Join us for an extraordinary night celebrating the artistry of Israel Lopez “Cachao,” creator of the Mambo, pioneer of the Descarga, and one of the pillars of Cuban music. The Saúl Sierra Quartet features Saúl on bass, Marco Diaz on piano and trumpet, Julio Perez, and Ahkeel Mestayer on percussion. They will be joined by very special guests: John Santos and Orestes Vilató on percussion, Anthony Blea on violin, and Luis Rosa on saxophone.
For the past 20 years Saúl Sierra has been a member of some of the leading bands in the Bay Area, including The John Santos Quintet/Sextet, Bobi Cespedes’ band, Dr. Loco’s Rocking Jalapeño Band, El Tren Trío, Anthony Blea y su Charanga, The Snake Trío, Jesús Díaz y su QBA, The Bay Area Afro-Cuban All Stars, The Venezuelan Music Project, Corazón Sur, Sababa band, Cascada de Flores, SJZ Collective, LaTiDo.
Saul is joined by a team of exquisite musicians:
Five-time GRAMMY nominated percussionist, educator, producer, composer, John Santos, is one of the foremost exponents of Afro-Latin music in the world today. He is known for his innovative use of traditional forms and instruments in combination with contemporary music, and has earned much respect and recognition as a record and event producer.
Orestes Vilató is a Cuban percussionist considered to be one of the foremost timbaleros in the salsa genre. He has been a strong musical presence in the San Francisco Bay Area music scene playing with several groups like the Machete Ensemble and Los Kimbos. He has also been an influential music mentor to many owing to his deep musical knowledge and generous nature. He has worked with Ray Barretto, Johhny Pacheco, Cachao and Carlos Santana.
Anthony Blea, master violinist, is a veteran performer, composer, and instructor, whose performances have graced the stages, and enriched the musical community of the San Francisco Bay Area for over four decades.
Saxophonist Luis Rosa has appeared at major festivals and venues such as the Java Jazz Festival, Hungary’s Mediawave Festival, the Berklee Performance Center, and Boston’s Beantown Jazz Festival. His performance collaborations include work with Wayne Bergeron, Theo Bleckmann, Maurice Brown, Eguie Castrillo, Billy Cobham, Carlos Garnett, Jerry Gonzalez, John Hollenbeck, Roscoe Mitchell, Steve Nash, Charlie Sepulveda, Don Severinsen, Terrell Stafford and Allen Vizzutti among others.
Marco Diaz is an accomplished recording musician who has shared the stage with Grammy Award winning artist, Israel “Cachao” Lopez, Nelson Gonzales, Jimmy Bosch, Pete “El Conde” Rodriguez, Ska Cubano (Europe), Tito Rojas, Nino Segarra, Anthony Cruz, Anthony Blea, Jovino Santos Neto, Joe Santiago, and is an integral member of the John Santos sextet, and the musical director for Bobi Cespedes.
Julio Pérez and Ahkeel Mestayer on percussion are two of the most sought after musicians in the Latin Jazz world. They bring an infectious Afro-Cuban backbeat.
Tickets at The Saúl Sierra Quartet with Special guests play the music of "Cachao"