# James Sanders leads Conjúnto, perhaps the most adventurous jazz latino band in the country: Video

- Link: https://jazzblues.eu/2018/06/27/james-sanders-leads-conjunto-perhaps-the-most-adventurous-jazz-latino-band-in-the-country-video/
- Published: 2018-06-27T00:04:31+01:00
- Author: https://JazzBlues.EU

**27.06. – Happy Birthday !!! Violinist Sanders leads Conjúnto, perhaps the most
adventurous jazz latino band in the country. Moving confidently from Afro-roots 
to free improvisation, James Sanders and Conjúnto are equally at home at a salsa
dance party or on stage at the Velvet Lounge, a south side Chicago club known for
its fierce new music aesthetic.**

Sanders attended a magnet school that drew students from all over the city. Being
of a mixed Black/white/Latino background, he was not confined to any one social 
group or identity, so his friends at school were from all those cultures. His mother
viewed the violin as a sophisticated instrument that carried a certain status, and
James began lessons early, thoroughly absorbing the rigors of western classical 
music, eventually earning a scholarship to Yale University and a degree in violin
performance. This led to soloist appearances with orchestras around the area and
a violin chair in the Chicago Sinfonietta, a remarkably diverse symphony orchestra(
over a third of its members are Black or Latino) that includes several noted jazz
improvisers in its ranks, including flutist Nicole Mitchell and cellist Tomeka Reid.

James, an admirer of Stéphane Grappelli, began improvising on the violin shortly
after completing his Yale degree, at first sitting in with various ensembles around
Chicago, and then forming the James Sanders Trio in 1990. Developing his jazz chops
through constant work, he became a regular member Alfonso Ponticelli’s Gypsy Jazz
ensemble Swing Gitan in 1995. At some point he began to explore the neighborhood
music of his youth, and he formed Conjúnto in 2001.

Conjúnto started as a fairly conventional Latin jazz unit, fusing Afro-Latin rhythms
to jazz harmonies and improvising. A nucleus formed around Sanders and reed player
extraordinaire Steve Eisen. At one point the lineup featured a vocalist and a more
hard core salsa approach. Meanwhile, Sanders continued to work with other jazz musicians,
gradually finding gigs with some of the city’s vaunted AACM collective of improvisers,
including Dee Alexander, Hamid Drake, and Harrison Bankhead. At the same time, he
was on call to support touring salsa stars from New York, including the keyboardist/
arranger of the legendary Fania All-Stars, Larry Harlow. There was no let up in 
his classical schedule, either. Just like back at the magnet school, Sanders refuses
to confine himself artistically to any one culture.

All of this found its way into Conjúnto. As the line up solidified, James concentrated
on hiring players who not only thoroughly understood the fundamentals of Afro-Latin
traditions, but possessed the improvisational chops and musicianship to follow his
lead into, for Latin jazz, uncharted territory. The result is an approach that, 
at its best, completely absorbs the vast repository of African and western music
into a unique and original vision.

![Картинки по запросу James Sanders jazz](https://i0.wp.com/i.ytimg.
com/vi/EI1m_zO-LI4/hqdefault.jpg?w=640&ssl=1)

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