David Sanchez: Tambó

About this event

Last heard in a sold-out concert at the Outpost as part of the 2025 New Mexico Jazz Festival, Puerto Rican born saxophonist David Sánchez returns with a new project called Tambó. Much like his previous Carib project, Tambó uses a modern jazz context to explore the relationship between the West African drums, melodies and rhythms from Haiti, and music from his native Puerto Rico. Inspired by the powerful musical traditions of Loíza, Puerto Rico and San Basilio de Palenque in Colombia, the music pulses with Afro-Caribbean rhythm, expressive improvisation, and deep cultural roots. Sánchez notes that it is “a means to pay tribute to afro descendent communities who have helped define my music and the culture’s broad ranging beauty and idiosyncrasies. . . the African diaspora throughout the Americas feels to me like a big river, flowing and changing its formation across various lands, but remaining one immense watercourse. Tambó is my continuation of that river, a personal and musical stream I began when I became bandleader for my first album.” Sánchez’ remarkable career, spanning 37 years, was shaped by the rhythms of bomba, plena, salsa, and caribbean music, which laid the foundation for his groundbreaking work. Since his early exposure with Dizzy Gillespie’s United Nations Orchestra, he has become one of the most celebrated instrumentalists in jazz, recording ten albums as a leader and performing and recording with everyone from Charlie Haden to Eddie Palmieri, Roy Haynes, Stefon Harris, and Elvin Jones, among countless others. Along with David Sánchez, Tambó comprises Alex Brown, piano); Tony Escapa, drums; Jhan Lee Aponte, percussion; and bass TBA.