Omar Sosa is a Cuban-born pianist, composer, and bandleader whose work spans world jazz, Cuban, Caribbean, Latin American, European, and African traditions. Over a three-decade career and some 35 recordings, Sosa has gained a devoted following and garnered numerous commissions and residencies, along with Rockefeller Foundation and National Endowment for the Arts support, a Smithsonian Lifetime Achievement Award, two BBC Radio 3 World Music Awards, four Grammy nominations, and three Latin Grammy nominations.
Omar Sosa possesses a remarkable capacity to bring the most diverse musical idioms into fruitful juxtaposition, moving through and beyond his wide-ranging influences, from the folkloric to the classical, while sustaining a singular cosmopolitan voice.
Omar is an artist in constant search of new combinations, conjuring a joyous display of creative generosity and expressive freedom. As he observes, “Whatever I did before is already in the past. I am always focused on what I am working on in the moment, and looking for what comes next.”
Part of what comes next is filmmaker Soren Sorensen’s award-winning, feature-length documentary Omar Sosa’s 88 Well–Tuned Drums, with an eponymous vinyl soundtrack set for release on Record Store Day (April 20). Omar will close his spring 2024 U.S. tour in a five-night run at Birdland (April 9–13) with his Quarteto Americanos. From there he moves on to a European tour from April through July, appearing in Switzerland, Germany, the UK, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and France.
This episode of Jazz Roots & Branches draws upon Omar’s expansive catalogue.
Track List
Title | Artist(s) | Album
Mis Tres Notas | Omar Sosa | Ballads
L3zero | Omar Sosa | Mulatos
Light in the Sky | Omar Sosa | Afreecanos
Alma | Omar Sosa & Paolo Fresu | Alma
A Love Lost (Reprise) | Omar Sosa | Ilé
Sad Meeting | Omar Sosa | Ilé
Cha Cha du Nord | Omar Sosa & The NDR Bigband | Es:sensual
Black Dream | Omar Sosa & Seckou Keita | Transparent Water
Milonga | Omar Sosa & Yilian Cañizares (and Pablo Neruda sample) | Aguas
Ravann Dan Jazz | Menwar & Omar Sosa | An East African Journey
Omar Sosa