspired and visionary musician. With his band, The Jass Syncopators, Elio expands what Jelly Roll Morton called The Spanish Tinge to what Elio calls The Caribbean Tinge. The band swings hard and brings a traditional yet innovative style to the roots of jazz and Afro Caribbean music. I am profoundly moved by Elio’s vision and musicianship. He is a treasured member of the family here at Jazz at Lincoln Center.”

– Wynton Marsalis

“Elio’s music is passionate.  A brand new application of ancient ways.”

– Chick Corea

[Elio Villafranca] writes and plays with passion and a deep understanding of musical nuance, with chops equal to some of the greatest pianists Cuba has ever produced.

– DownBeat Magazine 

“The musical history of Cuba is full of extraordinary pianists. Elio Villafranca is amongst the best representatives of the new generation of Cuban pianists and composers…” 

-Paquito D’Rivera

The program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.