Díaz de Cossío / Solares / Motl

A collective trio playing improvised music with attention to subtle timbral detail and formal development. 

Rocío Díaz de Cossío, mexican-american sound artist. Rocío is a versatile cellist and is an avid advocate of new music. Rocío works actively with composers in the creation of new pieces; they have recently performed at festivals including the  Darmstadt Ferienkurse für Neue Musik (Germany), at the International Ensemble Modern Academy  (Austria), The Center for Advanced Musical Studies at Chosen Vale, The Next Fest for Emerging Artist (New York), Festival Expresiones Contemporáneas (México).

​Rocío has been teaching for several years in a wide range of ages. In their classroom, they enjoy creating a sensible and integrative learning environment. Rocío fosters a joy for playing and is careful to understand each student's unique motivations and help them achieve their musical goals. Passionate about sharing their love of music, Rocío has taught in music programs in México and the US. Their interest in promoting music education to all students regarding their economic status has led them to join as a teaching artist at Opportunity Music Program, InTempo, and Harmony Program NYC.

​Rocío holds a Masters Degree from SUNY College at Purchase and Bachelors from Universidad Autónoma de Baja California. Their former teachers have been Julia Lichten, Jenia Kobylyanska, and Yao Zhao. Currently, Rocío is living in NYC, where they work as a freelance cellist and have a private cello studio.

José Fernando Solares is a Mexican improviser, saxophonist, composer, and sound artist based in NYC. He delves into improvisational perspectives that transcend mere listening, emphasizing perception, awareness of the time-space continuum, the coexistence of multiple realities, and unpredictability. Surrendering to the unconscious, he explores improvisation through various genres, including ska, salsa, timba, jazz, contemporary music, and free improvisation, as well as interdisciplinary projects. 

With a background in Classical Saxophone Performance, José has showcased his musical talents in renowned orchestras and ensembles such as Wadada Leo Smith’s Mbira Ensemble, Burnt Sugar Arkestra, Wilfrido Terrazas Sea Quintet, La Covacha Big Band, and Bucéfalo. He has also actively participated in prestigious festivals and initiatives such as the Winter Jazzfest 2024 in NYC, Heather Kravas and Victoria Haven: solid objects/VOIDS at The Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, MN (2022); Afrofuturism Festival 2022 at Carnegie Hall in NYC; Ensenada's New Music Festival in Mexico (Neofonia FMNE) from 2019 to 2022; Festival Of New Trumpet Music West 2020 in San Diego, CA (FONT West); International Improv's Week in Ensenada, Mexico (SIDIMPRO) from 2013 to 2023; La Covacha's International Jazz Week in Ensenada, Mexico (SIJAZZ) from 2014 to 2019; and Vértice. Experimentación y Vanguardia 2018 in Mexico City. 

Throughout his career, José has collaborated with remarkable artists, including Zeena Parkins, Tomeka Reid, James Fei, Kyle Motl, Rocio Díaz De Cossio, Wilfrido Terrazas, Willian Winant, Jefferson Doyle, and Ivan Trujillo. In recognition of his talent, he was awarded the FONCA-CONACYT scholarship for graduate studies abroad in 2021. José recently completed his MFA in Music Performance and Literature, with a focus on Improvisation, at Mills College in Oakland, CA. Additionally, he has taken on the role of curator for the New Music festival Neofonia in Ensenada, Mexico.

Kyle Motl is a bassist, composer, and improviser described as “spectacularly adventurous and dynamic,” whose playing is noted for both “iridescent delicacy as well as abrasive force” (The Wire). A frequent soloist, his performances “promise to change us by revealing things we could never have imagined” (Free Jazz Collective). 

As a composer and bandleader, Kyle’s ensemble music has been praised for its “speculative, many-layered evolution of imagination,” (Free Jazz Collective) and for “constantly confounding expectation” (Jazz da Gama). Treesearch, with violinist Keir GoGwilt, brings together chamber music, jazz, and improvised excursions in “its own brand of in-the-moment invention, mingling rich tones, rhapsodic gestures, and companionable jousts” (The New Yorker). Kyle makes music in collaborative trios with Anthony Davis and Kjell Nordeson (Vertical Motion, 2023 Astral Spirits), Dan Clucas and Nathan Hubbard (Daydream and Halting, 2022 FMR), and with Rocío Díaz de Cossío and José Fernando Solares. Other recent projects include work with musicians including Earl Howard, Rhonda Taylor, Carlos Dominguez, Niloufar Shiri, and Wilfrido Terrazas. 

Kyle works regularly with both emerging and established composers and champions new works for the bass. He has performed with ensembles including International Contemporary Ensemble and Ghost Ensemble. His 2022 solo record, Hydra Nightingale, consists of solo premieres by Caroline Louise Miller, Anqi Liu, Jessie Cox, and Asher Tobin Chodos.

Kyle holds a DMA from UC San Diego, an MM from Florida International University, and a BM from Florida Atlantic University. His book, Bells Plucked From Air, sheds light on harmonic techniques for the double bass.