Alexis Baro did not disappoint as he took on the starring role in our Live to Air tribute to Dizzy Gillespie last week, giving a fiery performance that evoked the jazz virtuoso and the Cuban influences he introduced to North American audiences in the mid-20th century.
Along with the Juno-nominated trumpeter from Havana, the show also featured fellow Cuban-born musician Jorge Torres “Papiosco,” who displayed his extraordinary talent on percussion with several scene-stealing conga solos.
Under the curation of Toronto Mass Choir musical director Corey Butler, the lineup also included Marcus Ali on saxophone, JT Kim on bass, Ethan Ardelli on drums and Butler on piano.
The concert was hosted by Joe Sealy, and the band played a collection of Dizzy Gillespie classics, much of it highlighting his work during the Afro-Cuban movement in jazz beginning in the late 1940s. The small, exclusive audience in the Long & McQuade Performance Hall had an especially fun time joining the band for the final song of the night, the 1942 bebop classic Salt Peanuts.
Keep scrolling to view photos from the event taken by our volunteer photographer Phil Weber.
