Eclectic pianist and composer, 22 year-old Alex Brown, a graduate of the New England Conservatory, joins saxophonist/clarinetist Paquito D’Rivera, in a debut CD featuring 7 Brown originals, and Brown’s arrangements of songs by Cole Porter and Brazilian composer, Pixinguinha. The instrumental combos variously include percussion, acoustic bass, marimba and flugelhorn in various jazz moods. Brown’s music shows a strong Latin influence. His free-flowing pianism exhibits expressiveness, an expansive sense of time, memorable improvised phrases and creative rhythms.

1. Brown: Prologue (6:12). Marimba sets the scene for a groovy excursion into funk, Latin beats and jazz.
2. Brown: Warm Blooded (7:22). Nightclub atmospheric jazz, with flugelhorn.
3. Brown: The Wrong Jacket (7:55). Traveling music, with Paquito joining.
4. Pixinguinha: Lamentos (6:25) Charming, melodic, up-tempo Samba dance number, with interspersed Bossa Nova swing
5. Brown: Elektric (8:59). Dedicated to Chic Corea. Flashy piano intro, dissonant West, then Middle East flavor, hot horn licks, piano-percussion dialogue, all join, percussion stars into the fade.
6. Brown: Waltz (3:45). Quiet, slow. Couples sway on the dance floor, late night in a smoky basement club.
7. Brown: Buleria (8:48). A dance style of Cadiz, Spain, with improvisations by all in turn.
8. Brown: Leaving (8:04). Cuban Danzon rhythm.
9. Porter: Just One of Those Things (6:07). Complex, funky arrangement.