BroadStage Presents Antonio Sánchez: BIRDMAN LIVE This Month

Four-time GRAMMY Award winner Antonio Sánchez, will perform Birdman Live on Saturday, April 20, 2024 at 7:30pm at the Eli and Edythe Broad Stage.

Antonio Sánchez, one of the most renowned drummers in the international jazz scene, takes the stage to celebrate the 10th anniversary celebration of Birdman, Alejandro González Iñárritu's Academy Award winning Best Picture starring Michael Keaton, Edward Norton, Emma Stone and Naomi Watts.
 
During a screening of the film, Sánchez will recreate his score, but as Sánchez improvised most of the original music for the film, each performance is unique — a showcase of his musical creativity. This performance immerses the audience in the riveting film while experiencing the power of storytelling through live music.
 
The 1974 Birdman, also won the Academy Award for Best Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Cinematography among its nine nominations. One of the most acclaimed film of its year, it appeared on more than fifty critics top ten lists.  Michael Keaton portrayed Riggan Thomson a faded actor best known for playing a superhero named Birdman as he struggles with his comeback project, a Broadway adaptation of a Raymond Carver short story. The film is absolutely unique as it appears to be filmed in one continuous take and real time.
 
Sanchez won the GRAMMY Award for Best Score Soundtrack for the album of Birdman.
 
For an article for his alma mater, Berklee College of Music, writer Leslie Mahoney wrote, “The process Iñárritu proposed played into Sanchez's skill at improvisation. The two got together in a studio in New York where Iñárritu described each scene and the kind of energy he wanted. Iñárritu signaled transitions in scenes by raising his hand, and Sanchez responded—using mallets, sticks, his hands—with whatever fit the mood.”

“The improvisation,” Sanchez said, “was the easiest thing for me. If he told me to do something really calculated, I'm sure I'd be able to pull it off, but what I did was completely follow my instincts, which is what you do in jazz. I always guide myself by the sound and energy of what's going on. I always do that with other people on stage or by myself. But never to imagery. The biggest challenge was adapting what I do to a moving image, a story line, and dialogue.”

Before the show there will be a pre-party on The Plaza at 6:00pm. Inspired by the graphic-off-beat superhero themes of the film, East LA C.A.P.E (Comicbook, Art, and Pop Culture Expo) will be popping up with six curated artists showcasing and selling their work. DJ Chad Kenney, part of legendary party-throwers Brownies and Lemonade (as well as Tetris-Master on Twitch) will be playing music inspired by beloved games, past and present. Installation artists and photographers Sparkle Set Portraits will create a one of a kind Birdman-meets-BroadStage backdrop and take your photo in their nostalgic style. Looking to dress up? Local LA small business Darlings, The Feather Place, will have wings for sale for guests to really get in theme. And finally, if you're hungry, Chicas Tacos will be back at BroadStage with their delicious Mexico-meets-Cali fare. The pre-party is open to Birdman Live ticketholders.

Tickets starting at $45 are available at https://broadstage.org/ or by calling 310.434.3200. This performance was made possible, in part, by Ovation.

More about Antonio Sánchez

Born in Mexico City, 4-time Grammy Award winner Antonio Sánchez began playing the drums at age five and performed professionally in his early teens in Mexico's rock, jazz and Latin scenes. He pursued a degree in classical piano at the National Conservatory in Mexico and in 1993 enrolled in Berklee College of Music and New England Conservatory, where he graduated Magna Cum Laude in Jazz Studies. Since moving to New York City in 1999, Sánchez has become one of the most sought-after drummers on the international jazz scene. Following 18 years and 9 albums as one of the most revered collaborators with guitarist/composer Pat Metheny, he also has recorded and performed with many other most prominent artists like Chick Corea, Gary Burton, Michael Brecker, Charlie Haden and Toots Thielmans.

Said 20-time GRAMMY winner Metheny, “I honestly never thought a musician like him would ever be born. He's a dream….one of the greatest musicians I have ever seen.”

In 2014 Sánchez's popularity soared when he scored Alejandro González Iñárritu's Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance). Additional film/tv projects include EPIX network's Get Shorty and Hippopotamus among others. With more than a dozen recordings as a leader or co-leader, Sánchez's recent projects include the acclaimed epic The Meridian Suite and the star studded Three Times Three. He turned his upset over social injustice into a tribute to every immigrant's journey in his epic musical statement Lines in the Sand.

Sánchez is the recipient of four Grammys, three Echo Awards, Golden Globe & BAFTA nominations and has been thrice named Modern Drummer's "Jazz Drummer of the Year”. He has been the covers of DownBeat, JazzTimes, JAZZIZ, Modern Drummer, Drum! and Musico Pro — among others.

Sánchez's new album SHIFT (Bad Hombre Vol. II) on Warner Music features Sánchez playing virtually every instrument on the album — in addition to being its producer. SHIFT features Trent Reznor, Dave Mathews, Kimbra, Ana Tijoux, Meshell Ndegeocello and more.

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