About
“creating an entirely new jazz language for the 21st century.” — MacArthur Foundation
Multiple Grammy nominee and Guggenheim and MacArthur Fellow Miguel Zenón represents a select group of musicians who have masterfully balanced and blended the often contradictory poles of innovation and tradition. Widely considered as one of the most groundbreaking and influential saxophonists and composers of his generation, he has also developed a unique voice as a conceptualist, concentrating his efforts on perfecting a fine mix between jazz and his many musical influences.
Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Zenón has released fifteen recordings as a leader, including his latest, Música De Las Américas and the Grammy Nominated El Arte Del Bolero (2021). As a sideman he has worked with luminaries such as The SFJAZZ Collective, Charlie Haden, Fred Hersch, Kenny Werner, David Sánchez, Danilo Perez, The Village Vanguard Orchestra, Kurt Elling, Antonio Sanchez, The Mingus Big Band, Bobby Hutcherson, and many others.
Zenón has been featured in publications such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe and The Chicago Tribune. In addition, he topped both the Jazz Artist of the Year and Alto Saxophonist categories on the 2014 Jazz Times Critics Poll and was selected as the Alto Saxophonist of the Year by the Jazz Journalists Association in 2015, 2018, 2019 and 2020 (when he was also recognized as Arranger of The Year).
Zenón has given hundreds of lectures and master classes at institutions all over the world and is a permanent faculty member at New England Conservatory and The Manhattan School of Music. In April 2008 Zenón received a fellowship from the prestigious John Simon Guggenheim Foundation. Later that year he was one of 25 distinguished individuals chosen to receive the coveted MacArthur Fellowship, also known as the “Genius Grant”. In 2022 he received an Honorary Doctorate from La Universidad del Sagrado Corazón in San Juan, the highest honor bestowed by the institution.
Luis Perdomo – Piano
Henry Cole – Drums
Hans Glawisching – Bass
LEARN MORE: https://miguelzenon.com/