(PDF) (DOC) (JPG)September 8, 2003

(Mahwah) – With a touch of Latin spice, the Oscar Feldman Ensemble with guest artist Paquito D’Rivera will perform A Latin Jazz Salute to Duke Ellington in the Sharp Theater at Ramapo College of New Jersey, Saturday, October 4 at 8 p.m. Argentinean saxophonist Oscar Feldman and Cuban clarinetist Paquito D’Rivera will perform favorite selections from Ellington’s songbook as well as other Latin jazz compositions.

Oscar Feldman…plays with that passion, sense of humor and spirit of camaraderie that I love in a musician,’ says D’Rivera. Performing as a sideman on alto, tenor and soprano saxes, Feldman has recorded more than 50 albums ranging from straight ahead jazz, Brazilian and pop music to fusion. His first solo CD, El Angel (Songosaurus label), was released in 1999, when he also recorded two albums with a big band conducted by D’Rivera: Tropicana Nights, which received the Latin Grammy Award 2000 for Best Latin Jazz Album,” and another album in tribute to the Cuban trumpeter Mario Bauza, Rudy Calzado and the Cubarama.

In his recordings and performances, Feldman has collaborated with renowned music icons such as Gato Barbieri, Al Dimeola, Claudio Roditti, Alex Acuña and Dino Saluzzi. In addition, Feldman performed as the lead alto sax player in a U.S. and European tour with the United Nations Orchestra, directed by four-time Grammy Award-winner D’Rivera.

Paquito D’Rivera is one of the woodwind giants of our time,” says Tom Jacobson of Jazz Times. Born in Havana, D’Rivera was a child prodigy who began his musical studies at the age of five, performed at the National Theatre in Havana at age 10, and at 19, was a featured soloist with the Cuban National Symphony Orchestra. In 1981, while on tour in Spain, he sought asylum with the American Embassy. Throughout his career in the United States, his albums have received rave reviews from critics and have hit the top of the jazz charts. His albums have shown a progression that demonstrates his extraordinary abilities in bebop, classical and Latin/Caribbean music.

D’Rivera has toured the world with his own group, the Havana/New York Ensemble, performing with renowned artists such as Carmen McRae, Claudio Roditti, Dizzy Gillespie and Benny Carter. In 1988 D’Rivera became a founding member of and feature soloist with Dizzy Gillespie’s acclaimed all-star United Nation Orchestra. He has contributed a number of original compositions and arrangements to the repertoire of the group. In 2002, the National Symphony Orchestra commissioned D’Rivera to coordinate a concert under the baton of Leonard Slatkin at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C.

Tickets for A Latin Jazz Salute to Duke Ellington are $21 for adults, $18 for seniors and $12 for students. The Sharp Theater is located in the Berrie Center on the Ramapo College campus. For more information, call (201) 684-7844.

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About Ramapo College

Ramapo College of New Jersey is the state’s premier public liberal arts college and is committed to academic excellence through interdisciplinary and experiential learning, and international and intercultural understanding. The comprehensive college is situated among the beautiful Ramapo Mountains, is within commuting distance to New York City, was named one of the 50 Most Beautiful College Campuses in America by CondeNast Traveler, and boasts the best on-campus housing in New Jersey per Niche.com. Established in 1969, Ramapo College offers bachelor’s degrees in the arts, business, data science, humanities, social sciences and the sciences, as well as in professional studies, which include business, education, nursing and social work. In addition, the College offers courses leading to teacher certification at the elementary and secondary levels, and offers graduate programs leading to master’s degrees in Accounting, Applied Mathematics, Business Administration, Contemporary Instructional Design, Computer Science, Creative Music Technology, Data Science, Educational Leadership, Nursing, Social Work and Special Education, as well as a Doctor of Nursing Practice.

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