Latin Music

Not all musicians reach an advanced level of virtuosity on their instrument; it’s a hard earned responsibility that demands certain qualities from a musician.  On a surface level, instrumental virtuosity requires a musician to put in a constant stream of hard work to maintain technical abilities and keep their perspective from growing stale.  From there, virtuosic musicians need to remain constantly aware of the temptation to over rely upon the impressive quality of their technique to wow audiences instead of applying their skills liberally to musicianship.  After spending so much time developing technique, it’s easy to concentrate on that aspect during performance, but its important to highlight expressive qualities as well.  At the same time, individuals with strong technical skills need to search for like minded musicians to support their artistic concept; if they collaborate with similarly skilled musicians, they need to beware of clashing concepts.  The road to a unique and original jazz voice as a virtuoso can be a precarious journey, and one that has lost many instruments; when a musician finds their way though, the artistic output can be stunning. Pianist Michel Camilo certainly displays a jaw dropping level of technical virtuosity when he performs, but there’s never any question that the integrity of the music comes first.  From his work as a sideman with Paquito D’Rivera to his impressive output as a bandleader, Camilo continues to create challenging musical settings full of energy and individuality.  His compositions blend rhythms from Cuba, Brazil, and beyond with dense jazz harmonies, while his performances display a flawless technical execution and addictive energy.  He has explored a number of musical opportunities in his recordings, from his trio work on albums like Spirit of the Moment and Rendezvous, symphonic pieces on Concerto for Piano & Orchestra, flamenco influences alongside Tomatito on Spain, and Latin Jazz big band with Caribe.  At every turn, he applies his musicality first, using his technical ability as a tool to support musical settings instead of define them.  On every level, Camilo is a musician who brings music alive from the inside, relying on his creativity and musical instincts to guide an immense set of technical skills. This video finds Camilo leading a trio of like-minded virtuosos that bring his original composition “On Fire” to life with passionate intensity.  The performance begins with a mind boggling display of rhythmic exchange between Camilo and drummer Horacio “El Negro” Hernandez.  When the band gets into the groove, electric bassist Anthony Jackson jumps into the mix, contributing some simply brilliant note choices and another level of syncopated tension.  There’s plenty of virtuosity on display from all three members of the trio in this video, but its put to good use at every moment, leading to some outstanding displays of creativity and musicianship. Check out Michel Camilo’s Website Check out some recordings from Michel Camilo: What’s Up? Mano a Mano Live At the Blue Note ———- Check Out These Related Posts: Chucho Valdes & Paquito D’Rivera Performing Claudia Tito PUente, Nicky Marrero, & Kako: Timbale Jam Rebeca Mauleon Acoustic Quartet: Serenata Ritmica Jovino Santos Neto Quinteto Performing Zagaia ———-

There are many cultural components that a composer needs to consider when creating repertoire for a Latin Jazz ensemble, ranging from the Caribbean or South American rhythmic basis to the harmonic language of jazz; still, there’s one important element that only a select number of composers consider – the culture of their ensemble. It’s very possible for a musician to write a more generic piece of music that will work for any ensemble; we’ve seen that happen with jazz standards for years. Something special happens when a composer considers the individual musicians in their band though; the music fits them like a glove. Space for improvisation gets created that will either suit or challenge a particular musician, bringing out completely different sides of their musicianship. In fact, when a composer considers the culture of their own group, an overall greater sense of investment in the music results, generally giving way to inspired performances and memorable songs. There’s few musicians in Latin Jazz that understand the importance behind the culture of their ensemble like pianist Jovino Santos Neto. He spent years working with one of Brazil’s most important and distinctive composers, Hermeto Pascoal, who crammed insanely dense layers of culture into everything that he did. Drawing upon his time with Pascoal and his own inherent musicianship, Neto has continued the tradition of digging deeper into the cultural elements behind his music. He draws upon a number of musical traditions from Brazil, ranging from the styles you might expect like Samba to Northeastern genres baião, forro, and more. He’s also a writer who is extremely aware of the musicians around him; the music that he writes doesn’t just showcase his prodigious piano technique, it shines a spotlight upon his band members. Working with groups of musicians from both Brazil and his stateside home of Seattle, Neto has developed a continually growing repertoire that looks at culture on both the immediate and large scale. This video is a great example of Neto’s skillful writing and the way that he shapes the experience around his musicians. There’s space for everyone in this performance of “Zagaia,” ranging from the the opening vibraphone solo from Ben Thomas to the challenging melody for saxophonist Harvey Wainapel and the fierce rhythmic structure for bassist Chuck Deardorf, drummer Mark Ivester, and percussionist Jeff Busch. It’s a lively performance that involves everyone on a very real scale, leading to an inspired display of musicality, creativity, and deep culture. Check out Jovino Santos Neto’s Website Check out the Pacific Mambo Orchestra’s debut release: Current Alma Do Nordeste (Soul of the Northeast ) Veja o Som (See the Sound) ———- Check Out These Related Posts: Album Of The Week: Current, Jovino Santos Neto Quinteto Latin Jazz Conversations: Jovino Santos Neto (Part 5) Weekly Latin Jazz Video Fix: Hermeto Pascoal Chucho Valdes & Paquito D’Rivera Performing Claudia ———-

While the West Coast has built its own unique history of Latin Jazz over the past several decades, with significant contributions from musicians in the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, and beyond, there’s one area that the West Coast has missed until recently – the Latin Big Band.  While Latin Jazz really took roots and grew into an essential part of the jazz scene through the work of big bands led by folks like Tito Puente, Machito, Dizzy Gillespie, and more, these groups were established around East Coast aesthetics.  The West Coast certainly has an important history of Latin Jazz, based around artists like Cal Tjader, Poncho Sanchez, John Santos, and more, most of this work is based around smaller groups.  We’ve seen groups fluctuate into larger ensembles, but we haven’t really seen the existence of a working Latin Jazz Big Band that continually inspires audiences and gets them moving on the dance floor. The Pacific Mambo Orchestra has been changing the state of West Coast Latin Jazz history by bringing the Latin Big Band to life in the San Francisco Bay Area.  Led by trumpet player Steffen Kuehn and pianist Christian Tumalan, the group honed their sound and approach through a regular Monday night  gig at San Francisco salsa mainstay Cafe Cocomo.  Working every week with some of the Bay Area’s finest musicians, the PMO developed a hard hitting sound that combined salsa, jazz, and mambo power.  Their rising profile and popularity among the Bay Area scene led to the recording of their self titled debut album, which featured guest appearances from folks like percussionist Karl Perazzo, drummer Tommy Igoe, guitarist Ray Obiedo, and vocalist Kenny Washington.  The recording has exploded in popularity, finding an audience for the PMO around the world.  As the band’s reputation continues to grown, the Pacific Mambo Orchestra has made the existence of West Coast Big Band Latin Jazz a reality and ensured that its a tradition that will me around for a while. This video finds the Pacific Mambo Orchestra performing live, giving us an interesting blend of East Coast heritage with a song made famous by Machito’s orchestra, “Asi No, Papa,” and some West Coast soul.  The clip features the band’s heavy hitting rhythm section, solid horn section, and some great vocals in both Spanish and English from Alexa Weber Morales.  It’s an inspired performance that shows the Latin Big Band tradition alive and well on the West Coast. Check out Pacific Mambo Orchestra’s Website Check out the Pacific Mambo Orchestra’s debut release: Pacific Mambo Orchestra ———- Check Out These Related Posts: Great Latin Jazz Albums From 2012 Bobby Sanabria & The Manhattan SchoolOf Music Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra On The Second Line Andrea Brachfeld Pays Tribute to Hilton Ruiz: Cha Cha Blue Chucho Valdes & Paquito D’Rivera Performing Claudia ———-

There’s no doubt that the modern jazz world is completely fragmented into any number of different styles and approaches, but an authentic approach in jazz definitely involves a connection to the music’s roots.  Whether an artist decides to integrate rhythms from Cuba or Brazil, add rock aesthetics to the groove, or look at improvisation from a perspective of freedom, they need to tie their work to the lessons of the past.  They’re certainly not required to repeat the music of the past; doing that would mean that they hadn’t really learned their history lessons.  They need to build upon the jazz work that has come before them in order to create something new and exciting that reflects an authentic connection to jazz. The students at the Manhattan School Of Music are definitely some lucky young people, as they’ve got one of the most knowledgeable folks about the past, present, and future of jazz in Bobby Sanabria.  He leads the Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra with smarts and style, makin

A New Webradio Based In Germany And Dedicated To Tango Nuevo Music Will Be Launched In July. DJ DonSolare.

Tango Piano (sheet Music) 10 Famous Tangos For Piano Solo Arranged By Juan Mar?a Solare. Tangos By Arolas, Gardel, Greco, Ponzio And Villoldo (middle Difficulty). Publishing House Ricordi Munich, 2013

At this point, Latin Jazz has a long and varied history; while we still have a number of important figures that contributed to the creation of the music with us, a larger number of those folks have left us.  Some musicians passed the test of time and stayed with us over the long haul of a lifetime career.  Others fell to some sort of tragedy that took them away from us much too soon.  Regardless of the details behind their passing, we can’t deny the importance of the work that they did while they were with us.  Even though we may not be able to experience their music in a live setting anymore, it’s important that we never forget those folks, continuing to remember how they shaped the music that we know and love. Pianist Hilton Ruiz was an important figure in Latin Jazz throughout the seventies, eighties, and nineties, who unfortunately died much too young.  A child prodigy, Ruiz studied classical piano diligently, and then dived head first into jazz studies with Mary Lou Williams.  He performed wi

The survival of a musical genre is the result of artistic evolution, passed through generations of musicians, largely through the roles mentor and student.  There’s always a key figure that puts together the disparate cultural pieces that form an inspirational spark.  These folks generally gather some attention, and they require musicians to support their concept through live performance.  The musicians that they hire get that first hand experience of learning the foundation of this new style from its creator, and often times, they even see it evolve through the years.  On a rare occasion, a special kind of musician gets hired; this type of musician will dedicate themselves fully to the new style and stay with the master as long as possible.  More importantly, they’ll continue performing this music long after their time with their mentor and they’ll eventually become responsible for taking the music to a new generation. Pianist Pablo Ziegler has taken on the duty of carrying the art of nuevo

Every style of jazz has its own rite of passage that serves as a measuring stick of the experience and artistry of a musician; while there are certainly different gauges for the Latin Jazz musician, each artist needs to rise to the occasion in an open des

Becoming a serious composer requires more than simply studying the techniques and theory behind great music; the compositional process demands a deeper look inside an individual’s life.  Pulling together the proper harmonies and melodic pieces are i