Program Notes:

Danilo Pérez
Piano
Panamanian pianist and composer Danilo Pérez has led his own groups since the early 1990s, and as bandleader has earned three Grammy nominations. In just over a decade, his distinctive blend of Pan-American jazz, covering the music of the Americas, folkloric, and world music, has attracted critical acclaim and loyal audiences. Whether leading his own ensembles or touring with renowned jazz masters such as Wayne Shorter and Roy Haynes, Mr. Pérez is making a decidedly fresh imprint on contemporary music. Born in Panama in 1965, Pérez started his musical studies at just three years of age with his father, who was a bandleader and a singer. By age 10, he was studying the European classical piano repertoire at the National Conservatory in Panama. After receiving his Bachelor's degree in electronics, he moved to the United States to enroll at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and, after changing his major to music, transferred to the prestigious Berklee College of Music. Since the late 1980s, he has toured and/or recorded with Wayne Shorter, Steve Lacy, Jack DeJohnette, Charlie Haden, Michael Brecker, and Joe Lovano, among many others. Currently, Pérez serves as the Ambassador of Goodwill for Unicef, Cultural Ambassador of his native country of Panama, President and Founder of the Panama Jazz Festival, Artistic Advisor of the innovative Jazz Up Close series at the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, and faculty of Berklee College of Music in Boston. Pérez's latest release is Across the Crystal See (Decca).

David Sánchez
Tenor Saxophone
Born in Puerto Rico, David Sánchez began playing percussion and drums, and later picked up tenor, soprano, and alto saxophones, as well as flute and clarinet. By 1988 he moved to the U.S. and quickly became a member of its swirling jazz scene. He came to the attention of jazz legend Dizzy Gillespie and toured with him during the 1991 Live the Future tour. He has been nominated for four Grammy Awards and his album, Coral, won the Latin Grammy for Best Instrumental Album in 2005. Sánchez's latest release, Cultural Survival (Concord), was released in 2008.

Rudresh Mahanthappa
Alto Saxophone
Saxophonist Rudresh Mahanthappa has achieved international recognition performing regularly at jazz festivals and clubs worldwide. Mahanthappa is a Guggenheim fellow and a 2009 Downbeat International Critics Poll Winner ("Rising Star-Jazz Artist" and "Rising Star-Alto Saxophone"). He has managed to incorporate the culture of his Indian ancestry and fuse a myriad of musical influences to create a truly groundbreaking artistic vision. As a performer, he leads or co-leads seven different groups. His most recent release, Kinsmen (Pi Recordings), has been named one of the Top Jazz CDs of 2008 by various publications. Mahanthappa currently lives in New York, and teaches at the New School University.

Amir ElSaffar
Trumpet
Winner of the 2001 Carmine Caruso International Jazz Trumpet competition, Iraqi-American trumpeter Amir ElSaffar is the leader of Safaafir, the only American group performing Iraqi maqam. He has collaborated with an array of artists including Rudresh Mahanthappa, Vijay Iyer, Cecil Taylor, and Daniel Barenboim, and was commissioned to compose Two Rivers, a suite that invokes Iraqi musical traditions framed in a modern jazz setting. He has also composed for theater projects and film soundtracks, and appeared in Jonathan Demme's film, Rachel Getting Married.

Jamey Haddad
Percussion
Word music and jazz percussionist Jamey Haddad specializes in hand drums of a wide variety. At the age of four, he started playing Lebanese percussion instruments, including the goblet drum. He has collaborated with a host of renowned musicians, including Yo-Yo Ma, Joe Lovano, Esperanza Spalding, Dave Liebman, and Dawn Upshaw, and has been a member of Paul Simon's band for nine years. Haddad can be heard as a sideman on more than 170 different recordings.

John Patitucci
Bass
Bassist John Patitucci is one of the most prolific artists in contemporary jazz, splitting his time between touring, recording, composing, and teaching. Born in 1959 in Brooklyn , New York , he began playing the electric bass at age 10 and began composing and performing at age 12. In addition to his 13 albums as a leader, and touring the world with his own band, he has performed with such luminaries as B.B. King, Bonnie Raitt, Chick Corea, Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Dizzy Gillespie, Natalie Cole, Bon Jovi, Queen Latifah, Sting, Carly Simon, and Wynton Marsalis, among countless others. Mr. Patitucci is a multi Grammy Award-winner and has won many magazine polls for his electric and acoustic bass playing, including Best Jazz Bassist in Guitar Player Magazine's 1992, 1994, and 1995 Readers' Poll; and Best Jazz Bassist in Bass Player Magazine's 1993, 1994, 1995, and 1996 Readers' Poll. In 2003, he was appointed Associate Professor of Jazz Studies at City College of New York, replacing Ron Carter.

Adam Cruz
Drums
Adam Cruz is a drummer and composer best known for his work with Danilo Pérez, Steve Wilson, David Sánchez, and Edward Simon. He toured briefly with Chick Corea and, in recent years, has forged a steady musical relationship with Pérez as a member of the Danilo Pérez Trio, which also features bassist Ben Street. He is featured on over 40 recordings as a sideman, the latest being David Sánchez's Cultural Survival (Concord).

All of tonight's artists are making their Royal Conservatory debuts.