JAZZBIRD NIGHTS: TITO CARRILLO & THE VJC SENIOR SHOWCASE

About the artist… Tito Carrillo is a trumpeter, composer, and educator whose music blurs the lines between Afro-Caribbean music traditions and modern jazz. Born and raised in Austin, TX, by a Puerto Rican father and Mexican-American mother, Carrillo came to prominence a quarter century ago as a top call soloist, sideman, and bandleader. The Chicago Tribune describes him as “a fluid improviser, doubly blessed with a warm lyric style and technique to burn.” His list of collaborations is diverse: Chicago heavyweights Willie Pickens, Ryan Cohan, and the Chicago Afro-Latin Jazz Ensemble (Victor Garcia); big bands such as the Woody Herman Orchestra and the Smithsonian Masterworks Orchestra (David Baker); salsa legends Cheo Feliciano and Andy Montañez; jazz greats such as Paquito D’Rivera, Kurt Elling, and Claudio Roditi; and pop icons Phil Collins and Quincy Jones. His newest solo album as a leader, Urbanessence (Origin Records), was released in October 2022 to critical acclaim.

Carrillo carries an equal passion for jazz education. He is much in demand across the country as a clinician and guest lecturer/performer. He has served on the jazz faculty at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign since 2006. And beginning in fall 2023, Carrillo will join the School of Music faculty at Texas State University (San Marcos, TX) as an Associate Professor of Jazz Trumpet. Additionally, many of his former students have established successful careers as performers and educators and have won international jazz competitions at the highest level.