"Critically acclaimed guitarist and composer Gabriel Vicéns has been described as "a thoughtful improviser with a quiet tone who makes every note count" by Downbeat Magazine and as "an exceptional artist, with a shimmering sense of sonority and the ability to find a keen balance between poetry and intensity" by Latin Jazz Network. Originally from Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, Vicéns relocated to New York City after more than a decade of performing and recording with his group and other top artists from the Puerto Rican jazz scene and a four-year professorship at the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico.

Vicéns has been featured at venues and festivals such as Heineken Jazz Fest in Puerto Rico, SF Jazz Center in San Francisco, Ljubljana Jazz Festival in Slovenia, Uno Jazz San Remo Festival in Italy, and Havana World Music Festival in Cuba. He has worked with artists such as Eddie Gómez, Miguel Zenón, Alex Sipiagin, John Benitez, Paoli Mejias, Luis Perdomo, David Sánchez, and Will Vinson, among others. In New York, he has frequently performed at prominent venues such as The Cell Theater, Cornelia Street Cafe, Birdland Jazz Club, Teatro LATEA, Fat Cat, The Owl Music Parlor, and Terraza 7, both as a leader of his groups and as a sideman.

His debut album "Point In Time," independently released in 2012, features tenor saxophonist David Sánchez and legendary bassist Eddie Gómez who praises Vicéns as "a creative musician that displays a new vision on the guitar." The release gained rave reviews in many jazz publications around the globe. World-renowned jazz critic and writer Bill Milkowski noted in JazzTimes magazine, "Guitarist-composer Gabriel Vicéns, a leading light of Puerto Rico's jazz scene, flaunts a modernist sensibility on his impressive debut as a leader."

In 2015, Vicéns released his second studio album "Days," on Greg Osby's influential record label Inner Circle Music. The record was co-produced by trumpet giant Alex Sipiagin, and features Sipiagin himself, David Sánchez, and percussionist Paoli Mejias. The recording also garnered acclaimed reviews including 4 stars in Downbeat magazine and 4.5 stars in All About Jazz by music critic Mark F. Turner who stated, "A rising jazz guitarist... Vicéns has provided a splendid recording that conveys a clear representation of his culture and individuality."

Gabriel Vicéns' most recent album, "The Way We Are Created,'' released in 2021 on Inner Circle Music, was co-produced by the great Puerto Rican saxophonist Miguel Zenón and explores a unique amalgamation of modern jazz with folkloric music from Puerto Rico. The record features some of today's most accomplished musicians in the New York City jazz scene: Roman Filiú on alto saxophone, Glenn Zaleski on piano, Rick Rosato on bass, E.J. Strickland on drums, and Victor Pablo on percussion. Music critic Roger Farbey from the British magazine Jazz Journal noted, "The meticulously constructed compositions benefit from canny arrangements utilising all the instruments in a perfectly balanced formation of tonality and harmonic colour."

In addition to Vicéns' releases as a leader, he is co-leader of the free jazz/experimental ensemble, No Base Trio. Formed in collaboration with alto saxophonist Jonathan Suazo and drummer Leonardo Osuna in 2010 in San Juan, Puerto Rico, NBT has released two albums under the radical label Setola di Maiale. Their debut eponymous album was released in 2020 and their second studio album, NBT II, in 2022. Both records received praised reviews in prominent publications such as The Free Jazz Collective, Avant Music News, and Percorsi Musicali. Music critic Paul Acquaro observed, "It will pleasantly surprise you with its mix of melody and exploration."

In 2022, Vicéns went to the studio to record an album of original chamber works including pieces for piano trio, wind quintet, and Pierrot ensemble. The record features some of the finest performers in the New York City classical scene and was released in Spring 2024 on the Milan-based record label Stradivarius. This is Vicéns' fourth studio album under his name and the first one to feature his work as a composer of contemporary classical music.

Gabriel Vicéns received a Bachelor of Music in Jazz and Caribbean Music Studies and Performance from the Conservatorio de Música de Puerto Rico where he studied with Fernando Mattina and graduated Summa Cum Laude as the first guitarist in the program. In 2017, he earned his Master of Music in Jazz Studies and Performance from Queens College, studying with Paul Bollenback. Between 2019 to 2021, Vicéns studied painting at The Art Students League of New York with color-field painter Pat Lipsky, occasionally assisting her in her studio.

In 2022 he received a Doctor of Musical Arts in Jazz Studies and Performance from Stony Brook University under the direction of Ray Anderson. In addition, during his doctorate, Vicéns studied composition and worked closely with Daria Semegen. He dual focused his studies on the exploration of merging modern jazz with Puerto Rican Bomba and Plena, and composing contemporary classical music. Other composition teachers include Carlos Cabrer and Lois V Vierk.

Vicéns is a recipient of the prestigious "New Jazz Works" grant from Chamber Music America, which he received in 2023."

"New York-based Roman Filiú has been a saxophonist, bandleader, composer for over 20 years. Born and raised in Santiago de Cuba, he has played, recorded, and toured worldwide with a great variety of artists. He is currently a member of Henry Threadgill´s Ensemble Double Up, and leads several groups himself such as Quarteria, which features David Virelles, Ralph Alessi, Matt Brewer, Dayna Stephens, Yusnier Sánchez, and Craig Weinrib as well as the Roman Filiú Quartet with Billy Hart, David Virelles, and Thomas Morgan. Among his many collaborations, Román has played in Chucho Valdés´Irakere (Grammy Award nominated Babalú Ayé, Grammy Award winning New Conceptions), has been the musical director of David Murray´s Big Band and has played with outstanding musicians Andrew Cyrille, Gonzalo Rubalcaba (Grammy Award nominated Antiguo), Steve Coleman Dafnis Prieto, Milford Graves, Miguel Zenón, Doug Hammond, Nasheet Waits, Michele Rosewoman, Omara Portuondo, Marcus Gilmore, Lázaro Ross, Alain Pérez, Iván Melón Lewis, Román Díaz, Damion Reid, Pablo Milanés, Liberty Ellman, Stephan Crump, Pepe Rivero, Adam Rogers, Rez Abassi, Roy Hargrove, and Chano Domínguez to name a few.

The musician has been a recipient of the Jazz Gallery Commission Series, the Langnau Jazz Fest Artist in Residence, the Chamber Music America New Jazz Works Award, and the Lucas Artist Residency. He has established himself as a prominent and innovative composer through his work for numerous small ensembles and has written pieces for string quartet, solo piano and saxophone quartet. Roman has also released the albums Blowin' Reflections and Musae, which were praised by the press for their quality and depth."

"Vitor Gonçalves is a pianist, accordionist, composer and arranger from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. After an illustrious career as an in demand musician in Brazil, playing with such icons as Hermeto Pascoal, Maria Bethânia, Itiberê Zwarg, and many others, he made the move to New York City, where he currently resides.

Since arriving here in 2012, he has garnered much acclaim and built a star lighted resumé, including features in NPR's Jazz Night in America, hosted by Christian McBride and The New York Times as a guest of the renowned Spok Frevo Orquestra. A frequent resident on the stages of Jazz at Lincoln Center, The Jazz Standard, and the Jazz Gallery, he both leads his own projects, and collaborates with figures in the New York scene such as Anat Cohen, Vinícius Cantuária, Anthony Wilson, Cyro Baptista, and Yotam Silberstein.

He also has played in Jazz Festivals and venues around the world, such as Newport Jazz, Jazz à Vienne, Umbria Jazz Festival, Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, and the Coliseum in Lisbon, Portugal.

Vitor moved to New York in 2012 to deepen his pursuit of Jazz and its connection with Brazilian music, and to explore the diverse musical melting pot that is New York City. It is here that he began leading his own group and forming new collectives, while pursuing a Masters Degree at City College. In 2017 he released his debut album on Sunnyside Records, Vitor Gonçalves Quartet, featuring Dan Weiss (drums), Thomas Morgan (bass), and Todd Neufeld (guitar). The album was reviewed with 4 and half stars at Downbeat jazz magazine.

Other groups he co-leads are "SanfoNYa Brasileira", an accordion trio with Eduardo Belo on bass and Vanderlei Pereira on drums, and "Regional de NY", one of the biggest representatives of Choro music (a rich Brazilian genre) in the USA. Both groups released an original album, the former with Steve Wilson as a guest and the latter with Fred Hersch.

He got two nominations for the Grammy Awards 2020, for Best Latin Jazz album with Thalma de Freitas and for Best Large Jazz Ensemble with Anat Cohen Tentet."

"Montreal bassist Rick Rosato emerged from studies at The New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music as a versatile and well-connected improviser, bringing together an international network of collaborators including Aaron Parks, Peter Schlamb, Craig Weinrib, and Ben Van Gelder; known for his confident walking lines and compositional sensibility, Rosato has led projects such as his Upstairs Jazz series in Montreal, creating short-lived but compelling ensembles that emphasize collective interplay, exploratory improvisation, and a strong sense of musical dialogue."

"Enoch Jamal "E.J." Strickland is a world-class, world-traveled drummer, composer and artist heard on over 60 albums in the last 10 years.‍

E.J. quickly graduated into New York's gigging jazz scene, playing with the greatest names in contemporary music. He has long stints with Ravi Coltrane, Russell Malone, Marcus Strickland, Manuel Valera and also had opportunities to work on occasion with artists like Wynton Marsalis, Cassandra Wilson, Herbie Hancock and many others.

Influenced by wonderful drummers (Elvin Jones, Philly Joe Jones, Roy Haynes, Jimmy Cobb, Tony Williams, Jeff "Tain" Watts, Brian Blade), he rapidly developed his own eclectic and creative style. Variety of influence and interest might be the key words for E.J. in his musical approach.

He reminds us: "You're not going to hear a traditional jazz drummer. You're going to hear someone who's drawing from many different styles, many different approaches. That's what my true voice is. And I always try to remember that music is fun!"

These days, E.J. finds himself writing music more than anything else and focusing on being a bandleader and a musician, creating great vehicles for his band to play on. He is also touring all over the world with Ravi Coltrane, Manuel Valera, Brandee Younger, Reggie Washington, Dave Weiss, Christian Sands, ...

In "Warriors For Peace", E.J. has created an opus dedicated to all those who understand that to achieve peace, equality and justice in this world, one must break the silence and be proactive. The musicians of the album, Godwin Louis, Jure Pukl, Taber Gable and Josh Ginsburg, have helped him immensely in the musical translation of this concept.

Armed with the power and complexity of his drumming, E.J. Strickland continues to clear a path for himself in the jazz world and beyond. A path that can only grow wider in the years to come!"

"Victor Pablo Garcia Gaetan comes from a musical family from San Juan, Puerto Rico. At an early age, his father Victor Garcia - a pianist/composer - taught him his first rhythms: Puerto Rican plena on panderos, martillo on bongo, marcha on conga, cascara and campaneo on timbales, and songo on drumset.

In New York City Victor Pablo performs in Broadway pits, chamber concerts, jazz jams, salsa gigs, singer-songwriter shows, bombazos, plenazos, and is a member of contemporary percussion quartet ​Mobius Percussion,​ bomba/jazz group ​Fernando García Band,​ the ​TM Street Band,​ and is co-music director/composer/drummer for ​People of Earth​.

Victor is a versatile freelancer in the New York City music scene. Percussionist for Public Work's Hercules and, he's worked as timpanist for the Radio City Christmas Spectacular featuring The Rockettes since 2016. VP often works in other Broadway and Off-Broadway shows such as Beetlejuice, The Lion King, On Your Feet!, TINA, Cirque Du Soleil: Paramour, Pacific Overtures, Invisible Thread (Witness Uganda), Flaco Navaja's Evolution of a Sonero, Fuerza Bruta NYC.

He appears in recordings of Gilberto Santa Rosa, Victor García & La Sonora Sanjuanera, Fernando García, TM Street Band, Albert Sánchez, to name a few, and he can be seen in shows like Mozart In The Jungle, America's Got Talent, and Especial Banco Popular De Puerto Rico Para El Mundo. He's performed with artists like Arturo O'Farrill, Los Pleneros de la 21, Andy Montañez, Ismael Miranda, NG2, Michael Stuart, DLG, Frankie Negrón, Cita Rodríguez, Nestor Torres, Dayramir González, La Sonora Sanjuanera, Wordless Music Orchestra, Itai Kriss, La Mecánica Popular, Flaco Navaja, Nina Rodríguez, Redobles de Cultura, La 95 Salsa Orchestra, Orchestra of the Americas, Delaware Symphony, Symphony In C, Philadelphia Orchestra Percussion Group, Sõ Percussion.

At age 7 he studied with veteran drummer and educator Tony Sánchez, who taught him music theory as well. Later on his family moves over a town to Carolina where he studied with David Marcano at Escuela de Bellas Artes before enrolling at Escuela Libre de Música de San Juan. There he studied classical and popular music with Diana Valdés, Fermín Segarra, Mariano Morales, who also taught harmony. During the time he was also a student of Tito De Gracia, and Rolando Morales-Matos who is a dear mentor and friend. Victor later attends Temple University where he earns his BM and MM in Classical Percussion studying with Alan Abel, Chris Deviney, Glenn Steele, and Don Liuzzi."