Saxophonist and composer Melissa Aldana was born in Santiago, Chile. She moved to the U.S. to attend Berklee, and in 2010, a year after graduating, she released her first album, “Free Fall.” In 2013, at 24, she became the first female instrumentalist, and the first South American musician, to win the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Saxophone Competition. Her album “Visions” (Motéma) earned the saxophonist her first GRAMMY nomination and was one of NPR Music/ Nate Chinen’s top albums of 2019. Aldana was one of the founding members of ARTEMIS, the all-star collective whose debut album appeared on Blue Note. Her own Blue Note debut as leader, “12 Stars”, is released in March 2022.

Melissa Aldana (sax), Lage Lund (g), Pablo Menares (b), Kush Abadey (dr)