Internationally-Acclaimed
Poncho Sanchez Latin Jazz Band

Media Contact:

Kristen Gleason
Director of Marketing
The Paramount Theater
215 East Main Street
Charlottesville, VA 22902
434.979.1922 ext. 103
kristen@theparamount.net

For Immediate Release

January 14, 2008

More than anything else, Poncho Sanchez is a storyteller. As leader of the most popular Latin jazz group in the world today, it’s his congas and seasoned ensemble that do the talking. Live in performance or on recordings, they spin vivacious tales that pay homage to the glories of a half-century tradition that was born when Afro-Cuban rhythms merged with bebop

In an exciting concert exploring traditional salsa and Cuban music, bebop-rooted and West Coast-seasoned Latin jazz, and vintage Latin soul, Sanchez and his well-traveled octet, the Poncho Sanchez Latin Jazz Band, will perform at The Paramount Theater on Sunday, January 20 at 8 pm. Special Media Sponsor for this event is Yellow Book USA.

Today, Poncho Sanchez’s life’s story has become a well-known part of Latin jazz lore. He was born in Texas on October 30, 1951 into a large Mexican-American family (rumor has it that his 13-year old mother fled to the U.S. after hiding under the bed as revolutionary Pancho Villa stormed her village), but grew up in the Los Angeles area.

The youngest of 11 children, he was weaned on a broad range of Latin and non-Latin popular music, and listened to his older sisters groove on the mambo, cha-cha, and other music of the day.

Inspired by the conga playing of Cuban great Mongo Santamaria, he taught himself to play the congas and honed his skills as a percussionist. He performed as often as he could, breaking into the limelight at the age of 23 when he joined vibraphonist and Latin music luminary Cal Tjader’s famed Latin jazz ensemble in 1975.

Tjader served as Sanchez's mentor and bandleader for nearly eight years, with the two performing together until Tjader’s untimely death in 1982.  A year later, Sanchez began his unprecedented 23-year relationship with Concord Records, which has produced two dozen recordings, a Grammy Award, and several Grammy nominations.

Sanchez eventually started recording his own albums as a leader for the same label and, since then, has become a world-renowned percussionist. He remains the preeminent Latin jazz leader on Concord Picante, carrying the torch for Cal Tjader and the Latin jazz style he has come to master and define.

"When we perform, I tell people, 'This is Poncho Sanchez and his Latin Jazz Band,'" he concludes, strongly accenting the words "Latin jazz."

Sanchez is equally expressive when vividly recounting the encounters, friendships, and passions that have contributed to his remarkable career as a bandleader and recording artist.

Behind the choice of every song, album title and guest artist -- whether iconic group Tower of Power, South African Hugh Masekela, trumpeter Freddie Hubbard, saxophonist Eddie Harris, Latin jazz patriarch Tito Puente, conga titan Mongo Santamaria, or the late Ray Charles -- there’s a story Poncho Sanchez delights in telling.

The bottom line is that it’s Sanchez’s wide range of influences and styles reinvented as an exciting and spicy Latin jazz amalgam of R&B and funk that has sealed his popularity.

Sanchez’s 2007 release, Raise Your Hand, “demonstrates all the reasons that Poncho is so beloved," says album producer and Concord Records' Executive Vice President of A&R, John Burk. "He brilliantly and seamlessly combines authentic Latin jazz with roots soul music."

As stated by Jazztimes, “...with that bubbling formula, the Poncho Sanchez Latin Jazz Band has forged one Grammy, three Grammy nominations, and a globe full of fans for their live appearances. You don’t have to be Latino to like them... Anybody that has a soul would love this music.”

Seats are still available for the January 20 performance with the Poncho Sanchez Latin Jazz Band. Tickets are $39.50, $42.50, $45.50, and $50.50. Half-price student rush tickets and group discounts are offered.

Tickets are available online or through The Paramount’s Box Office at 434.979.1333.

For more information about Poncho Sanzchez, please visit www.ponchosanchez.com.