viernes, 28 de abril de 2023

Épico Giovanni Hidalgo en su Concierto Tributo a Tito Puente

Épico Giovanni Hidalgo en su Concierto Tributo a Tito Puente


(26 de abril de 2023, San Juan, Puerto Rico) – El percusionista Giovanni Hidalgo volvió a demostrar su virtuosismo en el concierto Tributo a Tito Puente el pasado sábado.

La lluvia no impidió que cientos de fanáticos se dieran cita en el Anfiteatro Tito Puente en San Juan, Puerto Rico para presenciar un espectáculo musical impresionante.


 

Liderado por Giovanni Hidalgo y dedicado al ícono musical Ernesto Antonio Puente, conocido como Tito Puente, en conmemoración del Centenario de su Natalicio, este concierto marcó otro día en la historia de la música en el mundo.


 

Giovanni demostró su habilidad tanto en las congas como en el timbal. Sus solos fueron impecables. La agilidad de sus manos y su musicalidad fueron arrolladoras. Interpretó todos los temas del Maestro Tito Puente contenidos en su disco “Tribute To The King”, a saber: “Caonao”, “Mambo Zooka”, “4 Beat Cha Cha”, “Rezo a Yemayá”, “Cuyi”, “Traigo el Coco Seco”, “Aguanile”, “Havana After Dark”, “O Che Ché” y “Yimbaraco”.


 

La participación de cada músico fue excelente. En cuanto a los instrumentos de viento, los solos de José “Furito” Ríos (saxofón tenor), Frankie Pérez (saxofón alto y flauta), Roberto Texeira (trompeta), Reynaldo Jorge (trombón) y Toñito Vázquez (trombón) impresionaron a la audiencia.

 

Hidalgo incluyó un número musical de descarga que tituló “Timbales for Tito” en el que Anthony Carrillo (congas y bongó), Johnny “Dandy” Rodríguez (congas y bongó), David Rosado Cuba (voz y timbales), Joe Madera (timbales y dirección musical) se lucieron. Giovanni Hidalgo irradió energía, dinamismo, y demostró su acostumbrada velocidad que hizo que el público lo aplaudiera constantemente.


 

Las voces afinas y sumamente coordinadas de Joel Rosado, Rico Walker y Juan A. Torres afincaron el mambo, la salsa, el cha cha chá y los números afrocaribeños. La veteranía de Richard Trinidad (piano), Ramón Vázquez, Gabriel Duprey (trompeta), Pomi Femix (trompeta) y Humberto Ramírez (trompeta) quedó sellada durante todo el espectáculo que tuvo poco más de dos horas de duración.

 

El público pidió otra y les fue concedida. Estos músicos de primer orden regresaron al escenario para interpretar el clásico “Mambo Birdland”; tema que fue dirigido magistralmente por Humberto Ramírez.


 

Las gráficas en las pantallas con imágenes de Giovanni junto a Puente y otros elementos, el sonido y las luces, la producción de Joey Mercado y Yamil Joglar y la sinergia de los presentes contribuyeron a que ese concierto fuera sencillamente ÉPICO.

 

Video RECAP Concierto Giovanni Hidalgo “Tribute to The King”

https://youtu.be/nBVzy_H63EI


Reseña y Fotos por Grandes Eventos

viernes, 21 de abril de 2023

Reconocen a Giovanni Hidalgo En la Cámara de Representantes de cara a su Concierto Tributo a Tito Puente este sábado

Reconocen a Giovanni Hidalgo

En la Cámara de Representantes de cara a su Concierto Tributo a Tito Puente este sábado



(20 de abril de 2023, San Juan, Puerto Rico) – La Cámara de Representantes reconoció la trayectoria musical del percusionista puertorriqueño.



La ceremonia se llevó a cabo esta mañana en el Capitolio en San Juan, Puerto Rico donde también se destacó la labor de otros grandes baluartes musicales. La moción fue presentada por el Honorable Jessie Cortés Ramos, Representante del Distrito 18.

 

Resaltó la trayectoria impresionante de Hidalgo, destacando su aportación a la música y su labor con las nuevas generaciones. También sus múltiples nominaciones y premios Latin Grammy y el Doctorado Honoris Causa de Berklee College of Music donde funge como profesor desde hace 16 años.

 

“El quinto, la conga y la tumbadora han sido sus más preciados acompañantes en este universo de siembra y cosecha para la música mundial y la preservación de la educación musical a muchas generaciones, por lo que nuestro país se siente privilegiado de contar con personas como Giovanni Hidalgo (…)”, lee la moción.

 

“Es un gran honor recibir esto y tengo la responsabilidad de espacir y sembrar talento a través de todo el planeta, con lealtad, humildad y respeto. (…) ¡Qué Viva el ritmo, el amor, la música! Hoy es el Centenario de Tito Puente; un genio musical. Agradecido. Aquí estoy para todos ustedes”, expresó Giovanni emocionado.




 

Giovanni Hidalgo presentará este sábado 22 de abril a las 8:30 p.m. en el Anfiteatro Tito Puente el concierto titulado: “Tribute to The King”, dedicado a su mentor y padre en la música, Tito Puente.





 

Tocará los temas de su nueva producción que lleva el mismo nombre del concierto. Junto a una banda de 20 músicos, éxitos del Maestro Tito Puente volverán a sonar: “4 Beat Cha Cha”, “Cuyi”, “Mambo Zooka”, “Traigo el Coco Seco”, “Aguanile”, “Caonao”, “Rezo a Yemayá”, “Yimbaraco”, “Havana After Dark” y “O Che Ché”.

Entre los músicos que lo acompañarán se encuentran: Johnny “Dandy” Rodríguez, David Rosado Cuba, Anthony Carrillo, Cita Rodríguez, Joe Madera Humberto Ramírez, Ramón Vázquez, Richard Trinidad, José “Furito” Ríos, Toñito Vázquez, Reynaldo Jorge, entre otros.




 

Será una noche especial para rendir tributo a la leyenda de la música afrocaribeña Tito Puente. Los boletos están a la venta en www.prticket.com.

Israel Tanenbaum & The Latinbaum Jazz Ensemble Impressions (Zoho ZM 202304)

Israel Tanenbaum
& The Latinbaum Jazz Ensemble 

Impressions
(Zoho ZM 202304) 

After producing over 50 albums for other artists in Puerto Rico, Colombia and the U.S., participating as pianist-arranger in more than 100 recordings and writing music for feature films, theater and television, as well as jingles and video games, Israel Tanenbaum is stepping out with something more profoundly personal on Impressions.


“I’ve dedicated my entire professional life to writing for others and helping others become who they are or reach whatever it is that they’ve managed to reach,” said the Bronx-born, Puerto Rican bred musician who spent ten productive years in Colombia as a producer-composer-arranger-player for Orquesta Guayacán, Checo Acosta and Alfredo De La Fe, among many others. “I’ve produced so much music for so many artists and that’s been fulfilling to me. And now at this stage of the game, I’ve decided, ‘It’s about time you do something for yourself.’”

Leading a talented crew of players who hail from Cuba, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Venezuela and New York City, Tanenbaum creates irresistible mambos, danzons and descargas that showcase his refined arrangements and typically uncommon choices while also revisiting his musical roots and rekindling some nostalgic memories along the way. “I’ve got all this stuff bottled up inside me,” said Tanenbaum, who has worked with such renowned salsa and Latin jazz artists as Pete “El Conde” Rodríguez, Juancito Torres, Marvin Santiago, Dave Valentin and Alfredo De La Fe and also played in popular groups like Batacumbele, Zaperoko, and Roberto Roena’s Apollo Sound, where he served as musical director for two years. “I know that one album isn’t going to resolve everything but I would eventually like to put everything out there.” Impressions is a big first step.

Making up the core of The Latinbaum Jazz Ensemble are first-call NYC bassist John Benitez, who hails from Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, Brooklyn-born conguero Richie Flores, who was raised in Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico and played alongside Tanenbaum in Grupo Batacumbele and Apollo Sound, timbales player Tito De Gracia from Villa Palmeras, Santurce, Puerto Rico, percussionist Roberto Quintero from Caracas, Venezuela, in-demand drummer Tony Escapa from San Juan, Puerto Rico, and Bronx-raised drummer Francis Benitez (bassist John’s son). Tanenbaum’s inventive arrangements are enhanced by the use of vibraphones (Daniel Neville, Christos Rafalides), flutes (Oriente Lopez, Andrea Brachfeld), trumpets (Jonathan Powell, Orlando “Batanga” Barrera), trombones (Angel Subero, Willie Alvarez, Xito Lovell, Edilberto Liévano); and saxophones (Felipe Lamoglia and Julio Flores). 

Impressions kicks off with the alluring guaracha Strange Destiny punctuated by tight, brisk horn arrangements and incorporating a wordless vocal choir of Diana Serna, Gustavo Rodriguez and Daniel Silva. Julio Flores turns in two outstanding sax solos here — one on soprano over the pianist’s sparse comping, the other a burning alto solo over the churning montuno section, followed in succession by heated solos from trombonist Liévano and trumpeter Barrera. “This is a Latin jazz version of a ballad which I composed when my father passed away called ‘Let Me Go,’” recalled Tanenbaum. “That was a liberating tune for me. My dad was a huge fan of Latin music and of my stuff, too, which was really nice. And so I felt that this piece was a fitting way to honor him.” 

Hot Bridge, a persuasive salsa groover with an infectious percussive undercurrent, is augmented by some intricate unisons from the horns (trumpeter Powell, tenor saxophonist Lamoglia, trombonist Subero) alongside vibraphonist Rafalides and flutist Lopez. Tanenbaum offers both a sparkling piano solo and a scintillating synth solo on this invigorating number while Subero adds an inspired solo of his own on trombone. Tanenbaum acknowledged the subliminal influence of salsa icons Eddie Palmieri and Tito Puente on this lively number. “I fell in love with Palmieri’s La Perfecta sound when I was a kid,” he recalled. “I thought it was just such a crazy way to use trombones, to be as aggressive and raw as that. And the Tito Puente influence is heavy for anyone who came up with Latin music.”

Prime Flight is an engaging cha cha with winning solos from the composer on piano, Neville on vibes and Flores on conga. “This is one of the few tunes on the album that actually goes back to the harmonic progression after the solos,” he explained. “The others are more specific. They don’t go back to the head but rather move on to new sections.” 


Another Life, an introspective piano interlude that was improvised on the spot, harkens back to Tanenbaum’s beginnings with the instrument. “As a kid in Puerto Rico, I used to hang with a couple of guys from the music store that I worked in. One of them was the piano teacher in the store and the other was the piano tuner. The piano tuner had this beautiful Danemann piano in his apartment. We’d go to this guy’s house and play on that piano from eight or nine at night until the sun came up. And this was right at the time when Keith Jarrett had released his Köln concert album, where he plays everything improvised. And I fell in love with it. I thought it was such a great thing to be able to sit down and play without having a piece of paper, because I didn’t know how to read at the time. And so Keith Jarrett was my savior. Like, ‘Really? I can do this?’ 

“So we would take turns on that Danemann piano and every time it was my turn, I would just improvise. And some incredible ideas and things came from that early experience.” Regarding his improvised solo piano showcase here, Tanenbaum said, “It’s not virtuosic like a Gonzalo Rubalcaba or a Danilo Perez. It’s not highly complex, it’s very simple. I didn’t sit down and write out a melody The fiery descarga Mambo Raro gives everybody in the group a solo taste (first Flores on alto sax, followed by Alvarez and Subero on trombones, Neville on vibes, then Tanenbaum on piano). Meanwhile, its infectious rhythmic undercurrent urges bodies to move. “I called it ‘Mambo Raro’ because it’s a strange mambo due to the harmonic sequence. It’s familiar but at the same time it’s unusual the way I work whole steps apart on the harmony. And the melody is uncommon, rhythmically speaking. It’s just a slightly different kind of tune in general.”

Cuando Te Asomas is a mellower but no less persuasive mambo with a particularly challenging horn riff. The translation of the song title means “When You Peek In.” As the composer explained, “When I was working on this tune my wife kept on peeking in the door to see how I was doing. And as she peeked in I’d turn around and play this crazy riff while I was still recording the demo. When I went back and listened to it, I said, ‘Oh, I like this!’ So the riff stayed.” Native Californian Neville plays it strictly West Coast on his soothing vibes solo here while Tanenbaum offers an especially dynamic piano solo. Powell adds some blistering high-note trumpet fusillades to put an exclamation point on this jubilant dance number.

Prelude is inspired by Chopin’s Prelude in E minor Op.28 No.4, performed in a salsafied rendition. As Tanenbaum explained, the tune has deep roots for him. “My first piano teacher turned me on to Chopin and this was actually the first classical piece that I learned and fell in love with. The melody has lived in my head for decades now. I could never imagine myself actually playing the original piece as a concert pianist, so this is my way of doing it.” Benitez contributes a virtuosic electric bass solo on this impressionist take while vibraphonist Rafalides solos in cascading fashion over a churning montuno section midway through.

The romantic bolero Steamy Patricia, featuring a heartfelt piano solo, is dedicated to Tanenbaum’s wife. “She’s been my anchor, friend and angel for 35 years now,” he said. And the energized closer, Vaya, is a catchy danzón with potent solos offered by Benitez on upright bass, De Gracia on timbales and Lopez on flute. Cuban tenor saxophonist Lamoglia also turns in a positively Brecker-esque tenor solo on this vibrant finale, which was inspired by Roberto Roena’s “Lamento de Concepción.” “His song was just rolling in my head and kind of stuck with me for a couple of days right around the time that he passed,” Tanenbaum recalled. “So ‘Vaya’ is very loosely inspired by his tune. It hinges off of the very first line where the melody is established, then it goes off in a completely different direction.”


Israel Tanenbaum: Piano, Keyboards and Synthesizer,  The Latinbaum Jazz Ensemble: Bass John Benitez, Congas Richie Flores (2,3,5,7), Roberto Quintero (8,9), Joel “Pibo” Marquez (1), Bongos Richie Flores (2,3,5,7), Roberto Quintero (6,8), Luis Pacheco (1), Jessy “Timbalón” Perez (9) Campana Roberto Piñeiro Jr. (5) Güiro Luis Pacheco (5), Roberto Quintero (3,6,9) Timbales Wilson Viveros (1), Tito De Gracia (2-9), Drums Tony Escapa (3,7,9), Francis Benitez (2,6), Flute Oriente Lopez (2,3,6,7,9), Andrea Brachfeld (8), Trumpet Jonathan Powell (2,3,6,7,9), Orlando “Batanga” Barrera (1) Flugelhorn Jonathan Powell (8), Tenor Saxophone Felipe Lamoglia (2,3,6,7,9) Alto & Soprano Saxophone Julio Flores (1,5), Trombone Angel Subero (2,3,5,7), Willie Alvarez (5), Xito Lovell (6,9), Edilberto Liévano (1,5) Vibraphone Daniel Neville (3,5,6), Christos Rafalides (2,7,8), Background Vocals Diana Serna (1), Gustavo Rodriguez (1), Daniel Silva (1)

The multi-Grammy nominated Bobby Sanabria MULTIVERSE Big Band to release new recording "VOX HUMANA"

The multi-Grammy nominated

Bobby Sanabria MULTIVERSE Big Band to release new recording

"VOX HUMANA"

featuring vocalists

Janis SiegelAntoinette MontagueJennifer Jade Ledesna


Recorded Live at Dizzy’s Club Cola in NYC


Release Date: May 12th, 2023

(Jazzheads)


New York....February 9th, 2023 - On the heels of their Grammy nominated and 2019 Jazz Journalists Association Album of the Year Award winning critically acclaimed masterwork, West Side Story Reimagined, and in celebration of their 25th anniversary renowed drummer, percussionist, composer, arranger, bandleader, educator, Bobby Sanabria and his Multiverse Big Band return with their most ambitious work to date, VOX HUMANA




Bobby states, “Over the course of our many Grammy nominated albums we’ve occasionally featured tracks with vocals. But I’ve always envisioned doing an entire vocal album framed by the Multiverse Big Band. Now with three of today’s greatest contemporary singing talents - multi-Grammy award winner Janis Siegel from the Manhattan Transfer, blues and jazz Queen Antoinette Montague, and the multilingual powerhouse, Jennifer Jade Ledesna, today that vision has finally become a reality.


The individually distinct voices that Janis, Antoinette, and Jennifer possess make them each unique. But the X factor they all have is they are all masterful improvisors in the best sense of the jazz tradition. Added to the mix is our great congeuro, Oreste Abrantes, who also sings lead on two tracks. Having that multi- dimensional vocal talent framed by the power, nuance, and tonal variety that only a big band can provide, combined with the repertoire I’ve chosen to showcase them and the band and the incredible variety of Afro- Latin, straight ahead swing, funk, R&B, and rock rhythmic vocabulary that we are masters of and readily have at our disposal in the Multiverse, I believe VOX HUMANA will prove to be our greatest achievement.


That repertoire has a personal meaning to me as I see VOX HUMANA as a biographical work. I’m a product of my environment. I’m a Nuyorican, a person of Puerto Rican descent growing up in New York City. In my case the South Bronx during a time period when pop, jazz, R&B, rock, funk, and Latin music of all kinds all co-existed as equals. It was the last era when the big bands of masters like Ellington, Count Basie, Buddy Rich, Machito, Tito Puente, Tito Rodriguez, Don Ellis, and more were in the public eye,and they became my heroes. Vocalists who could deliver a message with subtlety, nuance, and when needed, power, were called upon to deliver poetry crafted by genius song writers. You’ll hear all that and more through the soaring vocals and improv talents of Janis, Antoinette, and Jennifer, along with Oreste, as well as the incredible jazz-oriented arrangements and exciting Pan Afro-Latin rhythms played by a big band that literally takes no prisoners when it hits the stage.”


The repertoire Bobby speaks of includes 1 original and 12 unique re-workings of pop hits like Spooky, Christine Aguilera’s Genie In a Bottle, and Steely Dan’s Do It Again; NEA Jazz Master Eddie Palmieri’s, Mi Congo and Puerto Rico along with the island’s greatest composer, Rafael Hernandez’s, Capullito De Aleli; the classic Joe Cuba R&B bolero, To Be With You; Brazilian standards Partido Alto and Amazonas; and from the world of Broadway theater, I Love You Porgy, and the iconic jump blues, Let The Good Times Roll. The CD also includes an original message bearing piece, Who Taught You That?, penned by Jazzheads pres Randy Klein, as well as what may possibly be the most exciting interpretation of the Ellington associated classic, Caravan, and that has ever been recorded.


Adding to the excitement of the performance, VOX HUMANA was recorded in front of a live audience. Bobby states,


"As with our previous work, we recorded VOX HUMANA live at NYC’s Dizzy's Club Coca - Cola. My musicians represent NYC’s finest. That means they’re the greatest in the world. The added level of excitement created by the audience inspired us in the MULTIVERSE Big Band to a heightened new level of performance virtuosity that listeners will hear explode out of the speakers just as the audience at Dizzy's experienced in person.”


The history of the Bobby Sanabria MULTIVERSE Big Band is indeed one based on his rich multi-cultural heritage as a Nuyorican growing up in New York City’s South Bronx. His concept of having a big band that has no genre boundaries with limitless possibilities was forged 25 years ago back in 1998. It has yielded a series of groundbreaking, critically acclaimed albums that have all been Grammy-nominated with the band thrilling audiences worldwide at venues like the Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, The Ravinia Festival,Verona Jazz Festival in Europe, and more.

Bobby Sanabria Bio:


Bobby Sanabria is an eight time Grammy-nominee as a leader. Known as a drummer, percussionist, composer, arranger, conductor, documentary film producer, educator, activist, and bandleader, his versatility as both a drummer and percussionist, from small group to big band, has become legendary. A native son of the South Bronx born to Puerto Rican parents, he has performed and recorded with every major figure in the world of Latin jazz and salsa, from the founder of the Afro-Cuban/Latin jazz movement Mario Bauzá, to Tito Puente, Mongo Santamaría, Dizzy Gillespie, Chico O’Farrill, Ray Barretto, Candido, to Larry Harlow, Ruben Blades, Celia Cruz, and jazz luminaries as diverse as Henry Threadgill, Charles McPherson, Randy Brecker, Joe Chambers, Jean Lucien, The Mills Brothers, and others. DRUM! Magazine named him Percussionist of the Year (2005); he was named Percussionist of the Year by the Jazz Journalists Association in 2011 and 2013. In 2006, he was inducted into the Bronx Walk of Fame. He was a recipient of the 2018 Jazz Education Network (JEN) LeJENS of Jazz Lifetime Achievement Award for his work as a musician and educator.


In 2008 Congressman Dennis Kucinich honored his work as a musician and educator by reading his name into the Congressional Record and in 2018 the U.S. Congressional Black Caucus honored him as a musician, educator. Every single one of his big band recordings, seven in total, have been nominated for Grammys. His 2018 recording, ‘West Side Story Reimagined,' reached #1 on the national Jazz Week radio charts, was nominated for a 2018 Grammy, and won the prestigious 2019 Record of The Year Award from the Jazz Journalists Association. Partial proceeds from sales of this double CD went to the Jazz Foundation of America’s Puerto Rico Relief Fund for musicians. He is the Co-Artistic Director of the Bronx Music Heritage Center and the forthcoming Bronx Music Hall. His lifetime dedication to spreading the history, culture, of jazz and Latin jazz to the general public as a performer, as well as educating a new generation of players, composers, arrangers, has no parallel. A member of Max Roach’s legendary M’BOOM percussion ensemble, he is on the faculty of the New School (his 26th year) and was on the faculty of NYU, his alma mater Berklee, and was on the faculty of the Manhattan School fo Music for 20 years where he conducted/taught the Afro-Cuban Jazz Orchestra receiving two Grammy nominations for recordings he did with directing his students.


Sanabria is also the on air host of the Latin Jazz Cruise on WBGO FM and wbgo.org, the number one jazz station in the nation. Lehman College in NYC has recently awarded Maestro Sanabria an Honorary Doctorate. His new double CD, which will be released on May 12 2023, is a double CD with his Multiverse Big Band entitled VOX HUMANA. Recorded live at Dizzy's Club-Cola in NYC, it features three of jazz's finest contemporary vocalists - Janis Siegel from the Manhattan Transfer, blues and jazz Queen Antoinette Montague, and multi-lingual powerhouse Jennifer Jade Ledesna.