Joshua Banks Confirms Debut Album ‘Para Sayo’

Rising pianist and composer Joshua Banks announces the release of his debut album Para Sayo, available worldwide on Friday, May 16, 2025. Self-released and filed under contemporary jazz, Para Sayo is a genre-blending, emotionally rich recording that explores the intersections of jazz, Filipino heritage, and personal identity.

The album’s title, Para Sayo — Tagalog for “For You” — encapsulates the spirit of the project. Rooted in both jazz tradition and Filipino storytelling, Para Sayo offers an evocative portrait of diaspora and belonging. Banks comments:

“As someone who often feels disconnected from my heritage, this album is an exploration of what it means to find space for ourselves, our families, our people, and our culture in the West.”

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The album features standout original compositions and powerful collaborations with a diverse group of Western Canada’s most exciting young artists. Notable guests include vocalist Hazel Cavida on “Opo,” a bilingual piece exploring intergenerational dialogue within immigrant families; Tea Fannie, a Calgary-based hip-hop artist who lends her voice to the socially charged “Outspoken”; and Corazon Banks, the artist’s mother, whose spoken-word segment “Indemok i Talaw” (“I Miss the Stars”) is delivered in her native Ibaloi—an Indigenous language of the Philippine Cordillera.

Influenced by renowned Asian pianists such as Hiromi Uehara and Kie Katagi, Banks brings together his classical training (RCM Level 10, working toward his ARCT) and jazz education (BMus, MacEwan University) to create a sonic landscape that is both technically refined and emotionally resonant.

Joshua Banks ‘Para Sayo’ album artwork