Central Oregon Coast Jazz Gig Shows Off Hints of African, Caribbean

Published 01/15/26 at 7:55 a.m.
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection Staff

(Lincoln City, Oregon) – Exemplary moments of jazz laced with African, Caribbean and other World Musics are coming to the central Oregon coast.

The Lincoln City Cultural Center will host guitarist and composer Adam Moezinia’s Folk Element Trio on Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026, offering an evening of jazz shaped by global folk traditions. The 7 p.m. performance in the Cultural Center Auditorium highlights the trio’s blend of acoustic-driven improvisation and rhythmic influences from West Africa, South Africa, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom, and Appalachia.

Moezinia has developed the Folk Element Trio since 2017, refining it into a tightly connected ensemble focused on exploring how traditional folk melodies and rhythms can inform contemporary jazz. After debuting the project in New York, the group embarked on its first national tour in 2020 and released its self-titled album in 2021.

A Los Angeles native, Moezinia studied at LACHSA and toured with the Thelonious Monk Institute’s peer-to-peer program before earning a fulltuition scholarship to The Juilliard School. His career has included performances at major jazz venues and collaborations across the genre, while the Folk Element Trio remains his primary outlet for weaving global musical influences into a modern, guitar-centered sound.

Lincoln City Cultural Center

The trio’s repertoire often begins with specific cultural inspirations. Moezinia’s “Ivory Suite,” for example, draws on West African folk traditions and grew out of his exposure to Beninese guitarist Lionel Loueke.

Moezinia will be joined by bassist Emiliano Lasansky and drummer Marcello Carelli. Lasansky, raised in Iowa City and now based in Los Angeles, is both a performer and composer, with credits that include a 2023 ASCAP Foundation Award and studies at the Eastman School of Music. He also was also a part of the Herbie Hancock Institute of Jazz Performance at UCLA. Carelli, a drummer, composer, and arranger, holds degrees from the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music and USC Thornton, has performed with Grammywinning artists, and has taught masterclasses internationally.

Onstage, the group is known for an informal, conversational style that invites audiences into the creative process as the musicians trace connections between jazz and folk idioms. Reviewers have described the trio’s performances as celebratory and energetic, with a momentum that builds from the opening moments and swells to a constant level during the entire show.

Details of this engaging central Oregon coast show:

What: LCCC Presents: Adam Moezinia’s Folk Element Trio
When: Wednesday, Jan. 21, 2026 at 7:00 pm
Where: Lincoln City Cultural Center Auditorium, 540 NE Hwy 101, Lincoln City
Tickets: Reserved cabaret seating $30 / $27 / $20 (member discounts apply)
Tickets/Info: (541) 994-9994 or the LCCC ticket link at https://app.arts-people.com/index.php?show=306438

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