The California Jazz Conservatory Presents Spirology at California Jazz Conservatory

Internationally recognized percussionist, educator and recording Latin artist Michael Spiro will perform music combining both jazz and Afro-Cuban folkloric stylings.

Artist Bio

Spirology is the newest group formed by Michael Spiro with a focus on Afro-Cuban folkloric/jazz. Known for his work in the Latin music field, Michael Spiro is an internationally recognized percussionist, educator and recording artist.

He is a ten-time Grammy nominee, and has produced seminal recordings in the Latin music genre, including ”Mabagwe”, “Canto América”, “BataKetu”, “BataMbira”, “Mark Levine and the Latin Tinge”, and “Grupo Ilu-Aña”. His performing and recording credits cover an array of internationally known artists: from such pop artists as David Byrne, Carlos Santana and Charlie Watts, to Latin music icons Eddie Palmieri, Israel Lopez (Cachao) and Richard Egues, to such jazz luminaries as Ella Fitzgerald, Bobby Hutcherson and McCoy Tyner. ...

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Internationally recognized percussionist, educator and recording Latin artist Michael Spiro will perform music combining both jazz and Afro-Cuban folkloric stylings.

Artist Bio

Spirology is the newest group formed by Michael Spiro with a focus on Afro-Cuban folkloric/jazz. Known for his work in the Latin music field, Michael Spiro is an internationally recognized percussionist, educator and recording artist.

He is a ten-time Grammy nominee, and has produced seminal recordings in the Latin music genre, including ”Mabagwe”, “Canto América”, “BataKetu”, “BataMbira”, “Mark Levine and the Latin Tinge”, and “Grupo Ilu-Aña”. His performing and recording credits cover an array of internationally known artists: from such pop artists as David Byrne, Carlos Santana and Charlie Watts, to Latin music icons Eddie Palmieri, Israel Lopez (Cachao) and Richard Egues, to such jazz luminaries as Ella Fitzgerald, Bobby Hutcherson and McCoy Tyner.

Despite Covid-19, Michael’s recording and producing career continued unabated over the last decade. In 2017 he co-produced “Canto America” with his long-time working partner Wayne Wallace. It received widespread critical acclaim and was nominated for a 2017 Grammy in the Latin-Jazz category. In 2019 he collaborated with Jose Luis Gomez to release a recording of contemporary Cuban rumba: “Mabagwe - a Tribute to the Elders”. Produced by his long-time musical colleague Jesús Diaz, the recording is dedicated to his Cuban mentors Regino Jimenez and Esteban Vega Bacallao ("Cha-Chá") and resulted in a nomination for a Cubadisco Premio in 2019 (the equivalent of the Cuban Grammies). Michael is the first foreigner to receive such an honor. This was followed by a co-production with Joe Galvin in 2020 of a performance/documentary “Los Bandos” filmed in the city of Matanzas, Cuba. This hour-long film explores the music of the original Matanzas rumba groups from over 100 years ago, and it was nominated for a Cubadisco Premio in 2021. Currently he is celebrating the release of his new production of Cuban charanga music by the group “Orquesta La Moderna Tradicion”, entitled “Encantado”.

In 2011 Michael was appointed Associate Professor of Percussion at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, where he developed the curriculum for Latin and Brazilian music in both the percussion and jazz departments. He retired from that position in 2019, but remains dedicated to music education and continues to be in high demand as a guest artist at universities and percussion organizations worldwide. His myriad of percussion books (all published by Sher Music Publications) have set the standard for Latin music pedagogy, as have his critically acclaimed DVDs.

In the performance arena, Michael continues to co-lead and perform with “La Moderna Tradicion”, still holds the conga drum chair in the internationally acclaimed (and 2011, 2014, and 2015 Grammy nominated) “Wayne Wallace Latin Jazz Quintet” and co-leads “Conjunto Karabali” with long-time Santana percussionist Karl Perrazzo.

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