Jay Rodriguez is a Grammy Nominated Saxophonist, Flautist, Clarinetist, Film Composer, Producer and Arranger.
Prolific. Prodigal. Profound. That is Jay Rodriguez. Sometimes the sound is explosive, wild and full of fury, other times his music aches with a passion that’s painful and bare. Always modest and reverent, Rodriguez harnesses the unbridled audacity of youth and melds it with the uncanny discipline of a hardened New York jazz veteran. Married to the song while sleeping with the groove, his sound sings of commitment to an ideal—it is spontaneity, culturally untethered and unpretentious, the excitement of far flung love at all costs. It is perfectionism kissed by chaos. – Michael Gelfand/THE NEW YORKER
He could be breathy and insinuating on a ballad, brawny and extroverted in an uptempo… – Jon Pareles, THE NEW YORK TIMES
Mr. Rodriguez is more than a musician. He is a visionary. Jay Rodriguez is the Latin American Answer to James Carter and a true light to hear and see. – Arnie Lawrence, Founder of THE NEW SCHOOL for Jazz and Contemporary Music
Havana International Jazz Festival Reedman / Saxophonist Jay Rodriguez, down from New Y0rk for the festival says, ‘I have admiration for the people and the culture and the way they persevere and are educated, in general culturally and musically. They are supportive of their own musicians, and the young musicians are skilled and well trained.’ – JAZZTIMES
“His work is defined with versatility, humor and heart. His jazz playing is full of blues and soul. It is one of those voices that are hard to describe with words, and that is much closer to the spirit.” – EL HERALDO, Colombia
Fleet-fingered saxophonist Jay Rodriguez has played it all in New York: salsa with Celia Cruz and Tito Puente, hip-hop with DJ Premier and Groove Collective, straight-ahead with Dizzy Gillespie, Kenny Barron and Doc Cheatham. His new band, SEVEN, pays homage to a recent discovery: the free jazz of saxophonist Ornette Coleman. “I felt like one of those folks who just learned the earth is round,” he says. Rodriguez took a deep dive into Coleman’s repertoire and came up with a brass and string ensemble inspired by the legend’s 1960s double quartets performING Coleman-inspired originals like “Your Sound,” as well as Coleman classics like “Lonely Woman,” at Winter Jazzfest. – NPR
