Conrad Herwig
Born on November 1, 1959, Conrad Herwig spent his Oklahoma youth deeply involved in music. He immersed himself in jazz at the University of North Texas, and then later earned his BA in Afro-Caribbean Ethnomusicology at Goddard College. He refocused his education onto performance and gained a Master’s Degree in Jazz Studies at Queens College. Herwig landed his first major jazz gig in 1980, a trombone chair in the Clark Terry Big Band. This led to a position in the Buddy Rich Orchestra, and a string of big band jobs. He moved to New York and soon recorded the 1987 album With Every Breath. Herwig officially joined the Latin Jazz world with his first major Latin Jazz album date, Tito Puente’s The Mambo King: His 100th Album His strong playing earned him more Latin Jazz dates, including Eddie Palmieri’s Llegó la India, Mario Bauza’s The Tanga Suite and Paquito D’Rivera’s A Night in Englewood. In 1994, Herwig joined trumpet player Bryan Lynch and Saxophonist Donald Harrison in Eddie Palmieri’s Afro-Caribbean Jazz Octet, resulting in several albums: Palmas, Arete, and Vortex. As Palmieri reached back into his Salsa roots, Herwig remained a creative partner, recording on 1998’s El Rumbero del Piano, the 2002 release La Perfecta II, and the 2000 Palmieri/Puente album Obra Maestra (Masterpiece). At the same time, Herwig released a number of jazz albums under his own name including 1996’s New York Breed, the 1999 album Osteology, and the 2002 release Shades of Light. In 2004, Herwig collaborated with Palmieri band mate Brian Lynch in two albums that re-imagined two major jazz influences. Que Viva Coltrane brought original arrangements to eight of John Coltrane’s compositions, using a group of New York’s top Latin Jazz musicians. Another Kind of Blue: The Latin Side of Miles Davis captured a live performance featuring Paquito D’Rivera, Dave Valentin, Robby Ameen, and more. The album presented Latin Jazz versions of each song from the classic Miles Davis album Kind of Blue, and was honored with a Grammy nomination. Herwig rejoined Palmieri and his group with 2005’s Listen Here!, then again in 2006 for the Lynch/Palmieri Grammy winning album Simpatico. His restless search for new musical ventures and his love for both jazz and Latin music send Herwig’s trombone voice to the forefront of the Latin Jazz World.

Papo Vazquez
Papo Vazquez was born on February 24, 1958, and spent his childhood in Philadelphia’s Puerto Rican community. He bought a trombone from a friend for $5.00 and joined his elementary school’s band. When Vazquez’s 14th year, his uncle recommended him for a Salsa gig While on the gig, trumpet player Jimmy Purvis gave Vazquez J.J. Johnson’s “Blue Trombone” and John Coltrane’s “Live At The Village Vanguard.” These two albums started a lifelong passion for jazz that inspired him to reach new heights. By the time he was 15, Vazquez was performing with local Latin bands in Philadelphia and accompanying visiting artists such as Eddie Palmieri. He soon moved to New York and performed with several influential Salsa artists, including Willie Colon, Ray Barretto, and more. In 1979, he dove deeper into his love for jazz through studies with Slide Hampton. Vazquez learned quickly, and he soon began performing with Hampton’s World of Trombones, as well as Ray Charles and Dizzy Gillespie. He also became a major player on the New York Latin Jazz scene, performing with Jerry Gonzalez, Hilton Ruiz, and more. Vazquez spent the early eighties in Puerto Rico and helped form the Puerto Rican Salsa and Latin Jazz group, Batacumbele. Batacumbele lasted through 1985, recording a variety of albums including Con Un Poco De Songo and En Aquellos Tiempos. During this time, he also began to experiment with “Bomba Jazz,” a mixture of jazz and traditional Puerto Rican Bomba. After his tenure with Batacumbele, Vazquez moved back to New York and worked extensively with Tito Puente and Dizzy Gillespie’s United Nation’s Orchestra. In 1993 he recorded his first album as a leader, Breakout. He continued collaborating with a variety of Latin Jazz artists, contributing to Hilton Ruiz’s Manhattan Mambo and Abrazate: Descarga Boricua, Vol. 2. In 1999, he released another Latin Jazz album At the Point, Vol. 1; a live recording featuring a number of important New York Latin Jazz artists, including bassist Andy Gonzalez, piano player Arturo O’Farrill, and drummer Horacio Hernandez. Vazquez followed this release the next year with At The Point, Vol. 2. Vazquez returned his emphasis onto Puerto Rican rhythms by forming Pirates Troubadores, an “Afro Puerto Rican Jazz Band.” He began performing with the group, which included musicians such as John Benitez on bass, Dafnis Prieto on drums, and Milton Cardona on percussion. In 2003, the group released Carnival in San Juan and performed at festivals around the world. The group released their second album in 2007, From The Badlands. Vazquez’s love for Puerto Rican rhythms brings an original slant to Latin Jazz and his passionate playing creates an indistinguishable Latin Jazz trombone style.

Chris Washburne
Chris Washburne grew up in Bath, Ohio playing trombone both in school band programs and local rock bands. He pursued music studies at University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he studied jazz deeply with former Coltrane bassist Richard Davis. After finishing his undergrad studies, he moved to the New England Conservatory to work on a Master’s Degree. During that time, a friend asked him to sub on a Salsa gig, and the experience hooked Washburne on Latin music. He discovered Eddie Palmieri, and extensively transcribed Palmieri trombonist Barry Rogers’ work. After finishing his Master’s Degree in 1988, he arrived in New York, and soon met Rogers, who helped him develop an approach to Latin music. Washburne quickly began playing with Latin Jazz and Salsa musicians including Tito Puente and Celia Cruz. He also held a weekly gig with his own Latin Jazz group at the Nuyorican Poet’s Café. In the midst of his musical growth, Washburne was diagnosed with cancer, centered on a tumor in his face. Before dangerous surgery, Washburne played one last gig with his band, introducing the band as SYOTOS - short for the phrase “See You on the Other Side.” The surgery defeated the cancer, but left Washburne without feeling on half of his face. Doctors warned him that he could not play trombone, but Washburne retrained his face to play. Over the course of six months, he built a stronger set of trombone skills. Washburne finished his PhD in Ethnomusicology at Columbia University in 1999, and the following year he recorded his first album with the SYOTOS band, Nuyorican Nights. The following year, he recorded The Other Side: El Otro Lado, a combination of Washburne originals and Tito Puente songs, in tribute to the deceased timbalero. Over the next few years, Washburne served as a professor at Harvard University and Columbia University. In addition, he contributed music, performed, and arranged for The Big 3 Palladium Orchestra, Bobby Sanabria’s Afro-Cuban Dream … Live & In Clave!!!, and Sanabria’s Big Band Urban Folktales. His SYOYOS band recorded Paradise in Trouble, a post 9/11 statement by Washburne about the fate of New York city, and the 2006 album Land of Nod, which expressed Washburne’s reactions to America’s leadership during the Iraq war. A strong musician and academic with a busy schedule, Washburne has quickly become a major voice in modern Latin Jazz trombone.

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