Remi Álvarez

Mexican saxophonist. Born in Mexico City, he studied concert flute at the National Conservatory of Music and saxophone at the National School of Music of UNAM from 1982 to 1987, under Roberto Benítez, where he got a university degree in jazz. He started his career as a saxophone player in 1984 with Cuarteto Mexicano de Jazz, led by pianist Francisco Téllez. He moved to New York City a few years after and he pursued his studies of composition and improvisation at the Creative Music Studies, with instructors like Anthony Braxton, George Lewis, Roscoe Mitchell, and Don Cherry. In 1988, he moved to Paris for a semester, where he continued his musical growth taking several lessons with composer and saxophone player Steve Lacy. In 2005, he took an advanced improvisation course at the Vancouver Creative Music Institute with George Lewis and Evan Parker, among others. Since 1991, he has been the saxophone and jazz workshop professor at the National School of Music of UNAM.