FirstWorks Summer Beats Concerts: The William Cepeda & Elio Villafranca Sextet: Merging Roots at Roger Williams Park Boathouse Lawn

This exciting concert tour unites two renowned musicians, William Cepeda and Elio Villafranca, in a dynamic exploration of the shared African roots connecting Cuba, Puerto Rico, and New Orleans. Both artists are celebrated for blending jazz with the musical traditions of their homelands, highlighting cultural resilience through rhythm, improvisation, and storytelling.

Elio Villafranca is an acclaimed Cuban pianist and composer who leads the group Jass Syncopators, whose repertoire explores the influence of Caribbean rhythms on early jazz. William Cepeda is a pioneer of Afro-Rican Jazz, which fuses traditional Puerto Rican styles like bomba and plena with jazz, creating a sound that is both innovative and rooted in history. The ensemble features core members of Villafranca’s Jass Syncopators— musicians from NYC well-versed in jazz and Afro-Caribbean genres—along with a saxophonist from New Orleans now based in Nashville. Together, this sextet offers a vibrant, cross-cultural soundscape that celebrates the power of music to transcend borders and connect communities.

This concert coincides with Food Truck Friday, an outdoor food truck festival at the Carousel Village located across from the Boathouse Lawn starting at 5:00 p.m.We invite you to bring a lawn chair or picnic blanket, grab some delicious food – and enjoy an evening outdoors with incredible music and community!

Accessibility info: • Wheelchair accessible sidewalk leading to a grass lawn • Accessible Bathrooms nearby (at the Carousel Village) • Earplugs Available