María Grand

Saxophonist Maria Grand is a daring soloist known for her expansive, conceptually adventurous take on modern creative and spiritual jazz. Along with work alongside forward-thinking luminaries like Vijay Iyer, Nicole Mitchell, and Mary Halvorson, she has earned critical acclaim for her own albums, including 2018's Magdalena and 2021's Reciprocity. Born in 1992 in Geneva, Switzerland, Grand grew up in a creative family the daughter of singer Colette Grand and Argentine saxophonist Eduardo Kohan. She started playing saxophone at ten years old and by her teens was already dedicated to pursuing music as a career. She studied briefly at the Professional Conservatory of Music in Geneva before moving to New York City, where she roomed with fellow Geneva-bred saxophonist Ohad Talmor. There she spent several months studying at City College while ensconcing herself in the vibrant jazz and creative music scene. Choosing to leave school to instead focus on her music, she built a strong reputation working with performers like Dan Weiss, Antoine Roney, Miles Okazaki, Vijay Iyer, and others. In 2017, she made her solo debut with the TetraWind EP, featuring her group with Román Filiú, Rashaan Carter, David Bryant, and Craig Weinrib. That same year, she was the recipient of the Jazz Gallery Residency Commission. In 2018, Grand released her full-length debut album, Magdalena, which found her using female icons like Egyptian goddess Isis, Mary (the mother of Jesus), and Mary Magdalene as symbols to explore societal notions of femininity, power, and trauma. It again featured Carter and Bryant, along with contributions by guitarist Mary Halvorson, rappers Jasmine Wilson and Amani Fela, pianist Fabian Almazan, and drummer Jeremy Dutton. More accolades came her way, including earning the 2018 Roulette Jerome Foundation Commission and the 2019 Roulette Residency. Along with sessions with Halvorson's Code Girl, drummer Devin Gray, and mridangam player Rajna Swaminathan, Grand continued to develop her own approach. She began teaching her SoliLunar Method of improvisation, a practice based on the movement of the sun and the moon. In 2021, she returned with her sophomore full-length, Reciprocity. Recorded while Grand was five months pregnant, it found her exploring concepts of birth and renewal alongside her trio with bassist Kanoa Mendenhall and drummer Savannah Harris. ~ Matt Collar, Rovi