CARLOS HENRIQUEZ

For nearly two decades, Carlos Henriquez, 39, has been the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra’s bass specialist. In that role, he’s accompanied the band on some of its most memorable forays, including a historic 2010 trip to Cuba, for which he also served as music director.

In recent years, the Bronx native of Puerto Rican descent has pursued a solo career as well. His first album as a leader, The Bronx Pyramid, was released in 2015. Last year, he released Dizzy Con Clave, a vibrant exploration of the Afro-Latin jazz tradition and an energetic tribute to Dizzy Gillespie. “He was a main ambassador for us jazz-wise, in terms of bridging cultures and just trying to let people know that we’re all one,” Henriquez says. “That’s what I do with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra.” In November, at Jazz at Lincoln Center, he debuted a 10-movement suite, The South Bronx Story, to be released as an album later this year.

On an afternoon in late January, Henriquez, who had recently returned from Mexico with the orchestra, sat down with JazzTimes for his first Before & After listening session, in Wynton Marsalis’ dressing room at Jazz at Lincoln Center.

1. Eric Dolphy

“Alone Together [Alternate Take]” (Musical Prophet: The Expanded 1963 New York Studio Sessions, Resonance). Dolphy, bass clarinet; Richard Davis, bass. Recorded in 1963.

It sounds good. I’m enjoying this. [] I love this standard. The beginning made me think