Lannie Battistini’s Flavorful Swing — Keys to the Groove 2.0
“Keys to the Groove 2.0 brings together three musicians whose individual careers have earned international recognition and who, through their performances, demonstrate the fundamental qualities that unite them: trust, excellence, and class.
The album features brilliant compositions by Battistini, with contributions from Valentino and Vergara, allowing them to journey along paths of improvisation that flow like a conversation transformed into colorful brushstrokes and an abundance of swing.
Their musical fluidity moves effortlessly through Latin jazz, blues, funk, swing, and rhythmic traditions from across the Latin American world.”
— Vicente Toledo Rohena, Reporter
National Foundation for Popular Culture
San Juan, Puerto Rico (Translated to English)
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THE LATIN JAZZ BAND
Music Conversing. Soul Listening. Rhythm speaking.
KEYS TO THE GROOVE 2.0 brings together three artists whose collective chemistry is rooted in long-standing trust, shared musical values, and deep listening.
Pianist Lannie Battistini is a multi-GRAMMY®, Latin GRAMMY®, and multi-Global Music® Award–winning pianist, producer, Arranger, composer and recording engineer whose work bridges the rich tradition of Latin jazz with contemporary expression. As Founder and CEO of Hands In Motion Music School & Productions, Battistini has cultivated a distinctive musical voice shaped by his formal education at Berklee College of Music and defined by lyrical clarity, rhythmic depth, and spiritual attentiveness. His pianism favors invitation over exhibition, creating musical landscapes where groove emerges through deep listening, restraint, and intention rather than excess.
Bassist Dr. José Valentino is a multi-Latin GRAMMY®, EMMY®, and multi-Global Music® Award–winning composer, flutist, multi-instrumentalist, and producer whose artistry spans bass guitar, flute, and saxophone. Equally grounded in performance and scholarship, Valentino serves as a professor of Music Business and Entrepreneurship at the University of Florida, where he leads nationally recognized initiatives in creative enterprise. His musical approach treats composition and bass playing as narrative tools—shaping space, momentum, and dialogue within the ensemble.
Percussionist Johnny Vergara, a gifted Panamanian artist, is widely regarded as a first-call percussionist for Latin jazz and tropical music throughout the southeastern United States. His playing is defined by feel, clarity, and forward motion. Drawing from Afro-diasporic rhythmic traditions, Vergara contributes not as ornamentation, but as breath—providing propulsion while honoring balance, texture, and collective groove.
Together, the trio creates music defined not by excess, but by listening, trust, and shared expression—where groove emerges organically through interaction, intuition, and experience.
KEYS TO THE GROOVE 2.0 is not merely a continuation—it is a return, refined.
When pianist Lannie Battistini, bassist José Valentino, and percussionist Johnny Vergara come together, the music carries the weight of shared history and the freedom of trust. This collaboration is rooted in years of artistic dialogue—on stages, in studios, and across conversations where craft, faith, curiosity, and friendship have quietly shaped a common musical language.
The title Keys to the Groove operates on multiple levels. The “keys” are literal—hands on piano, fingers on strings—but they are also symbolic: access points into rhythm, into relationship, into motion. The “groove” is not simply timekeeping; it is alignment. It is the moment when intention, intuition, and listening converge. 2.0 signals growth—not reinvention for its own sake, but deepening. The first chapter of Keys to the Groove, recorded by Battistini and Valentino, earned a Global Music® Award for Latin Jazz in 2022. This second iteration expands the conversation, widening the rhythmic and emotional palette while remaining anchored to the same artistic core.
At the center of the project is Lannie Battistini’s compositional voice—lyrical, grounded, and spiritually attentive. His piano playing does not dominate; it invites. José Valentino’s bass work responds in kind, weaving melody into foundation, shaping space as much as sound. Johnny Vergara’s percussion completes the triad, not as ornamentation, but as breath—giving the music its forward motion and tactile presence.
What makes this album distinctive is not virtuosity alone, but process. Much of the recording unfolded without rehearsal, relying instead on deep listening and trust built over time. Improvisation here is not exhibition—it is conversation. Each track unfolds as a lived moment, guided by instinct rather than excess, clarity rather than display.
The sequencing of the album reflects a deliberate arc. It moves with purpose—ascending, grounding, remembering, arriving. “Fionna (A Tribute to My Late Daughter)” stands at the emotional center, offering stillness and reflection amid motion. Elsewhere, original compositions sit naturally alongside one reimagined standard, not as contrasts, but as continuations of the same voice.
Ultimately, KEYS TO THE GROOVE 2.0 is about relationship—between musicians, between sound and silence, between where one begins and where one arrives. It is music shaped by experience, refined by restraint, and animated by joy. Not a destination, but a path—one that continues to open with every listening.
Contact For Bookings, Information, Riders, Fees:
Neysa Rodriguez-Battistini
Booking | Publicity | Content Strategist Director