The Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, led by the pianist Arturo O’Farrill, has often worked to tease out connections or pay living tribute, with the understanding that Latin jazz is both a historical idea and a vibrant contemporary art. “A Night of Afro Dominican Jazz: Honoring and Remembering ‘El Comandante’ Mario Rivera,” which opens the band’s 12th season on Oct. 25-26 at Symphony Space, should be a case in point.

Mario Rivera, who died in 2007, was a saxophonist of almost peerless ability and an upstanding example of the Dominican contribution to his field, blending jazz with merengue on his 1996 album, “El Comandante.” Among his former colleagues paying respects are the trumpeter Ray Vega and the guitarist Ed Cherry; the tenor saxophonist George Coleman will appear on Friday, while the trombonist Papo Vazquez will step up on Saturday. And Mr. Rivera’s son, the drummer Phoenix Rivera, will help strike the note of continuity that represents the orchestra’s core ideal. (8 p.m., 2537 Broadway, at 95th Street, 212-864-5400, symphonyspace.org; $20; students and members, $15.)