SJZ Break Room Jazz Jam Ft. Martín Perna

San Jose Jazz presents free live music programming in conjunction with South First Friday. Following sets by our SJZ U19s and the Michael Webster Quartet, our all-ages jazz jam features special guest Martín Perna, founder of the Grammy Award-nominated Antibalas.

Schedule:
5:30pm - Doors
5:40pm: SJZ U19s
6:20pm - Michael Webster Group
7–9pm - Jazz Jam

Martín Perna is a saxophonist and multidisciplinary artist who has been making music for over thirty years. Best known as founder of Grammy Award-nominated Afrobeat collective Antibalas and co-founder of Ocote Soul Sounds, he was also a founding member of The Dap Kings. His flutes, saxophones, percussion and production are featured on over 100 albums by artists including Ed Sheeran, The Roots, Mark Ronson and Angélique Kidjo.

Perna has served as musical director at Carnegie Hall for all-star tribute concerts to Paul Simon, David Byrne/Talking Heads and Aretha Franklin, plus Billie Holiday at the Apollo Theater. A 2020 Grammy nominee for Best Global Music Album for Antibalas' Fu Chronicles, he composed and performed the soundtrack for the 2022 PBS American Masters documentary Roberta.

As a multidisciplinary artist, he authored the children's book BLACKOUT!, practices superadobe architecture and has created performance art collaborations. He's a lecturer at UC Berkeley when not touring internationally, playing exclusively baritone reeds on vintage saxophones including a 1961 Selmer Mark VI.