Bassist Santi Debriano’s Quartet

The son of a Panamanian composer, Santi Debriano is one of the busiest jazz bassists in the New York area. In addition to leading his own bands, Debriano has been a member of the Don Pullen Trio, the Pharoah Sanders Group, the Sonny Fortune Group, the Billy Hart Band, the Louis Hayes Quintet, the Larry Coryell Group, and the Archie Shepp Quartet. As a sideman, Debriano has performed with Chucho Valdés, Hank Jones, Cecil Taylor, Randy Weston, and Freddie Hubbard. A member of the Archie Shepp Quartet in the late '70s, he was featured on four albums and appeared in the documentary film Imagine the Sound. Moving to Paris, Debriano spent three years with the Sam Rivers Trio. Upon his return to the United States, he quickly made his presence felt on the jazz scene in New York.   As a bandleader, Debriano has presented his music in a variety of contexts. In addition to his Quartet,  he led a two-bass quintet and a trio during the late '80s and played Latin music as a member of the Panamaniacs. Debriano has been equally influential as a music teacher. As the music director for the performing arts program at Dwight Morrow High School in Englewood, NJ, he placed an emphasis on African, Afro-Caribbean, Latin American, and African-American music. He received a jazz educator award from New York University in 2001.