A musician has a responsibility to take listeners on a creative journey throughout their career. For many musicians, the journey travels through familiar territory consistently taking listeners back through the same type of musical surroundings. This type of musician generally connects with a good number of listeners, due to the pleasant and predictable nature of their music. Listeners rarely get challenged though, always moving through the safe haven of expected musical directions. More daring journeys require a more in-depth musicianship, a broader artistic scope, and an unflappable sense of adventure. This type of musician holds onto their roots but experiments on a regular basis, testing just how far they can push tradition. They hold the challenge of maintaining listeners during their twists and turns, finding ways to connect their new ideas with familiar concepts. This type of creative movement guarantees constant growth for the artist, but also means a varied and exciting listening experience.

Pianist Danilo Pérez has consistently taken listeners into unexpected artistic territory, keeping them along for the ride by the sheer virtue of his deep musicality. Born in 1965, Pérez’s father brought him into music at a young age, leading him to Panama’s National Conservatory by the age of 10. Initially studying electronics in college, a move to the States pushed Pérez back into music, and he landed at the Berklee College of Music. While attending school, Pérez performing with a wealth of well-known artists from the jazz world, including Paquito D’Rivera, Jon Hendricks, Terence Blanchard, and Claudio Roditi. Soon after graduation, Pérez earned the piano chair in Dizzy Gillespie’s United Nation’s Orchestra, bringing him into high profile concerts around the world and the concert recording, Live at the Royal Festival Hall. Following his engagement with Gillespie, Pérez continued playing with some of the jazz world’s top musicians, performing on several recordings such as Reunion from Paquito D’Rivera and Arturo Sandoval, Slow Fire from Claudio Roditi, New Arrival From Charlie Sepulveda & The Turnaround, Passages from Tom Harrell, and more. Pérez stepped into the role of a bandleader in the early nineties, first with the self-titled Danilo Pérez and then in 1993 with The Journey. Receiving critical and popular acclaim from his ingenious blend of jazz and Latin rhythms on The Journey, Pérez became an in-demand pianist, recording with saxophonist David Sanchez on Departure, guitarist Richie Zellon’s Cafe Con Leche, trombonist Conrad Herwig’s The Latin Side of John Coltrane, and more. Pérez displayed a strong connection to one of his prime influences on the 1996 recording Panamonk, placing Thelonious Monk’s work in a new light. Pérez continued his stellar work on 1998′s Central Avenue and then gathered a major cast of important musicians onto the epic Motherland. As Pérez became a bandleader to watch, he took an important sideman gig, working in saxophonist Wayne Shorter’s new quartet. Along with bassist John Patitucci and drummer Brian Blade, Pérez helped Shorter take his classic repertoire into a new millennium on recordings like Footprints Live And Beyond the Sound Barrier. While Pérez pushed boundaries in the jazz world, he kept a connection to his roots, serving as artistic director of the Panama Jazz Festival. Pérez has a new album arriving at the end of August 2010, Providencia, which promises once again to drive his music further into new and exciting directions.

Pérez’s dedication to outstanding musicianship and a constant artistic evolution makes each of his new projects a highly anticipated adventure. As we wait for Providencia, we’ll be keeping an eye on some of his inspiring past musical projects with today’s Weekly Latin Jazz Video Fix. In the first two clips, you can find Pérez performing with his trio, digging into a Latin Jazz version of Thelonious Monk’s “Think Of One.” The third video is a sight to behold as Pérez trades mind boggling solos with Papo Lucca at the Panama Jazz Festival. The last feature finds Pérez performing with jazz legend Wayne Shorter, bassist John Patitucci, and drummer Brian Blade, playing “Masqualero.” There’s some serious music to behold in all four videos that you won’t want to miss – enjoy!

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Danilo Pérez Trio Performing “Think Of One” – Part 1

Danilo Pérez Trio Performing “Think Of One” – Part 1

Danilo Pérez Trading Piano Solos With Papo Lucca

Danilo Pérez Performing “Masqualero” With The Wayne Shorter Quartet

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Want to hear more from Danilo Pérez? Check out these albums:

Panamonk

The Journey

Motherland

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Do you have a video to contribute to satisfy our weekly Latin Jazz video fix? If so, send it in – it’s time to feed our addiction. I’m looking for live performances, from any context. I’ll most likely be posting one video per week, but if you’ve got another idea, let’s talk. So come on Latin Jazz videographers, musicians, and fans – let’s share some of our memorable videos! Get my contact info HERE.

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Check Out These Related Posts:
Weekly Latin Jazz Video Fix: Omar Sosa
Weekly Latin Jazz Video Fix: Hector Martignon
Weekly Latin Jazz Video Fix: Aruán Ortiz
Weekly Latin Jazz Video Fix: Hilario Durán

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