Home » Jazz Articles » Carlos Cascante
Jazz Articles about Carlos Cascante
Spanish Harlem Orchestra: Swing Forever
by Angelo Leonardi
La prorompente miscela di “salsa dura" con elementi afrocubani e influenze jazz torna in questo nono disco della Spanish Harlem Orchestra, sempre guidata dal suo fondatore Oscar Hernández. Se il precedente album era dedicato alla memoria dei grandi bandleader Manny Oquendo, Barry Rogers, Andy e Jerry Gonzalez stavolta ci si ispira allo swing delle big band, ovviamente sul modello latino. La funzione di questa musica è radicata nel ballo e un giudizio estetico superficiale può giudicarla troppo codificata: il suo ...
Continue ReadingKiki Valera: Vacilón Santiaguero
by Richard J Salvucci
In Cuban Spanish (and, for sure, there is no generic Spanish in Latin America), vacilón means, well, one hell of a good time. And that is what you can expect from this punchy collection, a great time a la Santiago de Cuba, the capital of one of Cuba's southeastern provinces. It is the land of Bacardí rum and the origins of the 1959 Revolution. A Cuban patriot will tell you about the naval battle of Santiago de Cuba, which more ...
Continue ReadingKiki Valera: Vacilón Santiaguero
by Paul Rauch
Son Cubano, the music and dance from the hill country of eastern Cuba, may be a mystery to some readers of these pages. Though the form is rooted in both Spanish and Bantu traditions, its modern day practitioners, embodied and popularized by the music of Buena Vista Social Club, have broadened the music's view. In the United States, particularly in this case, the Pacific Northwest, there are pockets of enthusiasm for Latin music of all sorts. Yet upon attending a ...
Continue ReadingSpanish Harlem Orchestra: Imagenes Latinas
by Angelo Leonardi
L'ottavo album della Spanish Harlem Orchestra celebra il secondo decennio della formazione e colleziona un'altra nomination al Grammy, dopo averne vinti tre. Guidata dal pianista e compositore Oscar Hernández, la big band è una delle voci più acclamate del latin jazz, e si pone sulla scia dei leggendari Manny Oquendo, Barry Rogers, Andy e Jerry Gonzalez alla cui memoria il disco è dedicato. L'impronta stilistica della Spanish Harlem è ovviamente legata alla quarantennale storia musicale del leader, formatosi ...
Continue ReadingSpanish Harlem Orchestra: The Latin Jazz Project
by Mark Sullivan
When last heard from, the salsa powerhouse Spanish Harlem Orchestra was celebrating fifteen years of playing together with Anniversary (ArtistShare, 2018). There have always been elements of Latin jazz in the group's music, and Artistic Director Oscar Hernández is a noted Latin jazz pianist, so it was only a matter of time until they presented a full program of it. In addition to his arrangements, Hernández contributed several compositions, and is a prominent soloist. The band contains some ...
Continue Reading
