Elio Villafranca is a Cuban jazz pianist and composer. He was born in the Cuban province of

Pinar del Río Pinar del Río is the capital city of Pinar del Río Province, Cuba. With a population of 139,336 (2004) in a municipality of 190,332, it is the List of cities in Cuba, 10th-largest city in Cuba. Inhabitants of the area are called ''Pinareños'' ...

, and studied in the faculty of music of the

Instituto Superior de Arte The University of Arts of Cuba / Instituto Superior de Arte (ISA) was established on September 1, 1976, by the Cuban government as a school for the arts. Its original structure had three schools: Music, Visual Arts, and Performing Arts. History ...

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

. He worked on ''Things I Wanted to do'' by Chembo Corniel, which was nominated for Best Latin Jazz Album at the

2010 Grammy Awards The 52nd Annual Grammy Awards took place on January 31, 2010, at Staples Center in Los Angeles honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning October 1, 2008 through September 30, 2009. Neil Young was honored as the 2010 MusiCares Pe ...

; his album ''Cinque'' was nominated in 2020. In 2014 he received the first JALC Millennium Swing Award. He teaches at the

Manhattan School of Music The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory in New York City. The school offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition, as well as a bachelor's in mu ...

, at

Temple University Temple University (Temple or TU) is a public state-related research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was founded in 1884 by the Baptist minister Russell Conwell and his congregation Grace Baptist Church of Philadelphia then called Ba ...

, and at the

Juilliard School of Music The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...

, where he specializes in

jazz ensemble A jazz band (jazz ensemble or jazz combo) is a musical ensemble that plays jazz music. Jazz bands vary in the quantity of its members and the style of jazz that they play but it is common to find a jazz band made up of a rhythm section and a ho ...

. He has received awards including the 2017 Sunshine Award, the 2018 Downbeat Critic's Poll "Rising Stars Keyboard" and the 2019 Downbeat Critic's Poll "Rising Stars Pianist". In 2021 he received a

Guggenheim Fellowship Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the ar ...

music composition Musical composition can refer to an original piece or work of music, either vocal or instrumental, the structure of a musical piece or to the process of creating or writing a new piece of music. People who create new compositions are called c ...

Discography

As Leader * 2003 - ''Incantations/Encantaciones'' - 50 best jazz albums of the year by JazzTimes Magazine (Universal Latin) Feat:

Pat Martino Pat Martino (born Patrick Carmen Azzara; August 25, 1944 – November 1, 2021) was an American jazz guitarist and composer. Biography Martino was born Patrick Carmen Azzara in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, to father Carmen "Mickey" ...

-guitar,

Terell Stafford Terell Stafford (born November 25, 1966) is a professional jazz trumpet player and current Director of Jazz Studies at the Boyer College of Music and Dance at Temple University. Terell Stafford was born in Miami, Florida, and raised in both Chi ...

-trumpet,

Jane Bunnett Mary Jane Bunnett, (born October 22, 1956) is a Canadian musician and educator. A soprano saxophonist, flautist and bandleader, she is especially known for performing Afro-Cuban jazz. She travels regularly to Cuba to perform with Cuban musicians. ...

-sax/flute, Dafnis Prieto-drums, Carlos Henriquez-bass, Pedrito Martines-percussion/vocals, Chembo Corniel-percussion. * 2007 - ''The Source in Between -'' Top 10 of the JazzWeek World Top 50 Chart for eleven weeks. (Ceiba Tree Music) Feat: Eric Alexander-tenor sax, Dafnis Prieto-dr., Ferenc Nemeth, dr., Jeff Carnet-bass, Yosvany Terry-alto sax, Arturo Stable-percussion. * 2011 - ''Dynamic Resolution'' Elio Villafranca Special guest Charles Flores (Produced by Ceiba Tree Music and 16 Eyes Records, and distributed by Acoustic Sounds). 180gram Audiophile LP and CD * 2012 - ''Dos y Mas -'' Elio Villafranca with Arturo Stable (Motema Music) * 2012 - Elio Villafranca & The Jass Syncopators - ''Flower by the Dry'' River (Produced and distributed by Elusive Disc and Direct Grace Records) A Double 33RPM LPs album. Feat. drummer

Victor Lewis Victor Lewis (born May 20, 1950) is an American jazz drummer, composer, and educator. Early life Victor Lewis was born on May 20, 1950 in Omaha, Nebraska. His father, Richard Lewis, who played saxophone and mother, Camille, a pianist-vocalist ...

, saxophonists

Vincent Herring Vincent Dwayne Herring (born November 19, 1964) is an American jazz saxophonist, flautist, composer, and educator. Known for his fiery and soulful playing in the bands of Horace Silver, Freddie Hubbard, and Nat Adderley in the earlier stages of h ...

, JD Allen, trumpet Bruce Harris, bassist Gregg August, and Los Pleneros de la 21. * 2014 - Elio Villafranca & The Jass Syncopators - Caribbean Tinge, ''Live a Dizzy’s Club CocaCola'' (Motema Music) * 2014 - ''Old Waters, New River''. Elio Villafranca/Spiros Exaras (Harbinger Records) * 2018 - ''Cinque'' - featuring

Wynton Marsalis Wynton Learson Marsalis (born October 18, 1961) is an American trumpeter, composer, teacher, and artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center. He has promoted classical and jazz music, often to young audiences. Marsalis has won nine Grammy Awar ...

, Vincent Herring, Freddie Hendrix,

Greg Tardy Gregory Tardy is an American jazz saxophonist, who has released albums for the record labels SteepleChase Records, J Curve Records, and Impulse! Records.Allmusic discography/ref> As of May 2015 he is teaching at the University of Tennessee, Knoxv ...

Lewis Nash Lewis Nash (born December 30, 1958) is an American jazz drummer. According to ''Modern Drummer'' magazineNashhas one of the longest discographies in jazz and has played on over 400 records, earning him the honor of Jazz's Most Valuable Player ...

, and

Steve Turre Stephen Johnson Turre (born September 12, 1948, in Omaha, Nebraska) is an American jazz trombonist and a pioneer of using Conch (instrument), seashells as instruments, a composer, arranger, and educator at the collegiate-conservatory level. For ...

References

Latin jazz musicians Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Afro-Cuban jazz composers Afro-Cuban jazz bandleaders Motéma Music artists {{DEFAULTSORT:Villafranca, Elio