Representing “a new sense of possibility and direction in jazz” (The Washington Post), Chilean-born saxophonist Melissa Aldana is a prodigious talent whose instrumental chops and creative improvisations are a family tradition.

As a child, Aldana studied with her renowned saxophonist father, Marcos Aldana (son of saxophonist Enrique Aldana, whose Selmer Mark VI tenor Melissa performs with to this day). She began on alto but after hearing Sonny Rollins she switched to tenor and never looked back. For her Mondavi Center debut, Aldana will perform a standard jazz set alongside her suite, Visions for Frida Kahlo, dedicated to the painter Frida Kahlo.