Elio Villafranca & the Jass Syncopators take ‘Crossroads from Cuba to New York’

Elio Villafranca & The Jass Syncopators on April 26 took the stage at Aaron Davis Hall for a magical musical journey, “Crossroads from Cuba to New York.”

The 7 p.m. concert, produced and presented by City College Center for the Arts (CCCA), featured the return of two-time GRAMMY Award-winning jazz pianist and Steinway Artist Elio Villafranca and his group The Jass Syncopators in an exploration of the spiritual and musical connection of Cuba and New York and the Diasporic Afro-Cuban musical forms intersecting with jazz that have sprung forth.

CCCA said the event also featured award-winning jazz vocalist Brianna Thomas, a New York City favorite who has performed across the world.

Growing up in Cuba, CCCA said “Villafranca saw how different religions are intertwined with the cultural fabric of Cuba.

“In many of these different religions, people see the crossroads as a place of great significance,” it said. “It was the spiritual concept of the crossroads that touched Villafranca the most and inspired him to create this program, which draws from his second record in a musical trilogy that honors his ancestry and life as a jazz artist.”

“Elio’s extraordinary musicianship along with his deep dive into his culture and the religious mosaic in Cuba created this brilliant masterpiece that we were proud to present,” said CCCA Managing Director Gregory Shanck.

Villafranca, a New York-based jazz pianist, band leader and recording artist, has performed with jazz greats like Wynton Marsalis, Chick Corea, Johnny Pacheco and Lewis Nash.

GRAMMY Award-winning Cuban clarinetist and saxophonist Paquito D’Rivera said of him that, “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…,” he said.

Villafranca is also a jazz faculty member at The Juilliard School of Music, Manhattan School of Music, Princeton University and Temple University.

CCCA said Elio Villafranca & The Jass Syncopators featured Villafranca on piano, Vincent Herring on alto sax, Freddie Hendrix on trumpet, Mark Gross on tenor sax, Tom Guarna on guitar, Edward Perez on bass, Vince Ector on drums, Mauricio Herrera Tamayo on percussion and Brianna Thomas on vocals.

Born in the province of Pinar del Río, Cuba, Steinway artist and cultural activist, author, pianist and composer Elio Villafranca is a 2021 Guggenheim Fellowship recipient, a two-time GRAMMY nominee, 2019 Downbeat Critic’s Poll Rising Stars Pianist, winner of the 2018 Downbeat Critic’s Poll Rising Stars Keyboard, and a 2014 recipient of the first Jazz at Lincoln Center (JALC) Millennium Swing Award, CCCA said.

It said Villafranca has released over 10 acclaimed albums as a leader and performed with jazz and Latin jazz luminaries such as Wynton Marsalis, Lewis Nash, Eric Alexander, Pat Martino, Vincent Herring, Steve Turre, Paquito D’Rivera, Freddie Hendrix and Johnny Pacheco, among others.

CCCA said Villafranca has also performed with jazz masters such as Ron Carter, Jimmy Cobb, Joe Lovano, Jon Faddis, Christian Mc Bride and Chick Corea.

His latest album “Standing by the Crossroads” (Artistshare) was selected by Downbeat among the Best Albums of 2023.

CCCA said Villafranca, who is based in New York City, is a jazz faculty member at Temple University, Princeton University, The Juilliard School of Music and Manhattan School of Music.

Brianna Thomas is an American jazz singer, vocalist, composer, songwriter, band leader and percussionist, CCCA said.

Thomas is known as being “one of the best young straight-ahead jazz singers,” according to  music critic and author Will Friedwald.

“Thomas is known to bring together various forms of American music from bluegrass to jazz into an original hybrid of jazz/funk/rock and soul,” CCCA said.

The award-winning City College Center for the Arts said it hosts an ambitious, year-round calendar of professional performances in the historic Aaron Davis Hall.

“Our mission is to provide a creative arts center and focal point for the City College of New York, building a sense of community within the College, elevating the profile of Aaron Davis Hall in the greater New York area, and connecting the College to the surrounding community through the arts,” it said.