Saxophonist/Composer Matt Otto is without peer as a leading academic in the field of jazz, yet he is continually informed and inspired by a diverse set of influences outside that genre, including writers and philosophers like Langston Hughes and W.E.B. Du Bois, and classical composers and performers from J.S. Bach to Glenn Gould.

It was not, then, an unusual decision by Beau Bledsoe, guitarist and founder of the Kansas City-based arts organization Ensemble Ibérica, to approach Otto, asking him to compose for and record an album utilizing the diverse influences and instruments found in this ensemble. A collaboration three years in the making, this new recording, Iberica will be performed in its entirety during this concert with additional songs arranged by pianist Brad Cox.