Sam Newsome, saxophonist, music professor, and accomplished writer, is a leader in the New York jazz world. He has collaborated with notable artists such as Elliot Sharpe, William Parker, Fay Victor, Daniel Carter, and Joe Morris, penned two books of personal essays, and released duo albums Soprano-Logues, with saxophonist Dave Liebman, and Cosmic Unconsciousness Unplugged, with pianist Jean-Michel Pilc. Newsome has won the Bronx Council on the Arts BRIO Award for Instrumental Music, the Soprano Saxophonist of the Year Award at the 14th Annual International Critics Polls, the 2018 Alpert/Ragdale Prize, and 2016 NYFA Artist Fellowship for music composition, among other awards.
Enjoy the music of the Freedom Jazz Quartet in a concert honoring the exhibition Elizabeth Catlett: A Black Revolutionary Artist, on view through July 6, 2025. Francisco Mora-Catlett, son of artists Elizabeth Catlett and Francisco Mora, leads this quartet of jazz emissaries.
Sam Newsome, soprano saxophone
James Weidman, piano
Hilliard Greene, bass
Francisco Mora-Catlett, drums
Program announced from the stage.
About the artists
Pianist James Weidman has been a sideman and accompanist for over 30 years, performing with such notable artists as Abbey Lincoln, Cassandra Wilson, Steve Coleman, Kevin Mahogany, and Joe Lovano Us Five. As a bandleader, composer, arranger, and recording artist, his releases have earned critical acclaim. He has shared the stage with the likes of jazz legends Max Roach, Woody Herman, Archie Shepp, and James Moody, among others. Born in Youngstown, Ohio, Weidman learned jazz from his saxophonist-bandleading father at age seven and at 14 played organ in his father’s band. Weidman is assistant professor of jazz piano and African American Studies at the University of Georgia.
Bassist Hilliard Greene has been playing professionally for over 35 years. He is an expert in classical, jazz, rock, blues, R&B, tango, and American and international regional specialties. He appears widely in the New York City area and has performed throughout the Americas, Canada, Europe, Asia, and Caribbean. Greene played and recorded with Jimmy Scott for over 20 years, has produced several albums, and has appeared with scores of music industry stars. He presently leads the In&Out Band and co-leads the ZigZag Quartet. An educator for over 25 years, Greene is a faculty member at the Collective in New York City and a 2020 recipient of the Bronx Council on the Arts BRIO Award.
Francisco Mora-Catlett is a drummer, composer, and educator. He began his music career over 50 years ago in Mexico City as a session musician for Capitol Records. After studying at the UNAM Music School in Mexico City and the Berklee School of Music in Boston, he performed with Sun Ra in Detroit and Max Roach in New York City on several percussion projects. In addition to numerous grant awards, he has played on over 15 albums, led his own bands, taught at the university level, and cofounded the Oyu Oro Afro-Cuban Experimental Dance Company with his wife Danys Perez Prades.
Mora-Catlett has recently held artist residencies at the University of Iowa, Wayne State University, and Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, among other institutions. In his work, he explores jazz and creativity while highlighting the achievements of his parents artists Elizabeth Catlett and Francisco Mora Sr. and distributing several of these projects under his label AACE.