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Turiya Mareya and the Tijuana Latin Jazz Project

Turiya Mareya, a multi-talented Latin Jazz artist and returning OWB performer (2004), will perform as part of OWB Festival 2006 at the Casa De Los Suenos on May 6th, starting at 9pm, with the Tijuana Latin Jazz Project. This venue (Ave. Gustavo Diaz Ordaz #14109 Col. Gudalupe Victoria, Tijuana) is a unique environment, with surrealistic art covering every surface, run by a family who offers a space for creative community events. Located a $5 cab drive from the border, it serves coffee, food, and a unique Mexican experience.

Turiya Mareya and the Tijuana Latin Jazz Project is a collaboration between jazz artists in the USA and Mexico. Part jam session and part interactive composers' forum, Turiya Mareya facilitates a musical environment that enables the artists to cross cultural barriers, learn from each other, and create a new kind of music. The invited artists will include an array of notable jazz musicians from both sides of the border, helping to illustrate that culture and music cannot be separated by an artificial fence. There will also be spoken-word artists collaborating. Dancing is encouraged! It is hoped that this project will grow, develop, and evolve through the variety of artist contributions.

The project leader, Turiya Mareya, began studying jazz at 15 years of age. She was originally mentored by San Diego jazz legend, Daniel Jackson, and followed his example by becoming proficient on both piano and reeds and focusing on playing her original compositions. She continued her work in New York, at the Creative School of Music, studying with The Art Ensemble of Chicago and other cutting-edge jazz artists. Later she toured Mexico with the Taumbu International Ensemble.

All of those experiences helped to create her unique approach, based on World Music influences and drawing on the trance-inducing and spirit-calling focus of African and Indigenous approaches to music. She has honed her abilities in Latin jazz heading the Kokopelli Latin Jazz Ensemble, and has also developed the Juneau Latin Jazz Project in Alaska, lived and worked in Madrid, performed with the Drum Jazz Ensemble in Vancouver, and spent this past year in Toronto working with her group, The Turiya Mareya Latin Jazz Ensemble. She is currently performing in San Diego and Mexico.

Turiya and the seven-member Kokopelli Latin Jazz Ensemble--combining Latin and African rhythms in danceable, free-spirited, and soul-stirring combinations--have recently released "La Luz Eterna", one of three planned CDs which will document the group's moving and spiritual sounds.

The Kokopelli Latin Jazz Ensemble musicians are a powerhouse of talent, playing a wide range of instruments (sax, flute, guitar, drums, piano, and bass) and musical styles (Latin, Brazilian, Spanish, jazz, classical, pop, World Music). David Millard (sax, flute, piccolo, guitar, cello) has studied and performed in Spain, Mexico, and the USA. Skip Howlett (drums and timbales) has been performing nationally and internationally for 20 years, and has worked with Mongo Santamaria, Dave Valentin, Jorge Dalto, Xavier Cugat, Poncho Sanchez, and Tito Puente.

Russel Blake, who has performed in 22 countries on four continents since the age of 12, has a 400-piece repertoire spanning a wealth of genres. Steve Feierabend, a musician and teacher at San Diego State, has recently released his debut CD, "Revolving Doors". Former New Yorker Irving Soto (congas) has performed with Charlie Palmieri, Dizzy Gillespie, Chick Corea and Ishmael Quintana.

Ignacio Arango (bassist), born in Cuba, has played with the Tropicana Cabaret Orchestra, Giant People, and Samba Brasil, toured Europe and Mexico, and is currently one of the most in-demand bassists in Southern California. Daniel Jackson is a Southern California jazz legend, a saxophonist and pianist who has been studying, teaching, and playing for many years, including in the big bands of Ray Charles, Buddy Rich, and Art Farmer. He is a strong believer in the healing power of music.