Jazz Articles about Gonzalo Rubalcaba

Gonzalo Rubalcaba Trio: Supernova

by AAJ Staff
August 1, 2001

The title of Gonzalo Rubalcaba's latest trio effort bears heavy ironic overtones. While the heavenly flash of light makes regular appearances on Supernova, most of this disc consists of extremely well-grounded pieces with earthy flavors. Like it or not, every single piece here has an intense rhythmic focus. That emphasis on rhythm has been Rubalcaba's signature sound; he expands it here within a variety of moods and styles drawing from North American jazz just as well as traditional Cuban musical ...

Gonzalo Rubalcaba: Supernova

by Mark Corroto
August 1, 2001

Cuban Pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba burst onto the American jazz scene in the early 1990s with his over-caffeinated piano gymnastics. To be fair to the young performer, he had musical talent beyond his years, and with the State Departments restrictions on his appearances in the US he would squeeze an entire tour into one night’s concert. Since being allowed to move to the U.S. his music has relaxed, allowing him to develop at a somewhat sane pace.

He recorded Flying Colors, ...

Gonzalo Rubalcaba: Inner Voyage

by C. Michael Bailey
October 1, 1999

Incandesence at Absolute Zero. Cuban Pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba exploded onto the American Music Scene with his first Blue Note release Discovery: Live at Montreux (95478, 1990). The recording details Rubalcaba in an empathetic trio setting with Charlie Haden and Paul Motian. The resulting music was a molten virtuosity quickening all in its aural path. Nine years later finds Rubalcaba still with Blue Note releasing a set of performances that, while laid-back, are still potently luminescent.

Maturity. The playing and composition ...