Vega Trails [external organizer]

Vega Trails is a chamber jazz project led by double bassist Milo Fitzpatrick (Portico Quartet), featuring saxophonist Jordan Smart (Mammal Hands) and pianist Taz Modi (also from Portico Quartet).

Inspired by life in the foothills of the Sierra de Guadarrama mountains north of Madrid, Fitzpatrick created “Sierra Tracks” – a new album blending the evocative feel of film music with intimate jazz. Following their focused debut “Tremors In Static”, recorded as a duo with Jordan Smart, Milo expanded the project to include piano, vibraphone, and strings. Taz Modi’s piano playing brings “rhythmic movement, freeing the bass and saxophone from excess responsibilities,” while multi-instrumentalist Jordan Smart remains a key voice, playing soprano and tenor saxophones, bass clarinet, duduk, and ney flute.

“Hania Rani had a significant influence on the album’s string arrangements,” Fitzpatrick reveals, as he consulted with his Gondwana Records labelmate during her film score sessions in Warsaw. “She suggested sharing the studio session, and I realized the palette of sounds could be truly vast.”

“Sierra Tracks” is a love letter to the rugged landscapes Fitzpatrick now calls home. It also reflects his journey toward mental balance after the challenges of the pandemic. “I wanted to express how walking or running can bring clarity and order to tangled emotions—like discovering a new path that shifts your perspective and helps you find peace and acceptance.”

The result? Vega Trails’ music is a true remedy for the mind, body, and soul.