Primary Instrument: Piano
Pianist/Composer Angelica Sanchez was born in Phoenix, Arizona in 1972. From 1990-1994 she studied piano and composition at Arizona State University. Sanchez moved to New York in 1995 and has since played with: Susie Ibarra, Tim Berne, Mario Pavone, Trevor Dunn, Mark Dresser, Ed Schuller, Judy Silvano, Greg Tardy, Reggie Nicholson, George Schuller, Jeff Williams, Daniel Carter, Mike Sarin, Tony Moreno, Scott Maclemore, Ben Monder and many more. Sanchez leads her own quartet featuring Tony Malaby, Drew Gress, and Tom Rainey. Her debut recording “Mirror Me“ was chosen as one of the “Best New Releases for 2003” in All About Jazz and made the top ten JazzTimes Critics' Picks list 2003.
“Sanchez's provocative writing - full of evocative harmonies and open-ended forms showcases her flair for counterpoint and marks her as a formidable talent...” --JazzTimes Magazine
“...introduces a refreshingly unfussy approach to advanced composition.... ...she carries an unforced authority; her virtuosity (not too strong a word) is less solid than fluid, a thing of movement and ease.” --Philadelphia City Paper/Chinen
“Sanchez’s piano playing is marked by its fluidity. She plays with tremendous ease and emotional involvement. It’s a refreshing thought that the male-dominated jazz world does have some bright female members with nowhere to go but up.” --The Boston Tech/Jeremy Baskin
“Sanchez is involved with free jazz that has structure, if that isn't too much of a contradiction; it has a loose, cantankerous energy, but it's given shape by some smart writing.” --The New York Times
“She's brought a big imagination with her from the Southwest, and the open-ended approach of her pianistics accounts for the sprawling terrain around which she grew up.” --Jim Macnie
“There's something literally unique about her piano lingo. It's defined by an attempt to throw a lasso around a massive piece of keyboard history. And when it's at its most eloquent, you'll be impressed. --The Village Voice Her style encompasses the harmonic delicacy of a Herbie Hancock with the occasional flashes of the percussive attack of a Cecil Taylor. The 28-year-old Arizona native is definitely one to watch. --Steve Feeney, Portland Press Herald Angelica Sanchez Quartet With Tony Malaby on tenor and soprano, Drew Gress on bass, and Tom Rainey on drums. A seemingly quiet person, Sanchez would calmly count off a tune, begin with a plaintive but edgy unison melody over a clear tempo, and then ascend the rungs toward free-blowing intensity, always with a cohesive purpose and a precise ending in mind. Her line playing was highly advanced and forceful, and her Wurlitzer gave the adventurous, outward-leaning music a kind of cool sheen, balencing the full-throttle attack of Malaby's horn. Gress and Rainey grasped Sanchez's intent with a proficiency that inspired awe.”
--David Adler/ALL ABOUT JAZZ, January 2003
