Paquito D'Rivera / Improvise!

×

Expand

AMNH_R_Mickens

Paquito D'Rivera

Join us for the next concert of Season One with Prager Family Center for the Arts Artist in Residence, Gabriela Montero.

Inspired by the storied associations of individual artists with unique places - from Argerich and Lugano to Bernstein and The Berkshires -

Venezuelan pianist and composer Gabriela Montero brings world-class musicians, mentorship and community engagement to her new home town on Maryland's Eastern Shore.

From the intimate setting of the Prager Family Center for the Arts in the heart of downtown Easton, audiences enjoy up-close performances by some of the most acclaimed artists of our time.

Legendary clarinetist Paquito D’Rivera defies categorization. The winner of fourteen Grammy Awards, he is celebrated both for his artistry in Latin jazz and his achievements as a classical composer.

Born in Havana, Cuba, he performed at age 10 with the National Theater Orchestra, studied at the Havana Conservatory of Music and, at 17, became a featured soloist with the Cuban National Symphony. As a founding member of the Orquesta Cubana de Musica Moderna, he directed that group for two years, while at the same time playing both the clarinet and saxophone with the Cuban National Symphony Orchestra. He eventually went on to premier several works by notable Cuban composers with the same orchestra. Additionally, he was a founding member and co-director of the innovative musical ensemble Irakere. With its explosive mixture of jazz, rock, classical and traditional Cuban music never before heard, Irakere toured extensively throughout America and Europe, won several GRAMMY nominations (1979, 1980) and a GRAMMY (1979).

His numerous recordings include more than 30 solo albums. In 1988, he was a founding member of the United Nation Orchestra, a 15-piece ensemble organized by Dizzy Gillespie to showcase the fusion of Latin and Caribbean influences with jazz. D’Rivera continues to appear as guest conductor. A GRAMMY was awarded the United Nation Orchestra in 1991, the same year D’Rivera received a Lifetime Achievement Award from Carnegie Hall for his contributions to Latin music. Additionally, D’Rivera’s highly acclaimed ensembles- the Chamber Jazz Ensemble, the Paquito D’Rivera Big Band, and the Paquito D’Rivera Quintet are in great demand world wide.