The Mark Salazar Quintet
The Mark Salazar Quintet on stage at Smalls Jazz Club, low club lighting

NYC · Modern Jazz Quintet

TheMark Salazar
Quintet

Tenor saxophone, trumpet, piano, double bass, drums.
Smalls residency · debut on Smoke Sessions Records.
Booking [email protected]

About

Tenor sax, trumpet, piano, bass, drums. The format is the tradition. The writing is what the night turns into.

Mark Salazar is a New York-based tenor saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. His quintet, formed in 2022, holds a weekly residency at Smalls Jazz Club in the West Village and tours US and European clubs and festivals through the year.

The group's writing draws on the post-bop lineage, Wayne Shorter, Joe Henderson, Mark Turner, then pushes through it with longer-form structures and a rhythm section that takes the music into open, conducted improvisation. The 2026 debut, In the Hours, is recorded for Smoke Sessions Records and traces a single night from soundcheck to closing time, eight original compositions in sequence.

Salazar studied at the New School for Jazz and Contemporary Music under Reggie Workman and Billy Harper. He has performed with Vijay Iyer, Linda May Han Oh, Joel Ross, and Aaron Parks, and recorded as a sideman on records for Whirlwind, Pi Recordings, and Sunnyside.

Listen

The catalogue, so far

March 2026 · Smoke Sessions Records

In the Hours

Eight originals tracking a single night at Smalls, from soundcheck to closing time. Recorded live to two-inch tape over two December nights.

Pre-save →
2024 · Self-released

Standards, Reconsidered

An EP of standards rewritten for the quintet, Body and Soul, Stella by Starlight, In Your Own Sweet Way, Naima.

Listen on Bandcamp →
2023 · Whirlwind

The Long Way Home

Debut as leader. With Joel Ross (vibes), Linda May Han Oh (bass), Eric McPherson (drums).

Listen on Apple Music →
2022 · Pi Recordings

Vijay Iyer, Compassion

Sideman, tenor saxophone on three tracks.

Listen on Spotify →

Tour

In the Hours release tour, 2026

  • Mar 14, 2026 New York, NY Smalls Jazz Club · Album release, two sets Sold out
  • Mar 18, 2026 Brooklyn, NY Village Vanguard · Two-night run Tickets
  • Mar 26, 2026 Boston, MA Scullers Jazz Club Tickets
  • Apr 02, 2026 Washington, DC Blues Alley Tickets
  • Apr 11, 2026 Chicago, IL Jazz Showcase · Two sets Tickets
  • Apr 18, 2026 Detroit, MI Cliff Bell's Tickets
  • May 04, 2026 London, UK Ronnie Scott's · Three-night run Tickets
  • May 09, 2026 Paris, FR Sunset/Sunside Tickets
  • May 14, 2026 Berlin, DE A-Trane Tickets
  • May 21, 2026 Basel, CH Bird's Eye Jazz Club Tickets
  • Jul 05, 2026 Montreal, QC Festival International de Jazz de Montréal Tickets
  • Jul 18, 2026 Newport, RI Newport Jazz Festival Tickets
  • Feb 06, 2026 New York, NY Smalls · Residency, week 47 Past
  • Jan 24, 2026 New York, NY Winter Jazzfest · The New School Past
Subscribe via iCal → Download .ics Festival & club bookings: [email protected]

Press

What the writers are saying

"A tenor player who can land both the long line and the short, sharp idea, and a bandleader who knows the difference."
DownBeat · Mar 2026
"Salazar's writing finds the room between Shorter and Tigran Hamasyan and treats it like a known address."
The New York Times
"The most assured young quintet on the New York scene right now."
JazzTimes · Cover, Spring 2026

Get in touch

Booking

Festivals, clubs, and concert programmers, US & Europe.

Press

Interviews, photography requests, advance review copies.

Management

Lila Grover, Lila & Co. Artists. General & recording inquiries.

Electronic press kit, 2026 Download EPK (PDF, 3.2 MB) →