|
|
 Omar Sosa
Composer-pianist-bandleader Omar Sosa was born in 1965 in Camagüey, Cuba's largest inland
city. At age eight, Omar began studying percussion and marimba at the music conservatory
in Camagüey; in Havana, as a teenager, he took up piano at the prestigious Escuela Nacional
de Música, and completed his formal education at the Instituto Superior de Arte in Havana.
Among his influences, Omar cites traditional Afro-Cuban music, European classical composers
(including Chopin, Bartok, and Satie), Monk, Coltrane, Parker, Oscar Peterson, Herbie Hancock,
Chick Corea, Keith Jarrett, Chucho Valdés, and the pioneering Cuban jazz group Irakere.
Moving in 1993 to Ecuador, Omar immersed himself in the folkloric traditions of Esmeraldas,
the northwest coast region whose African heritage includes the distinctive marimba tradition. He
relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area in 1995, and soon invigorated the Latin jazz scene with
his adventurous writing and percussive style.
Annually performing upwards of 100 concerts on six continents, Omar has appeared in venues as
diverse as the Blue Note (New York, Milan, and Tokyo), Carnegie Hall's Zankel Hall, Boston's
Museum of Fine Arts, Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Arts, the Philadelphia Museum of
Art, the Detroit Institute of Arts, the Walker Art Center, the Getty Center, London's Barbican
and Queen Elizabeth Hall, Glasgow's Royal Concert Hall, and Berlin's Haus der Kulturen der
Welt; festivals including Monterey Jazz, JVC Jazz, Montreal Jazz, Marciac Jazz, North Sea
Jazz, Helsinki, Grenoble Jazz, Montreux Jazz, Naples Jazz, Ravenna Jazz, Roma Jazz, Spoletto,
WOMAD, and Cape Town International Jazz; and universities on several continents, including
a visiting artist fellowship at Princeton University in March 2008, and a visiting artist residency
at Dartmouth College in April 2008. Omar will return to Dartmouth College for a second artist
residency in February 2011.
Mr. Sosa received a lifetime achievement award from the Smithsonian Associates in
Washington, DC in 2003 for his contribution to the development of Latin jazz in the United
States. He has received two nominations from the BBC Radio 3 World Music Awards, in 2004
and 2006, both in the 'Americas' category. In 2003 Omar Sosa received the Afro-Caribbean
Jazz Album of the Year Award from the Jazz Journalists Association in NYC for his recording
Sentir; and a nomination from the Jazz Journalists Association for Latin Jazz Album of the Year
in 2005 for his recording Mulatos.
|
|
|
Omar Sosa received an orchestral commission from Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San
Francisco and the Oakland Easy Bay Symphony, supported by grants from the Rockefeller
Foundation and the MAP Fund (Multi-Arts Production Fund). During 2001-2002, Mr. Sosa
composed a 45-minute work in three movements for symphony orchestra entitled, From Our
Mother, which received its world premiere in January 2003 by the Oakland East Bay Symphony
under the direction of Michael Morgan. In 2009, Mr. Sosa received an orchestral commission
from the city of Girona, Spain and the Festival de Músicas Religiosas y del Mundo de Girona.
The 20-minute work for symphony orchestra, entitled Oda Africana, received its world premiere
in July 2009 by the Jove Orquesta Athenea, conducted by Lluis Caballeria. Also in 2009, Mr.
Sosa received a commission from the Barcelona Jazz Festival to present a tribute to Miles Davis'
Kind Of Blue recording, featuring Afro-Cuban interpretations of the seminal Davis work on
the occasion of its 50th anniversary. The project was performed at L'Auditori in Barcelona in
November 2009.
In 2008, Omar Sosa received funding from the National Endowment for the Arts in conjunction
with Yerba Buena Gardens (San Francisco) and the San Francisco International Arts Festival
to present a new Omar Sosa Quintet featuring American roots vocalist Tim Eriksen. This
collaboration resulted in the 2009 CD release on Half Note Records, Across The Divide, recorded
live at the Blue Note Jazz Club in NYC. The project received a GRAMMY nomination for Best
Contemporary World Music Album, and a Latin GRAMMY nomination for Best Instrumental
Album, both in 2009.
For May 2011, Mr. Sosa has received further funding from the National Endowment for the Arts
in conjunction with the Jazz School in Berkeley, California and the San Francisco International
Arts Festival, to present a series of workshops with noted Latin jazz percussionist, educator
and historian, John Santos, as well as a Festival performance in San Francisco with his primary
touring ensemble, Afreecanos Quartet.
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
Mr. Sosa's recording career began in 1997 with the release of his first solo piano recording,
Omar Omar on the Oakland, California-based record label, Ot Records, and has continued with
the release of 22 CDs as a leader, resulting in five GRAMMY nominations. These include a
2002 GRAMMY nomination and Latin GRAMMY nomination for Best Latin Jazz Album for
the CD Sentir; a 2005 GRAMMY nomination for Best Latin Jazz Album for the CD Mulatos,
featuring Cuban saxophone and clarinet master, Paquito D'Rivera; and the two nominations for
Across The Divide in 2009.
Omar works with an array of African, Arabic, European, Indian, Latin, and North American
musicians. Among his many associations are drummers and percussionists Steve Argüelles,
Julio Barretto, Mino Cinelu, Miguel "Angá" Diaz, Marque Gilmore, Trilok Gurtu, Marcos
Ilukán, Ramiro Musotto, Gustavo Ovalles, Pancho Quinto, Adam Rudolph, John Santos,
Carlos "Patato" Valdés, and Orestes Vilató; singers Tim Eriksen, Lázaro Galarraga, Marta
Galarraga, El Houssaine Kili, Xiomara Laugart, María Márquez, Will Power, Mola Sylla, the
Tenores San Gavino de Oniferi - Sardinia, and Dhafer Youssef; trumpeter Paolo Fresu; and
woodwind masters Paquito D'Rivera, Luis Depestre, Leandro Saint-Hill, and Mark Weinstein.
Another recent work is Tales From The Earth (Otá Records, 2009), led by flute player Mark
Weinstein. The recording presents a thoroughly cosmopolitan outlook rooted in the rhythmic
intensity and improvisatory, call-and-response spirit of Africa writ large. It features artists of
Cuban, Haitian, West African, European, African American, and Jewish American heritage, with
a shared commitment to the communal, celebratory character that embodies the expressive riches
of Mother Africa and features Omar on marimba and vibraphone, which he studied in Cuba's
conservatories before switching to piano.
|
|
|
|
|
|
A major new project bears the fruit of Omar's first big band collaboration, working with
composer Jaques Morelenbaum and Hamburg's North German Radio (NDR) Bigband.
Recorded in 2007 and 2008 at the NDR studios in Hamburg, it features Jaques Morelenbaum
arrangements of material from the Omar Sosa CDs Spirit Of The Roots (1999), Bembón (2000),
and Afreecanos (2008). Jaques Morelenbaum has arranged for Antonio Carlos Jobim, Gal
Costa, Gilberto Gil, Caetano Veloso, and Cesária Evora, among many others. Omar Sosa-NDR
Bigband performances were held at the Banlieues Bleues festival in Paris and the NDR studios
in March 2010; and will be presented again by the Barcelona Jazz Festival in November 2010 at
that city's famous Palau Música Catalana, with Jaques Morelenbaum conducting.
New performing pursuits include a trio with noted Italian trumpet player Paolo Fresu and
master Indian percussionist Trilok Gurtu. Notable video productions include Light In The Sky,
filmed in Salvador de Bahia, Brazil and directed by Aitor Echeverria (from the 2008 CD release
Afreecanos), and the recent DVD release of Omar Sosa's 2007 Java Jazz Festival performance in
Jakarta, Indonesia.
For film and television, Omar Sosa collaborated in 2008 on the soundtrack for the PBS
documentary, The Judge and the General; and completed the soundtrack for the 2010 film The
Last Flight of the Flamingo, produced by Fado Filmes in Lisbon, Portugal, and based on Mia
Couto's famous novel about Mozambique. Mr. Sosa also contributed a musical excerpt to the
2006 Andy Garcia film, The Lost City.
In 2011, Omar released his fifth solo piano recording, Calma, which received a Latin GRAMMY
nomination. Featuring Omar's unique and original approach to the genre, the CD is comprised
of 13 solo piano improvisations, fusing stylistic elements of jazz, classical new music, ambient,
and electronica.
In January 2012, Omar collaborated with celebrated Italian trumpet and flugelhorn player, Paolo
Fresu, on the release of Alma. The CD features guest cello contributions on four tracks by the
masterful Brazilian conductor, arranger, producer, and cellist, Jaques Morelenbaum. Produced
by Paolo Fresu and Omar Sosa for Mr. Fresu's label imprint, Tuk Music, the compositions are
written by Omar Sosa and Paolo Fresu, except for Under African Skies, a gentle version of the
popular track from the Paul Simon CD, Graceland.
Omar Sosa's next studio album, “Eggun: The Afri-Lectric Experience”, is set for release
worldwide in February 2013. Eggun, in the West African spiritual practice of Ifa and its various
expressions throughout the African Diaspora, are the spirits of those who have gone before us,
both in our personal families and those who serve as our spiritual guides.
The Omar Sosa Afri-Lectric Experience began as a commission from the Barcelona Jazz Festival
in 2009. The assignment: to compose and produce a tribute performance to Miles Davis'
classic Kind Of Blue recording on the occasion of its 50th anniversary. Inspired by various
musical elements and motifs from Kind Of Blue, Omar wrote a suite of music honoring the spirit
of freedom in Davis' seminal work. Featuring trumpet and two saxophones, Eggun provides a
medium for musical elements from Africa to shape and develop the music, and the resulting jazz
textures are further enriched by the subtle and expressive use of electronic elements. At the heart
of the recording is the spirit of Mother Africa.
Following the success of the Kind Of Blue commission, Omar began to include the new
arrangements into the repertoire of his regular touring ensemble, resulting in the creation of
the The Afri-Lectric Experience. The featured horn players are Joo Kraus on trumpet (from
Germany), Leandro Saint-Hill on saxophones and flute (from Cuba), and Peter Apfelbaum on
saxophones and percussion (from U.S.A.). Omar's longtime rhythm section of Marque Gilmore
on drums (from U.S.A.) and Childo Tomas on electric bass (from Mozambique) create the
foundation.
Special guests on the project include Lionel Loueke on guitars (from Benin), Marvin Sewell
on guitars (from U.S.A.), Pedro Martinez on Afro-Cuban percussion (from Cuba), John Santos
on percussion (from U.S.A.) and Gustavo Ovalles on Afro-Venezuelan percussion (from
Venezuela). The CD was recorded primarily in Brooklyn, NY.
|
|
|
Omar Sosa Awards
|
2002
|
|
Latin GRAMMY Nomination, Best Latin Jazz Album, Sentir (OTA1009)
|
|
2002
|
|
GRAMMY Nomination, Best Latin Jazz Album, Sentir (OTA1009)
|
|
2002
|
|
Afro-Caribbean Jazz Album of the Year Award, Sentir (OTA1009)
|
|
|
|
Jazz Journalists Association (New York, NY)
|
|
2003
|
|
Lifetime Achievement Award
|
|
|
|
Smithsonian Associates (Washington, DC)
|
|
2004
|
|
BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music Nomination, Sentir (OTA1009)
|
|
2005
|
|
Latin Jazz Album of the Year Nomination, Mulatos (OTA1014)
|
|
|
|
Jazz Journalists Association (New York, NY)
|
|
2005
|
|
GRAMMY Nomination, Best Latin Jazz Album, Mulatos (OTA1014)
|
|
2006
|
|
BBC Radio 3 Awards for World Music Nomination, Mulatos (OTA1014)
|
|
2009
|
|
Latin GRAMMY Nomination, Best Instrumental Album, Across The Divide (HN4538)
|
|
2009
|
|
GRAMMY Nomination, Best Contemporary World Music Album, Across The Divide (HN4538)
|
|
2011
|
|
ECHO Jazz Award (Germany), Big Band Album of the Year, Ceremony (OTA1021)
|
|
2011
|
|
Latin GRAMMY Nomination, Best Instrumental Album, Calma (OTA1022)
|
Photo by Olivier Auverlau |
|
|
|
Photo by Olivier Auverlau
|
|
 Mr. Sosa's discography as a leader includes:
Omar Omar, 1997
Free Roots, 1997
Nfumbe, 1998
Spirit Of The Roots, 1998
Inside, 1999
Bembón, 2000
Prietos, 2001
Sentir, 2002
Ayaguna, 2003
A New Life, 2003
Pictures Of Soul, 2004
Aleatoric EFX, 2004
Mulatos, 2004
Ballads, 2005
Mulatos Remix, 2006
Live à FIP, 2006
Promise, 2007
A Day Off, 2007
Afreecanos, 2008
Tales From The Earth, 2009
Across The Divide, 2009
Ceremony, 2010
Calma, 2011
Alma, 2012
|
|
|