Watch Reginald Cyntje’s all-star quartet play ‘Araminta’ at our Spotlight Residency

We were thrilled and honored to present Reginald Cyntje, the great trombonist and composer, as our first Spotlight artist-in-residence this August. Cyntje showcased new, original music alongside three different ensembles across three nights, including a workshop performance at Sitar Arts Center and two shows in the intimate upstairs room at Local 16, an Afghan restaurant and nightclub in the heart of U Street.

The central purpose of the Spotlight Residency is, as the name suggests, to shine a light on the innovative, original music that D.C. improvisers are making, day in and day out. To that end we’ll be releasing full-length music videos after each residency that capture some fraction of the music’s live power.

Our first video, shot by Lauren Honesty, features Cyntje with the incredible band he brought on Saturday, Aug. 25: Brian Settles on tenor saxophone, Tarus Mateen on bass and John Lamkin III on drums. All four of these musicians are formidable talents, seen on stages across the world. Mateen plays in Jason Moran’s famous Bandwagon trio; Brian Settles performs alongside rising stars Jonathan Finlayson and Tomas Fujiwara; and Lamkin has accompanied Kenny Garrett and Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah. In Cyntje’s group, freewheeling without any chordal accompaniment, they found a special synergy.

Make sure to subscribe to our email list so you don’t miss our next Spotlight residency (Sep. 28-30, featuring young tenor saxophone lion Elijah Jamal Balbed), or any of our other upcoming shows!

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About Jamie Sandel

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Jamie is an organizer, musician and multimedia creative. He is a native of Silver Spring, MD, and returned to the D.C. area in 2018 after some time in Massachusetts, where he assisted the Amherst College Concert Office and the Amherst Symphony Orchestra. He graduated with a degree in music from Amherst College. Reach Jamie at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @wjsandel.

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