Delaware Water Gap, PA- The Deer Head Inn, located at 5 Main Street, Delaware Water Gap, PA proudly presents The Mario Castro Quintet on Friday, April 10 at 7:00 PM. The music charge is $10. Reservations can be made by calling (570) 424-2000.
The Mario Castro Quintet is one of the brightest up-and-coming jazz groups today. Castro, a 2011 graduate of Berklee College of Music and leader of the group, has studied extensively with some of the most esteemed figures in jazz including George Garzone, Terri Lyne Carrington, and Hal Crook, among others. He has played at the The Newport Jazz Festival, Toronto Jazz Festival, Montreal Jazz Festival, the Nancy Jazz Festival and many more. Chucho Valdez, Giovanni Hidalgo, Henry Cole and the Puerto Rico Philharmonic Orchestra are just some of the fantastic musicians Castro has played with.
The group, led by Castro, includes trumpeter Josh Shpak, pianist Kyu Min Shim, bassist Tamir Shmerling, and drummer Jonathan Pinson. Their debut album Primavera, was released on Greg Osby’s Inner Circle Music label in 2012 and garnered much praise from critics and musicians alike. Their latest album, Estrella De Mar (Interrobang Records), hit shelves in September of this year. The new album features gorgeous string arrangements plus special appearances from Dave Liebman, David Sanchez, Casey Benjamin and Emily Elbert, among others. Regarding Estrella De Mar, NEA Jazz Master Dave Liebman says the following:
“Producing your recording as a leader is quite a challenge on several fronts – mostly since this will be what people remember about you (at least for a while). On this recording Mario shows all sides of his talents… arranging and composing, along with his actual playing: a gorgeous sound on the tenor, and most of all, leadership and passion. The music is infectious with all band members contributing to a repertoire that touches on several different stylistic trends of modern jazz. But for me, most of all, this is a real jazz recording – no tricks, no games – pure beauty, energy, and honesty. It doesn’t get much better. My compliments!”
Estrella De Mar has garnered critical acclaim having received five stars from All About Jazz and Latin Jazz Net. It has placed on multiple ‘Best Of 2014’ lists: The San Jose Mercury News, NextBop, Jazz Weekly, and more.