Watch as we get to know BMI Composer, Elio Villafranca.
Elio Villafranca was born in the Pinar del Río province of Cuba. Villafranca is a Steinway Artist, Grammy-Nominated, 2014 Jalc Millennium Swing Award! recipient, pianist and composer. Classically trained in percussion and composition at the Instituto Superior de Arte in Havana, Cuba, Villafranca has recorded and performed nationally and internationally as a leader, featuring jazz master artists such as Pat Martino, Terell Stafford, Billy Hart, among others. He is a faculty member of Temple University, Philadelphia, The Juilliard School of Music, New York University, and Manhattan School of Music in NYC and based in New York City.
Fellows receive support for writing new music
Four jazz musicians—guitarist Rez Abbasi, bassoonist Katherine Young, and pianists Helen Sung and Elio Villafranca—have been named 2021 Guggenheim Fellows in Music Composition. The three are among 13 who won in that category and among 184 artists, writers, scholars, and scientists who received fellowships. The amount awarded to each Fellow varies according to the needs and merits of the respective applications.
Jazz artists Rez Abasi, Helen Sung and Elio Vilafranco have been awarded Guggenheim fellowships for 2021. They join 184 artists, writers, scholars and scientists receiving the honor.
Presented annually by the board of trustees of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, the fellowships are granted through a rigorous peer-review process of nearly 3,000 applicants.
Created in 1925 by Senator Simon and Olga Guggenheim in memory of their son John Simon Guggenheim, the Foundation has offered fellowships to exceptional individuals in pursuit of scholarship in any field of knowledge and creation in any art form, under the freest possible conditions.
“I am truly honored and grateful to be named a Guggenheim Fellow,” said guitarist and composer Abbasi. “The award is a concrete affirmation that embracing my intuition and artistic values was the right thing to do.”
184 artists, writers, scholars and scientists awarded Fellowships
NEW YORK (April 8, 2021): Today, the Board of Trustees of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation approved the awarding for Guggenheim Fellowships to a diverse group of 184 artists, writers, scholars, and scientists. These exceptional candidates were chosen through a rigorous peer-review process from almost 3,000 applicants.
Created in 1925 by Senator Simon and Olga Guggenheim in memory of their son John Simon Guggenheim, the Foundation has offered fellowships to exceptional individuals in pursuit of scholarship in any field of knowledge and creation in any art form, under the freest possible conditions.
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By John Ephland
For five days in early May, Cuban pianist/composer Elio Villafranca set up shop at Systems Two, the state-of-the-art recording studio in Brooklyn, to record his sixth album, Cinqué (ArtistShare). The program, which includes five movements, contains music he had performed onstage at Jazz at Lincoln Center in 2015.
By Raul da Gama
It is three days before my scheduled interview with the musician and pianist Elio Villafranca. I have long been fascinated by his ferocious talent—indeed his genius—not only as a pianist, but also for the depth of his musicianship. Mr. Villafranca is subsumed by the Afro-Caribbean tradition. His knowledge and love for the music of his ancestors has led him to acquire a deep knowledge of the history not only of Cuban music, but also of its African roots as well.
By Shaun Brady
Born in Cuba and classically trained, pianist Elio Villafranca has long offered a unique take on Latin jazz, foregoing the reliance on percussion pyrotechnics for a more fully integrated blend of his varied interests. That’s not to say that he can’t bring the fire when it’s called for, as he does on “Mambo Vivo,” a lively tribute to Pérez Prado on his new CD, which was recorded live in 2012 at Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola.
By Laurence A. Borden
Elio Villafranca is a gifted modern day musician traversing in both jazz and classical terrains. Born in a little town called San Luis, Cuba, in the western province of Pinar del Rio, Elio is the recipient of numerous industry accolades and awards, including one of the 50 best jazz albums of the year by JazzTimes in 2003, the pianist of the year by The Jazz Corner in 2008, the BMI Jazz Guaranty Award in 2008, the first NFA/Heineken Green Ribbon Master Artist Music Grant in the same year, and last but certainly not least, a 2010 Grammy “Best Traditional World Music Album” Award nomination for his performance composition and coproduction in his album, The Source In Between. He is the forerunner in today’s Cuban Jazz scene.
Cuban Jazz Pianist/Composer/Producer Elio Villafranca makes his 2nd appearance on The Producer's Corner with Spud Too Tight to discuss his 2010 GRAMMY nomination for Best Latin Jazz Album of the Year in the 2010 Latin Grammy Awards in Chembo Corniel's Album Things I wanted to Do, in which Mr. Villafranca collaborated as pianist and co-producer. Also, he is the pianist in the recently released album by John Santos y El Coro Folklorico Kindembo, La Guerra No, which was also nominated for Best Traditional World Music Album in the 2010 Latin Grammy Awards."
