Birdland Jazz Cub, New York City

The Marlowsphere Blog (#165)

Virtuoso jazz and Latin jazz pianist Arturo O’Farrill and the Grammy-winning Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra have been performing at the Birdland Jazz Club  in New York City since 1999, establishing a long-standing weekly Sunday night residency with shows at 8:30 and 10:30. I have attended these performances numerous times. O’Farrill and company have never failed to deliver a set that is tasty, tight, and terrific.

For those not familiar with jazz musician lingo, “tasty” usually means of high quality. “Tight “means a musical performance wherein the ensemble sounds as one and keeps to the appropriate tempos. “Terrific” means, well, terrific. The ensemble playing and the solos are worth listening to. They’re interesting. They take your ear and your whole body sometimes to an existential place.

Multi-Percussionist Carlos “Carly” Maldonado

On this particular evening, July 20, during the 8:30 p.m. set, two players provided a performance worthy of note (no pun intended). The first is multi-percussionist Carlos “Carly” Maldonado, one of two percussionists along with a drummer (usually Vince Cherico). While the other percussionist played a two-conga set, Maldenado added his rhythmic contributions via the bongos, chekere, clave, and double cowbell. It was his playing on the cowbell that impressed the most. He added hits within the clave pattern that have never been written down. His use of this simple percussive instrument was virtuosic. He could have soloed for the whole set and it would never have been boring.

Saxophonist Sun Yoo performing

The other outstanding, player was the young Korean alto saxophonist, Sun Yoo. Many young players who have yet to find their authentic voice tend to play as many notes as possible, as fast as possible to impress an audience. Sometimes it works, often it does not. It’s usually not tasty. Sun Yoo’s playing was quite the reverse. While his playing might be characterized as “out,” as in not following the chord changes, or adding dissonance to his phrases, this didn’t matter. The seeming chaos in his extended playing was controlled.  It had range. It demanded your attention.

All in all, though, each player in the orchestra had something to say musically and it is to O’Farrill’s credit as leader that by the end of the set, each of the players had had a chance to show his or her chops. Yes, while decades ago a woman player would probably not be found on the bandstand, for several years now Arturo has invited numerous women to join the group. It is not a token invite. Arturo chooses his musicians with care. On this particular night there were two women: Allison Phillips in the trumpet section and Berta Moreno on tenor saxophone.

Arturo O’Farrill, Band Leader, Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra

Last, but certainly not least, is founder/leader/composer and Grammy-winning Arturo O’Farrill. He also chooses the charts for each set with care. On this particular night, he mixed it up with charts from his own hand, one by his esteemed father, the late Chico O’Farrill, and charts by others. Collectively, they filled the evening with almost ninety minutes of engaging sounds and rhythms that made it hard to sit still in your seat. And as if by collective, tribal instinct, by the end of the set the entire packed house was clapping—in time, mind you—in 3/2 clave.

Tasty, tight, terrific. Musicians and audience were one.

Eugene Marlow, Ph.D.  © 2025