Born in the Pinar del Río province of Western Cuba, pianist and composer Elio Villafranca was classically trained in percussion and composition at the Instituto Superior de Arte in Havana, Cuba.
Since his arrival in the U.S. in 1995, Villafranca has been at the forefront of the latest generation of remarkable pianists, composers and bandleaders. He also received a 2010 Grammy nomination for Best Latin Jazz Album of the Year.
In 2008, the Jazz Corner nominated Villafranca as Pianist of the Year. That year, he was also honored with the BMI Jazz Guaranty Award and received the first NFA/Heineken Green Ribbon Master Artist Music Grant for the creation of his “Concerto for Mariachi” for the Afro-Cuban Percussion and Symphony Orchestra.
His first album, “Incantations/Encantaciones,” featuring Pat Martino, Terell Stafford and Dafnis Prieto, was ranked among the 50 best jazz albums of the year by JazzTimes magazine in 2003.
Villafranca has performed internationally with jazz masters such as Corea, Pat Martino, Terell Stafford, Billy Hart, Paquito D’Rivera, Eric Alexander, Lewis Nash and David Murray. As a sideman, he has performed with Wynton Marsalis, Jon Faddis, Billy Harper, Sonny Fortune, Giovanni Hidalgo, Miguel Zenón and Johnny Pacheco and more.
Villafranca’s album, “Caribbean Tinge” (Motema), received a 2014 Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik (German Records Critics’ award) nomination.
Villafranca is based in New York City and is a faculty member of both Temple University and the Juilliard School of Music.
Discography:
Incantations – Encantaciones (Universal Music Latino, 2003)
The Source In Between (Ceiba Tree Music, 2007)
Flower By The Dry River (DirectGrace Records, 2011)
Dos y Mas (Motéma Music, 2012)
Caribbean Tinge Live From Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola (Motéma, 2014)
Cinque (2018)
[headline image: Elio Villafranca – Photo by Maike Schulz]
Author: Angel Romero
Angel Romero y Ruiz has dedicated his life to musical exploration. His efforts included the creation of two online portals, worldmusiccentral.org and musicasdelmundo.com. In addition, Angel is the co-founder of the Transglobal World Music Chart, a panel of world music DJs and writers that celebrates global sounds. Furthermore, he delved into the record business, producing world music studio albums and compilations. His works have appeared on Alula Records, Ellipsis Arts, Indígena Records and Music of the World.