Gregorio Uribe

An established singer, songwriter, accordionist and big band leader, Uribe was born in Bogotá, Colombia and is currently based in New York City. Emerging as a graduate from the prestigious Berklee College of Music in Boston, Uribe has made a name for himself in the Latin music scene of both New York City and Boston. Well known for leading the Gregorio Uribe Big Band, a 16-piece orchestra that blends cumbia and other Colombian rhythms with powerful big band arranging, Uribe released  "Cumbia Universal" (Zoho Music) featuring 8-time GRAMMY-winner and Latin music icon Rubén Blades in October 2015. Upon its release the debut album for the big band hit the Billboard charts and received widespread critical acclaim with performances selling out at Jazz at Lincoln Center in NY, Villa Victoria Center for the Arts in Boston and two concerts at the celebrated Teatro Colón in his native Bogotá, Colombia.



Gregorio has been a guest artist with Carlos Vives (multiple GRAMMY winner) on several occasions, most recently at Madison Square Garden Theater in NYC. He was also named by the government of Colombia as one of the "100 Most Successful Colombians Abroad". He has been an artist-in-residence at Dartmouth College and a commissioned composer for Grammy-winning Arturo O’Farrill and The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra.

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Cantante, compositor, acordeonista y líder de orquesta, Uribe nació en Bogotá, Colombia y actualmente radica en la ciudad de Nueva York. Egresado de la prestigiosa Berklee College of Music en Boston, Uribe ha forjado un lugar singular en la escena musical latina de Nueva York y Boston. Más conocido por dirigir Gregorio Uribe Big Band, una orquesta de 16 piezas que combina la energía y gracia de ritmos del caribe colombiano como la cumbia, el chandé y el porro con la sofisticación y el estilo del big band jazz, Uribe exitosamente lanzó "Cumbia Universal" (Zoho Music) con el 8 veces ganador de GRAMMY y el ícono de música latina Rubén Blades en octubre de 2015. Alcanzado las listas de Billboard tras su lanzamiento, la producción de "Cumbia Universal" ha recibió tremenda recepción con conciertos totalmente vendidos en lugares como Jazz at Lincoln Center en Nueva York, Villa Victoria Center for the Arts en Boston y dos conciertos en el célebre Teatro Colón de su natal Bogotá.



Gregorio ha sido artista invitado junto a Carlos Vives en varias ocaciones, más recientemente en ell afamado Madison Square Garden de la ciudad de Nueva York. Uribe también fue nombrado por el gobierno de Colombia como uno de los "100 colombianos más exitosos en el extranjero"

Although big band music has a tradition of its own, it has been combined with dozens of other musical traditions and hence, renewing itself continuously. The possibilities are endless, but there are various creative ways for finding a personal language and find new, yet organic, ways to combine the rich colors of big band with other traditions of the world. By performing specific examples of original big band compositions, Gregorio goes in depth as to what questions arrangers/composers should ask themselves when attempting these new combinations so as to attain a unified sound, as opposed to a synthetic one. Rhythm, harmony, orchestration and counterpoint all have a role to play in this discussion. Through Gregorio's personal research on Colombian music and active big band writing, he will explain how he has managed to create the personal and recognizable sound that has as much big band influence as Colombian elements and which lead Grammy Award winning Arturo O'Farrill and his Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra to commission him to write a piece to be performed at Symphony Space in New York City.

A big band student may be well trained in voicings, couplings and reharmonization techniques but probably won't know how to start nor maintain an active, energetic big band. Gregorio shares a very personal and contemporary experience on band leading (not just big band) in one of the most competitive cities in the world and will help students with a list of "do's and don’ts" that will help them maintain a solid group of professional musicians together.