Jazz Articles about Gonzalo Rubalcaba

Gonzalo Rubalcaba: Solo

by Jim Santella
March 4, 2006

This solo piano album from Gonzalo Rubalcaba finds the artist searching. With themes from Afro-Cuban culture running through his performance, he improvises soulfully and at his own pace. As one of the jazz world's most exciting pianists, he's able to sit down, take his time, and let the ideas flow gently. Each piece represents a passionate ordeal, both introspective and lush.

Rubalcaba keeps his program under the radar for the most part. Quiet lullabies, gentle boleros and soft-spoken ...

Gonzalo Rubalcaba: Paseo

by Eric J. Iannelli
December 5, 2004

Gonzalo Rubalcaba Paseo Blue Note 2004

Occasionally I like to take advantage of hindsight and see what appraisal I've given to an album long after the review has run and the disc has had time to remain or reappear (or neither) in my player. What I often find is that a disc I've assessed as “good," to eschew more loaded and potentially confusing adjectives, doesn't necessarily have the durability and enduring allure ...

Gonzalo Rubalcaba: Paseo

by Alex K. Fong
October 15, 2004

Paseo, the title of virtuoso Cuban pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba's first album as a leader in three years, means “walk" or “stroll" in English.

And that's what he does throughout the record with his New Cuban Quartet.

Rubalcaba examines his musical roots as if he were walking through his hometown for the first time in many years. He plays tunes that conjure up images of exuberant youths at local playgrounds, intense teenagers exposed to the newness of the streets, and adults ...

Gonzalo Rubalcaba: Paseo

by AAJ Staff
October 5, 2004

On Paseo, Gonzalo Rubalcaba's latest venture, the esteemed Cuban pianist plays electric keyboards on some tracks, and there's an electric bassist on every track. The skeptical listener might conclude that Rubalcaba has finally “sold out" and made a fusion record. There's hardly a backbeat on any part of Paseo. But it's certainly a form of fusion, uniting urgent modern jazz with the rhythms and melodies of Cuban folk forms. The result is something new, even audacious, and utterly refreshing.

Rubalcaba ...

Gonzalo Rubalcaba: Paseo

by Jim Santella
September 27, 2004

With his new Cuban quartet, pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba has re-emerged in a creative session marked by the melding of tradition with growing forces. The fiery pianist's desire to wake up modern jazz has always proven fruitful and innovative. This time out, he shows that a healthy creative spirit will provide new directions when given the opportunity.

Rubalcaba has said, “I used to do an album or two a year, but that pace doesn't give you the opportunity to ...

Gonzalo Rubalcaba Trio in Seattle

by Christopher Jones
March 12, 2004

Gonzalo Rubalcaba Trio in SeattleDimitriou’s Jazz Alley August 8th, 2000

I don’t have many pet peeves, but this is one of them: Why is it that so many jazz musicians, when performing live, neglect to say much of anything to the audience? Is this a phenomenon passed down from the bebop era, a time when many jazz musicians played the role of cryptic, illusive outsider? Is it the influence of Miles Davis, who often exhibited a detached, ...

Pat Martino: Think Tank

by Joel Roberts
January 21, 2004

It's been nearly twenty years since Pat Martino's comeback from a near-fatal brain aneurysm. In that time he's re-established himself as one of the jazz world's premier guitarists, a technically advanced post bop player who combines forward-thinking musical ideas with native Philly grit; think Pat Metheny with more soul. Think Tank , as the name suggests, finds Martino at his most cerebral, which has its pros and cons. The title track, for example, is a blues of ...