Jazz Articles

Rique Pantoja: Live In Los Angeles

by Richard J Salvucci
June 14, 2022

Live in Los Angeles was first released in 2001 and this is a remastering and reissue. It says something good about the compositions and the players that the material remains vital, fresh and bright. There is something about Brazilian music that just ages well, which seemingly accounts for its perennial popularity. You can call it what you want: “smooth jazz," “fusion," “samba pop," “Afro-Latino." The labels hardly matter. Music that makes one feel alive and vibrant, that recharges one's mood ...

Marcos Ariel: Piano Blossoms

by Richard J Salvucci
December 4, 2021

You may have noticed a great deal of recent music has been a response to the isolation, apprehension, and even dread let loose by Covid-19 and our turbulent politics. Small wonder. Many otherwise well-informed people have given up on reading newspapers. You sympathize. It is all too unsettling. For many, music is a refuge. It would be surprising if no one reading this has not said “Enough. I need some peace." How you define peace in music ...

Juan Carlos Quintero: Los Musicos

by Mark Corroto
September 1, 2001

To call certain music ‘Latin fusion’ is to speak in redundancy. Just about all Latin, like America’s jazz music, is a fusion or amalgamation of many styles. Guitarist Juan Carlos Quintero’s motto is “if it works and sounds good adopt it.” On his fourth release as leader the Colombian-born, New Jersey resident (by way of Brussels) mixes multiple South American styles into a contemporary music that can be filed in numerous categories including world music, Latin, and definitely jazz.

Quintero, ...