Irakere & Trabuco – En Vivo, Poliedro de Caracas, Mayo 15' 81
Encyclopedia
Irakere & Trabuco - En Vivo, Poliedro de Caracas, Mayo 15 '81 is a Vinyl-LP live album
released in 1982.
The Cuba
n band Irakere
of Chucho Valdés
and El Trabuco Venezolano led by Alberto Naranjo
shared a stage three times – twice in Venezuela
at the Poliedro de Caracas
, in 1979 and 1981 (two concerts each year), and once at the Teatro Carlos Marx
in Havana, Cuba in 1981. This recording shows the second of the two face-to-face historic encounters between Irakere and Trabuco that were held in Caracas on May 14 and 15 of 1981. This time, the blend of Afro-Cuban and Western elements in the music of Irakere is smoother, more organic, with the jazz influence diminished in favor of contagious dance rhythms. In the opener, Irakere pays tribute to the legendary tres
ista Arsenio Rodríguez
with his popular-song composition El guayo de Catalina, which features a vocal performance by Oscar Valdés and a robust electric guitar solo from Carlos Emilio Morales
. It is particularly interesting to hear Tres días, composed by Chucho Valdés, at the time a huge success in Colombia
, Puerto Rico
and Venezuela through Trabuco Venezolano's version sang by Carlos Daniel Palacios. In addition, Oscar Valdés is now joined by Palacios to share the vocal duties and Naranjo also collaborates on timbales. To close the set, Irakere looks backward with a invigorating rendition of Los caramelos, created by Gregorio Battle and sang by Valdés, with solos by Jorge Varona on trumpet and Morales on guitar. The other side opens with Formas libres, an instrumental theme created by Naranjo, where his Trabuco adopt a more radical view of music when dealing with complexity of expression, loosely based on free jazz
experimentation and uncompromising ideas. The theme is composed of solos by Samuel del Real (piano), Gustavo Aranguren (trumpet) and Rafael Silva (trombone). But the band is at its most interesting when it stretches out, then comes Imágenes latinas, a warm homage to Conjunto Libre
and trombonist
Barry Rogers
. This song provides an emotional vocal showcase for Palacios, and is interspersed with long solos by Lorenzo Barriendos (bass), William Mora (bongos), José Navarro (timbales) and Felipe Rengifo (congas), with impeccable support from the brass section. The closing track on the album, Tema, is a miniature instrumental that slows things down yet continues to maintain repeated listenings.
Live album
A live album is a recording consisting of material recorded during stage performances using remote recording techniques, commonly contrasted with a studio album...
released in 1982.
The Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
n band Irakere
Irakere
Irakere is a Cuban band founded by Armando de Sequeira Romeu Music Director and composer, and by pianist Chucho Valdés in 1973...
of Chucho Valdés
Chucho Valdés
Chucho Valdés is a Cuban pianist, bandleader, composer and arranger. In 1972 he founded the group Irakere, one of Cuba's best-known Latin jazz bands. Together with pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Valdés is revered as one of Cuba's greatest jazz pianists...
and El Trabuco Venezolano led by Alberto Naranjo
Alberto Naranjo
Alberto Naranjo [nah-rahn'-ho] is a musician. He was born in Caracas, Venezuela. His mother, the singer Graciela Naranjo, was a radio, film and television pioneer in her homeland...
shared a stage three times – twice in Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
at the Poliedro de Caracas
Poliedro de Caracas
The Poliedro de Caracas is an indoor sports arena, located on the grounds adjacent to Hipodromo La Rinconada, in Caracas, Venezuela. It was designed by architect Thomas C. Howard of Synergetics, Inc, in Raleigh, NCin 1971...
, in 1979 and 1981 (two concerts each year), and once at the Teatro Carlos Marx
Karl Marx Theater
The Karl Marx Theater is a theater in Havana, Cuba, formerly known as the Teatro Blanquita, and renamed after the Cuban Revolution of 1959, the venue has an enormous auditorium with seating capacity of 5500 people, and is generally used for big shows by stars from Cuba and abroad...
in Havana, Cuba in 1981. This recording shows the second of the two face-to-face historic encounters between Irakere and Trabuco that were held in Caracas on May 14 and 15 of 1981. This time, the blend of Afro-Cuban and Western elements in the music of Irakere is smoother, more organic, with the jazz influence diminished in favor of contagious dance rhythms. In the opener, Irakere pays tribute to the legendary tres
Tres
The tres is a 3-course, 6-string chordophone which was created in Cuba. A tres player is called a tresero in Cuba and a tresista in Puerto Rico.-Cuban tres:In Cuba, the son was created as a song and a salon dance genre...
ista Arsenio Rodríguez
Arsenio Rodríguez
Arsenio Rodríguez was a Cuban musician who played the tres , reorganized the conjunto and developed the son montuno, and other Afro-Cuban rhythms in the 1940s and 50s...
with his popular-song composition El guayo de Catalina, which features a vocal performance by Oscar Valdés and a robust electric guitar solo from Carlos Emilio Morales
Carlos Emilio Morales
Carlos Emilio Morales is a Cuban jazz guitarist.Morales perfected the application of classical guitar techniques to a jazz witting and helped introduce global audiences to Cuban jazz sounds in the early 1970s, particularly for his contribution with the group Irakere...
. It is particularly interesting to hear Tres días, composed by Chucho Valdés, at the time a huge success in Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
and Venezuela through Trabuco Venezolano's version sang by Carlos Daniel Palacios. In addition, Oscar Valdés is now joined by Palacios to share the vocal duties and Naranjo also collaborates on timbales. To close the set, Irakere looks backward with a invigorating rendition of Los caramelos, created by Gregorio Battle and sang by Valdés, with solos by Jorge Varona on trumpet and Morales on guitar. The other side opens with Formas libres, an instrumental theme created by Naranjo, where his Trabuco adopt a more radical view of music when dealing with complexity of expression, loosely based on free jazz
Free jazz
Free jazz is an approach to jazz music that was first developed in the 1950s and 1960s. Though the music produced by free jazz pioneers varied widely, the common feature was a dissatisfaction with the limitations of bebop, hard bop, and modal jazz, which had developed in the 1940s and 1950s...
experimentation and uncompromising ideas. The theme is composed of solos by Samuel del Real (piano), Gustavo Aranguren (trumpet) and Rafael Silva (trombone). But the band is at its most interesting when it stretches out, then comes Imágenes latinas, a warm homage to Conjunto Libre
Manny Oquendo
Manny Oquendo was an American percussionist. His main instrument was the timbales, and was strongly influenced by Cuban drumming.Oquendo grew up in New York, and began studying percussion in 1945...
and trombonist
Trombone
The trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
Barry Rogers
Barry Rogers
Barry Rogers was a salsa musician and jazz fusion trombonist.Born Barron W. Rogers in The Bronx, he descended from Polish Jews who came to New York City via London and was raised in Spanish Harlem...
. This song provides an emotional vocal showcase for Palacios, and is interspersed with long solos by Lorenzo Barriendos (bass), William Mora (bongos), José Navarro (timbales) and Felipe Rengifo (congas), with impeccable support from the brass section. The closing track on the album, Tema, is a miniature instrumental that slows things down yet continues to maintain repeated listenings.
Track listing
EWLINE
|
- Erroneously labeled as El Caramelo, by Jesús Valdés
Irakere
- Chucho Valdés - keyboards, arranger, director
- Carlos Emilio Morales - electric guitar, percussion
- Carlos del Puerto - bass guitar, chorus
- Enrique Plá - drums, percussion
- Jorge Alfonzo - congas, percussion
- Juan Munguía - trumpet, flugel horn, valve trombone
- Jorge Varona - trumpet, flugel horn, percussion
- Germán Velasco - soprano and alto saxophones, flute, chorus
- Carlos Averhoff - soprano and tenor saxophones, flute, chorus
- José Luis Cortés - baritone saxophone, flute, chorus
- Oscar Valdés - lead vocalist, percussion
El Trabuco Venezolano
- Alberto Naranjo - drums, arranger, director
- Samuel del Real - acoustic piano
- Lorenzo Barriendos - bass guitar
- José Navarro - timbales
- Felipe Rengifo - congas
- William Mora - bongos
- Luis Arias - lead trumpet
- Gustavo Aranguren - trumpet
- José Díaz F. - trumpet and flugel horn
- Manolo Pérez - trumpet and flugel horn
- Rafael Silva - lead trombone
- Alejandro Pérez Palma - trombone
- Leopoldo Escalante - trombone
- Carlos Daniel Palacios - lead singer and chorus
- Joe Ruiz - lead singer and chorus
- Carlos Espósito - lead singer and chorus
Other credits
- Hosts: Phidias Danilo Escalona (Irakere) and Rafael Rivas (Trabuco)
- Artistic producers: Orlando Montiel and Alberto Naranjo
- Production manager: Prudencio Sánchez
- Staff coordinator: Freddy Sanz
- Graphic design: Miguel Angel Briceño and Orlando Montiel
- Label: Integra C. A. IG-10.039, 1982
- Place of recording: Poliedro de Caracas
- Recording engineer: Gustavo Quintero
- Mixing: Gustavo Quintero, Orlando Montiel and Alberto Naranjo, at Estudios del Este
- Produced in Caracas, Venezuela, 1982