Zaccai Curtis | |
|---|---|
 Curtis in 2014 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | December 25, 1981 New York City, US |
| Genres | Jazz, Latin jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, composer |
| Instrument | Piano |
| Labels | Truth Revolution |
| Website | Official website |
Zaccai Greg Curtis [1] (born December 25, 1981) is an American pianist and composer. [2] He won the 2025 Grammy Award for Best Latin Jazz Album for his album Cubop Lives! [3]
Curtis studied at Jackie McLean's Artists Collective school in Hartford, Connecticut. [4] Curtis founded Truth Revolution, a record label that he refers to as "Truth Revolution Recording Collective, a working community of artists". [5] The label issued Andy González's Entre Colegas, which was nominated for a 2017 Grammy Award. [5]
Curtis and his brother, bassist Luques, are part of The Curtis Brothers Band [6] (not to be confused with Michael and Richard Curtis, who also recorded as The Curtis Brothers). [7] Their music is strongly influenced by Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers. [4]
The Curtis Brothers Band's first album, Blood, Spirit, Land, Water, Freedom, was followed around 2012 by Completion of Proof. [8] Their album Algorithm, released around 2019, featured trumpeter Brian Lynch, alto saxophonist Donald Harrison, and drummer Ralph Peterson. [6] Zaccai wrote all of the compositions that appear on the recording. [6]
Curtis is also faculty at the University of Rhode Island, the Jackie McLean Institute at the HARTT School, [9] and Western Connecticut State University. [10]
Béla Anton Leoš Fleck is an American banjo player. An acclaimed virtuoso, he is an innovative and technically proficient pioneer and ambassador of the banjo, playing music from bluegrass, jazz, classical, rock and various world music genres. He is best known for his work with the bands New Grass Revival and Béla Fleck and the Flecktones. Fleck has won 17 Grammy Awards and been nominated 39 times.
John Lenwood McLean was an American jazz alto saxophonist, composer, bandleader, and educator. He is one of the few musicians to be elected to the DownBeat Hall of Fame in the year of their death.
Arthur Blakey was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. He was also known as Abdullah Ibn Buhaina after he converted to Islam for a short time in the late 1940s.
René McLean is a hard bop saxophonist and flutist from New York City. He started playing guitar before receiving an alto saxophone and instruction from his father, alto saxophonist Jackie McLean.
Cedar Anthony Walton Jr. was an American hard bop jazz pianist. He came to prominence as a member of drummer Art Blakey's band, The Jazz Messengers, before establishing a long career as a bandleader and composer. Several of his compositions have become jazz standards, including "Mosaic", "Bolivia", "Holy Land", "Mode for Joe" and "Ugetsu/Fantasy in D".
The Hartt School is the performing arts conservatory of the University of Hartford, a private university in West Hartford, Connecticut. Founded in 1920 by Julius Hartt and Moshe Paranov, Hartt has been part of the University of Hartford since its charter merged the Hartt College of Music, the Hartford Art School, and Hillyer College to create the university in 1957. The Hartt School offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in music, dance, theatre, and associated disciplines. The Hartt Community Division offers a variety of opportunities in music and dance for students of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities.
Charles Tolliver is an American jazz trumpeter, composer, and co-founder of Strata East Records.
Leonard White III is an American jazz fusion drummer who was a member of the band Return to Forever led by Chick Corea in the 1970s. White has been called "one of the founding fathers of jazz fusion".
Wendy Ann Melvoin is an American guitarist and singer-songwriter, best known for her work with Prince as part of his backing band the Revolution, and for her collaboration with Lisa Coleman as one half of the duo Wendy & Lisa.
Randal Edward Brecker is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, and composer. His versatility has made him a popular studio musician who has recorded with acts in jazz, rock, and R&B.
Ben Allison is an American double bassist, composer, producer, bandleader, educator. In addition to his work as a performer, he co-founded the non-profit Jazz Composers Collective and served as its Artistic Director for twelve years. Allison is an adjunct professor at New School University and serves on the board of the New York chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, where he serves as President.
Wayne Escoffery is an American jazz tenor saxophonist.
Thomas Chapin was an American composer and saxophonist and multi-instrumentalist. His music spanned the full range of 20th century creative music, from his time as Lionel Hampton's bandleader to modern jazz and his own avant-garde explorations. He helped create the Knitting Factory scene in New York City in the early 80's and was the first artist signed to Knitting Factory Records. Though primarily an alto saxophonist, he also played sopranino, as well as soprano, tenor, baritone saxes and flute. Many of his recordings as a leader were in a trio with bassist Mario Pavone and drummer Michael Sarin. Chapin studied with Jackie McLean, Paul Jeffrey, Kenny Barron, and Lionel Hampton. He died of leukemia at age 40. He played at a benefit concert two weeks before his death.
Javon Anthony Jackson is an American jazz tenor saxophonist, bandleader, and educator. He first became known as a member of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers from 1987 until Blakey's death in 1990. and went on to release 22 recordings as a bandleader and tour and record on over 150 CDs with jazz greats including Elvin Jones, Freddie Hubbard, Charlie Haden, Betty Carter, Cedar Walton, Ron Carter, Dr. Lonnie Smith, Stanley Turrentine and Ben E. King.
Luques Curtis is an American bassist from Hartford, Connecticut. Now based in New York City, Luques has been performing nationally and internationally with artists such as Eddie Palmieri, Ralph Peterson, Jr, Christian Scott, Gary Burton, and others. He is one of the owners and co-founders of independent jazz label Truth Revolution Records.
James Sidney Greene, Jr. is an American jazz saxophonist, gospel musician, recording artist, record producer, and music professor. He started his music career in 1997, and has since released eight studio albums. His eighth studio album, Beautiful Life, was his breakthrough release upon the Billboard magazine charts. It also received his first Grammy Award nominations.
Anthony Leone is an American musician. He is best known for his membership in the bands Ollabelle and the Chris Robinson Brotherhood. He has also worked with a variety of musicians including Levon Helm of The Band and Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead. In September 2020 he was announced as a new member of Little Feat.
Paul Brown "PB", was an American jazz bassist. He was the founder of the Monday Night Jazz Series in Hartford, Connecticut, which was recognized by the Library of Congress as the oldest and longest-running free festival for jazz in the United States and featured jazz greats such as Cannonball Adderley, McCoy Tyner, Herbie Hancock, Roy Haynes, Ron Carter, Thelonious Monk, Tito Puente, Woody Shaw, Sun Ra, Bobby Hutcherson, Roy Haynes, Freddie Hubbard, Slide Hampton Horace Silver, Hugh Masekela, and the "MJQ" Modern Jazz Quartet just to name a few. Brown also founded The Greater Hartford Festival of Jazz in 1992 to commemorate 25 years of the Monday night jazz series which in 2016, the Hartford Jazz Society renamed "Paul Brown Monday Night Jazz". He was co-founder of Hartford's Artists Collective, Inc.
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