Paquito D’Rivera: Portraits of Cuba

Chesky JD145

The marriage of Latin American music and jazz has been a fruitful hybrid for many players. Paquito D’Rivera is a stellar example. Having emigrated from Cuba, D’Rivera’s roots are firmly planted in Latin musical soil, but his playing is that of the consummate jazz performer. This CD is in my opinion one of his very best recordings. Not only does he turn out some impressive solo material on soprano, alto and clarinet, but also the tunes on this CD are intricate and engaging. This disc consists of big band-based arrangements by Carlos Franzetti, which interpret Cuban music as played with the jazz vocabulary. D’Rivera is quick to point out that this is not "Cuban" music, it is a jazz tribute to Cuban music. From a performance standpoint, D’Rivera’s playing is easily identifiable. Most of his articulations are at the ends of phrases, and rarely in the standard, punchy "bebop" vernacular. Particularly startling about his performances are his fluid excursions into the altissimo range. Having started on soprano sax when young, his ear was trained early on to hear notes much higher than the normal range of the alto. After some study time with Jimmy Dorsey’s landmark book "Jimmy Dorsey Saxophone Method: A School of Rhythmic Saxophone Playing," D’Rivera incorporated altissimo into his standard vocabulary. On this CD an excellent example lies on track 4, particularly the end of the song. D’Rivera’s soprano chops are also formidable and he gets a very sax-like tone, which is difficult for many players who tend to produce a more oboe-like or hollow sound. A tip of the hat also goes to the other fantastic saxophone players on this recording who are giants in their own right. Dick Oatts is a monster tenor player, as is Lawrence Feldman who happens to sit in on alto for this session. Other players include Thomas Christensen and Andres Boiarsky on tenor and flute, and Roger Rosenberg on bari sax, bass clarinet and bassoon. The section sound they achieve is a yardstick for any big band to compare to; particularly the richness in the tenor tones produced by Oatts and Boiarsky. Another production highlight is David Chesky’s sensitive production, especially in an acoustically challenging environment. For many reasons, this CD comes highly recommended. If you enjoy jazz, and you enjoy Latin, this CD will rarely leave your CD player!