Marietta Ulacia

The Afro Latin Jazz Alliance (ALJA) was founded in 2007 by GRAMMY®-award winning composer, pianist, and educator Arturo O’Farrill. ALJA supports and promotes the performance of Afro Latin jazz, and provides institutional support to the Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra and a comprehensive array of performance and education programs celebrate Latino contributions to American jazz and explore the rich diversity of jazz in the Americas. ALJA’s mission is to perform, educate about, and preserve the music of all the Americas, emanating from African and indigenous roots, through the entry point of jazz. ALJA embraces its mission with a commitment to social justice, equity, inclusion, and the equality of cultures worldwide. Through thirteen years of performance, education, preservation, and public engagement, ALJA has brought attention to Afro Latin jazz as an important American artform. In the last thirteen years ALJA has produced over 88 concerts in New York for its annual season at various venues showcasing the full range of Afro Latin jazz; toured nationally and internationally; recorded GRAMMY®-nominated and GRAMMY®-winning albums; instituted year-long educational residencies in the New York City public schools; created a pre professional training orchestra program for young musicians; and garnered critical acclaim for its Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra as the leading orchestra of its genre in the world.