DOWNBEAT | Antonio Sánchez, Thana Alexa Grow Their Partnership
On a chilly January night in New York City, drummer-composer Antonio Sánchez plays a full-body phrase. He hangs back in the measures before repeating it—a provocation. Alongside saxophonist and EWI artist Chase Baird, vocalist Thana Alexa stretches vowels around quarter-tones in extended moments of dissonance on the Blue Note stage. She recites a wordless incantation she’s never delivered—one she’ll never repeat. These moments of intensity are typical for a show by the band Migration.