February 15, 2016: Arturo O’Farrill’s The Afro Latin Jazz Suite won the Grammy for Best Instrumental Composition. The suite is performed on Cuba: The Conversation Continues by the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, featuring Rudresh Mahanthappa. Congratulations to all the people who helped make this project a great success.

Recorded in Havana 48 hours after President Obama announced his plan to normalize relations between the U.S. and Cuba, Arturo O’Farrill & the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra’s “Cuba: The Conversation Continues” is a powerful statement, a juxtaposition of music and current events. A follow up to the Grammy-winning “The Offense of the Drum,” the new album builds upon the conversation started by Dizzy Gillespie and Cuban percussionist Chano Pozo – a musical dialogue that bridged the gap between jazz and Afro-Cuban music. O’Farrill brings top composers from both the U.S. and Cuba to create a dazzling musical tapestry, successfully fulfilling Dizzy s dream of creating ‘universal music’ .

To see Katzenstein’s current exhibition Havana Rhythms click here

© David Katzenstein / Dashbe