Woman on the Drums Yissy García Leads A New Generation of Cuban musicians

Yissy García, shown in the photo above in a 2018 concert with Bandancha at the Fabrica de Arte Cubano, a multidisciplinary space in Havana, Cuba, headlines Women on the Drums at Miami Beach Bandshell on Saturday, April 6. (Photo courtesy of Larisa López)

Yissy García was a child — but she knew she was not on board with the family plan.

The daughter of Bernardo García, a much-respected drummer who was a charter member of the fabled group Irakere and part of trumpeter Arturo Sandoval’s group, Yissy was being nudged into, perhaps, becoming a dancer. Her older brother, Omar, would be a drummer.

“So, my mom would take me to dance and gymnastics classes — and I didn’t like any of that,” she says, chuckling at the memory in a recent conversation in Spanish. “I was born and grew up in Cayo Hueso, a very musical neighborhood in Havana where there’s always rumba going on somewhere. I lived near the Callejón de Hamel (a legendary rumba place and cultural landmark). In the park across the street from my house, there was a rumba gathering every Sunday, and I would go.

García says she would take two sticks with her and play along.

“My brother was the opposite. He liked to go to dance classes. He was always involved in that world,” she recalls. “So, I told my parents that I wanted to study drums. I wanted to be a drummer. I was about eight years old. And my parents said, ‘Well, if you are serious about it, let’s enroll you in the conservatory, and let’s see.’ ” (Her brother became a dancer and is now a choreographer in Mexico.)

Nineteen years of formal music education, mainly focusing on classical percussion, followed by five years with the all-women group Anacaona, which became García’s on-the-job postgrad Cuban music academy, was the foundation for one of the most intriguing drummers, composers, and bandleaders to emerge in Cuba in the past decade.

Now based in Miami, García, 36, will lead Bandancha in concert for “Women on the Drums” at the Miami Beach Bandshell on Saturday, April 6.

She is a musical player with an exact time and a composer’s ear for structure, colors, and dynamics. So, after accumulating awards and making her mark with international and leading Cuban artists, it was time to organize her own band. García founded Bandancha in 2012, and it has been an ever-evolving group (it once included a trumpet and a turntablist and rapper), playing an ever-evolving blend of jazz, African styles and rhythms, funk, electronics, and Cuban music.

“I like to keep the roots, the essence, but I need to change,” she says, explaining her approach to her music. “I’m super restless. I like to constantly listen — to pop music, electronic music, and Caribbean music. I want to know what is sounding out there in the street. When it comes to composing, that nourishes me a lot.”

For García, music continues to evolve.

“I’m working now with a percussionist who spent many years living in Angola and knows a lot about African culture,” she says. “So we are already mixing rhythms and instruments, using different sonorities, and that’s the kind of thing that keeps the spark alive for me; it keeps me active, wanting to compose and create music.”

For “Women on the Drums,” García and Bandancha will revisit the group’s repertoire and present the new lineup  — Alberto Torres, on guitar; Jorge Pérez, on piano and synthesizers; and Yasmane Santos, percussion —  augmented for the occasion by several guests, including pianist Glenda del Monte, vocalists Kelvis Ochoa, Miriam Martínez and Sheena (Yoana Álvarez), Brazilian multi-instrumentalist Munir Hossn, percussionist and vocalist Brenda Navarrete, percussionists Yuya Rodriguez, Yarelis Gandul, Daymi Jaime, and Gilma Ospina and dancer Katia Aislen.

Rather than a personal celebration, the little girl who just wanted to be a drummer (and has been driving the music and the band from her drum seat for some time now) has turned “Women on the Drums” into a celebration of women in music and dance.

“Things have been changing, but at one time, in Cuba, percussion was played only by men,” she says matter-of-factly. “A woman playing a tumbadora (conga) or a drum kit was not well regarded — and the same thing happened with other instruments, such as the trumpet or the double bass. But now, in the conservatories in Cuba, many girls are studying percussion. You find female folkloric groups with women playing batá drums (two-headed hourglass-shaped drums) and tumbadoras. Things are changing — not only in Cuba but around the world. For five years, I’ve been on the jury for Hit Like a Girl (an international contest for female and gender non-conforming drummers). I’ve seen girl drummers from India,  Russia, and countries you can’t imagine.”

(WATCH: Yissy García & Bandancha: 2018 NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert)

She says that Miami is a mecca, too.

“I had a clear idea of the format I wanted for this concert,” says Garcia. “But when FUNDarte (the show’s presenting organization) suggested the name, a spark went off: This is a good opportunity to invite women percussionists, singers, instrumentalists, and dancers. There are a lot of talented women in Miami. It’s going to be a magical night.”

WHAT: Women on the Drums featuring Yissy & Bandancha with opening act Marypaz & Electro-Percussion

WHERE: Miami Beach Bandshell, 7275 Collins Ave., Miami Beach

WHEN: 8 p.m. Saturday, April 6

COST:  $36.05, seated general admission, $267.80, Club Level box, which includes up to 6 tickets

INFORMATION: 786-453-2897,  FUNDarte.us and  miamibeachbandshell.com

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com. 

New music series brings live jazz home to the Historic Lyric Theater

South Florida singer LaVie headlines the Lyric Theater’s new jazz series, SJO 1st Fridays Live at the Lyric, on Friday, April 5.  Above, LaVie performs at the 2019 “Sit, Sing, and Swing” event in Hollywood. (Photo courtesy of Ulysses Photography/Se LaVie Music)

Every first Friday of the month since the new year began, jazz and history take a bow at Overtown’s Lyric Theater.

Miami’s oldest working theater now hosts “SJO 1st Fridays Live at the Lyric,” its first live music series since reopening a decade ago.

Presented by the Sunshine Jazz Organization (SJO), the new event aims to showcase local artists and promote the community’s emerging cultural life. For the series’ creators, it’s about remembering an Overtown that once was and envisioning what it could become again.

“It was really quite an honor because Overtown has had a rich history of jazz well over the years,” says Keith Valles, SJO president, who is on a mission to restore Overtown’s jazz legacy.

His organization has championed jazz and South Florida musicians for nearly four decades.

“The Lyric is so historic and the area is growing. It’s a wonderful thing that’s going on in Overtown and we wanted to be part of that,” says Valles.

“SJO 1st Fridays” is now part of what’s happening in the historic Black community on the edge of downtown Miami. The most recent jazz concert, in March, showcased Ladies of Simone with a tribute to singer Nina Simone.

Moving forward, LaVie headlines the next concert on Friday, April 5.  Haitian-American and Miami native LaVie is a constant presence in the local music scene and has been a staple at the Jazz in the Gardens series, performing in 2016 and again in 2023.

On Friday, May 3, the lineup continues when the Yvette Norwood-Tiger Quartet and special guest, multi-Grammy award winning violinist Federico Britos take the stage. Norwood-Tiger is a veteran performer and nominee for the South Florida Indie Awards 2022 as Best Jazz Vocalist. The Uruguay-born Britos has fostered a career that spans jazz and classical music and has performed with artists like Charlie Haden, Bebo Valdés and Israel “Cachao” López.

The live music series will be composed of 85 percent traditional jazz, along with other styles that include blues, progressive jazz, Latin jazz, popular ballads, and a Motown tribute, explains Valles, adding that the series will run through December and likely into the new year.

This is not the Lyric’s first encounter with jazz since it officially reopened in February 2014. For the past nine years, every February, the iconic theater has hosted the Melton Mustafa Jazz Festival, honoring the memory of local Miami jazz musician, composer and educator Melton Mustafa.

For those involved, however, the time felt right to bring a permanent jazz presence back to the neighborhood, says Kamila Pritchett, executive director of the Black Archives-Historic Lyric Theater – the group that owns and manages the venue.

“I wanted to create a year-round atmosphere where people would know they can come to the Lyric Theater for real jazz and that’s what we’re trying to do with the partnership with Sunshine,” says Pritchett.

The series’ organizers say their goal is to shine a light on Overtown’s emerging cultural revival. They reminisce about an era when Overtown was the place to find late-night music and the majestic Lyric was its crown jewel.

In 1913, Black entrepreneur Geder Walker built the 400-seat Lyric Theater, inspired by the grand theaters of Europe he had admired during his travels. Over the years, the Lyric hosted Black luminaries such as scholar and historian W.E.B. Du Bois, and legendary entertainers like Cab Calloway, Count Basie, Billie Holiday and Josephine Baker.

During its heyday, the area around the theater flourished. Celebrity sightings were common: Dionne Warwick making a grand entrance into a late-night lounge or Sammy Davis Jr. leading the Rat Pack on a night of club-hopping. Pritchett recalls an Overtown where people of different races came together for their shared love of music.

“Back then, world-famous Black entertainers could perform on Miami Beach, but they couldn’t stay there. So, after finishing their show, they would head to Overtown – and bring their friends with them,” says Pritchett. “Overtown was the first iteration of Miami’s melting pot.”

For Valles, he grew up hearing stories about the community’s swinging nightlife from his father, Miami radio host Charles L. “China” Valles. The senior Valles would visit the neighborhood’s music scene after ending his late-night radio show, his son recalls.

“When my dad first came to Miami, Overtown was the place to be,“ says Valles. “It was sort of like the Village in New York because you had all these little hotels and they all had clubs. You could go club hopping in Overtown back then. It was a vibrant community. That’s before they ran I-95 through it.”

The Black Archives organization has devoted years and resources to documenting the impact that the construction of Interstate 95 and 395 in the 1960s had on the neighborhood.

“Overtown was a thriving community, rich with arts, culture, entertainment, active engagement in social and civil rights issues and a self-sustaining economy,” says Pritchett.  The highways that cut through Overtown led to “significant changes and challenges for its residents.”

The Lyric Theater also declined. It shut down between the late 1960s and the 1980s, escaping demolition thanks to the efforts of Black Archives founder Dorothy Jenkins Fields.

“Dr. Fields worked to have it placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988,” recalls Pritchett, adding that “several neighboring buildings were demolished to make way for parking facilities for the Miami Arena.”

“I feel like the state of the Lyric Theater echoes the state of our community,” she adds. When it was abandoned and dilapidated, it echoed a community starved of resources. When our lights are on, it indicates the energy in the neighborhood.”

That energy is palpable in the area’s changing landscape. Condos and high-rises have popped up, bringing new residents and businesses. The Lyric now sits across from Red Rooster Overtown, an eatery owned by celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson. The Brightline MiamiCentral station is two blocks away.

“The Lyric is so historic and the area is growing. You’ve got the snowbirds, the young professionals, and the retirees. It’s a wonderful thing that’s going on in Overtown and we wanted to be part of that,” says Valles, referring to SJO’s new live music series. “Us being there is like bringing back the good old days and mixing it with the new era of today.”

It’s also about preserving Black history and culture amid redevelopment and gentrification, adds Pritchett.

Black Archives contributes to the effort through events that educate, and, they say, entertain. In February, it installed the photo exhibition “Echoes of Overtown: A Legacy Preserved,” at the Brightline station – and hosts similar events in the community.

Additionally, this year it began a culinary series, “Date Night at the Lyric,” on the second Wednesday of the month. The intimate experience takes place on stage – 20 diners are seated at tables for two. It includes a chef-curated three-course meal, open bar, live music and talkback on food and Black heritage.

“It’s become more popular than we expected,” says Pritchett.

The jazz series, however, is the icing on the cake. It’s how the theater welcomes the month and opens its doors to visitors. Pritchett hopes it will change perceptions about what Overtown has to offer.

“People can now plan an evening around what we have in Overtown . . . so they’re not just driving through the neighborhood to get somewhere, but making it a destination.”

WHAT: SJO 1st Fridays Live at the Lyric featuring LaVie and the Yvette Norwood-Tiger Quartet with Federico Britos.

WHERE: The Historic Lyric Theater, 819 NW 2nd Ave., Miami

WHEN: 8 p.m., Friday, April 5 and Friday, May 3

COST: $30 and $40

INFORMATION: 305-710-2555, sunshinejazz.org

RELATED EVENT: Date Night at the Lyric, 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 10; on the 2nd Wednesday of the month, $150 per couple. For information, 786-708-4610 or bahlt.org.

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music, and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com

Miami Light Project Presents A Futuristic, Modern Latinx Opera by Sol Ruiz

Presented by Miami Light Project, “Positive Vibration Nation” encompasses live, interactive performances of “Sol and The Tribu,” with creator Sol Ruiz, left, foreground, and musician Alejandro Sierra, right, background,  on Friday, April 12 and Saturday, April 13 at Miami Theater Center, Miami Shores. (Photo courtesy of Miami Light Project)

There are two words that are rarely (possibly never) shared in the same sentence: guaguancó and opera. The first term defines a type of rumba originated in Cuba, in which percussion predominates, the vocal part tells a long story, and the accompanying dance emulates a sexual courtship. The second is a genre associated with classical music, considered a theatrical form that tells a story, completely or partially, with music and singing. 

It is clear that the common denominator between the two musical forms is this: that they both recount a tale from beginning to end. “An opera narrates a story from beginning to end through music. So for me it could be any kind of music . . . it doesn’t have to be classical music,” says Sol Ruiz, Grammy-nominated artist, producer, deejay and multi-instrumentalist. 

It was that line of thinking that motivated the Miami-born Cuban American musician to create her own opera: one that might attract the attention of a younger generation, for whom a contemporary sound might be more appealing. Incidentally, this work might resonate with this audience through the artist’s own questions about her personal identity and cultural heritage.

“One day I said to myself, ‘You know what, I’d like to (write an opera) but in a contemporary way, that would appeal to people today and also tap into my own roots and cultural heritage (guaguancó and cubanía),'” says Ruiz.

The result of that idea became “Positive Vibration Nation,” a new multimedia musical theater-rock-guaguancó opera. Created by Ruiz, directed by Teo Castellanos and choreographed by Sandra Portal-Andreu, the plot involves six characters who embark on a journey in search of their roots. In that endeavor, their discoveries as a group unlock their powers as musical superheroes. 

Presented by Miami Light Project on Friday, April 12 and Saturday, April 13 at the Miami Theater Center, the show is performed primarily by the band “Sol and The Tribu” although, as described by its producers, it involves much more than music. The experience will include elements of visual art, fashion, dance and, of course, Caribbean music.

According to its creator, the main topic of the work is the uniqueness of Miami—the particularity of its roots as the cultural foundation of this multinational enclave. ”A big part of the concept is about returning to our roots,” says Ruiz. “The plot starts in the Miami of the future, in the year 3050, and little by little — I don’t want to reveal too much — it comes to the present. On my journey, I meet the different characters that make up the whole story.”

“Positive Vibration Nation” features a group of Miami-based Latino artists and performers including Rey Rodriguez (as Rey Sugar), Carlos Jose Martinez (as Octoman), Alejandro Sierra (as Alibaba), Nayah Mericier and Nichole Machado (dance performance), Fernando Perdomo (guitar) and Fernando Abad (piano and synthesizers) and, of course, the creator herself, Sol Ruiz (as La Barbara),

Artistic collaborators include Greth Castillo (media and film), Winston Vargas (lighting), Beth Gladen (sound design) and Celia Ledón (costume design).

“We are all Latinx in the production: some of us are from Miami, but for the most part everyone comes from different parts of Latin America, Colombia, Haiti, Cuba and the Dominican Republic. All those influences are closely linked to the music; it’s what we define as the ‘Miami sound’,” says Ruiz, who adds that she does not shy away from “Spanglish” in her vocal work.

Castellanos has collaborated with Miami Light Project over the past 25 years. For him the overall challenge of directing “Positive Vibration Nation” has been to create a unified sense of meaning for a performance composed of so many layers. Basically, his method is to devise theater making, he says, which combines the work of artists who excel in their respective disciplines, but who may have less training in the area of drama. 

“I’m used to working with a community of artists who may be great at either music, dance or poetry, but don’t necessarily have theatrical training that is important in the process of coming up with a new play. So that was my first challenge,” says Castellanos. 

“Then to visualize a coherent story from each of the layers made up of video technology, lights, music and dance,” says the director. “For that we had creative workshops in which we worked together on each of the ideas.”

Castellanos says he is satisfied with the structure of the piece because, for him, it’s all about the sound of the show. “Sol’s music is great, very Miami; I think it definitely identifies us as a city and as a culture . .  .  it identifies us as Latinx people living in the diaspora, in this place we call Miami,” he says.

The show’s choreographer, Portal-Andreu, says that her own process in this montage has been quite different from what she is used to, but no less rewarding. “It is completely different from what I normally do in developing my own independent work: the structure and the way we collaborate and work with movements. Here I am not only moving two amazing dancers, but also a great group of musicians.”

An additional incentive for Portal-Andreu is the way she has coupled her work with that of Castellanos. “It’s uplifting to work with a director so influenced by movement. He would give me notes that made a lot of sense in moving people from one point to another on the stage. It’s almost as if we were reading each other’s minds.”

She continues: “I think people will love that this is a multigenerational performance, so anyone of any age can come out to see it. And (I also love) that Sol is tapping into these Miami rhythms and sounds and, at the same time, into a personal history through a futuristic approach. She’s addressing issues that are obviously in the conversations we’re having today about the future of this city,” says the Colombian-Cuban-born choreographer. 

For director Catellanos— who was born in Puerto Rico but has lived in Miami since he was 6 years old—working from such a rich musical base is one of the best and most rewarding experiences in this project, and a dream come true. “Music has made me what I am today. I grew up with salsa, hip hop, reggae and punk, so rhythm has always been a driving force in who I am as an individual and as an artist.”

Ruiz, as a creator, feels that today’s audience needs operas like this to ground people within an uber-fast, evolving culture. “In many ways in Miami we have lost our identity. And as technology progresses, the less we can identify ourselves, we risk becoming a mere mishmash of things. I don’t want to lose my heritage, my roots, or forget where I come from,” says Ruiz.

WHAT: “Sol Ruiz: Positive Vibration Nation,” presented by Miami Light Project.

WHEN: 8 p.m. Friday, April 12 and Saturday, April 13

WHERE: Miami Theater Center. 9806 NE 2nd Ave., Miami Shores

COST: $33.37 and $106.52 VIP; $22.92 student and senior, all include fees

INFORMATION: 305-576-4350 or miamilightproject.com

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music, and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com

Seraphic Fire welcomes guest conductor, unearths Baroque madrigals

Guest conductor Rubén Valenzuela and Seraphic Fire present “The Fountains of Israel, ” a Baroque masterpiece composed by German musician Johann Schein, in a series of concerts beginning Wednesday, March 20. (Photo courtesy of Gary Payne)

Although conductor Rubén Valenzuela was more than 2,000 miles away in San Diego, the Miami performance group Seraphic Fire stuck with him.

“I briefly met Patrick (Quigley, founder and artistic director of Seraphic Fire) a few years ago… but I have observed how for a long time we have shared a very similar trajectory in terms of growing our institutions,” said Valenzuela, who is the founder and artistic Director of the Bach Collegium in San Diego.

Now, Valenzuela will guest conduct Seraphic Fire in a concert series of “The Fountains of Israel,” a collection of madrigals composed in 1623 by Johann Schein, and being presented for the first time in Florida. The concert series will take place from Wednesday, March 20 to Sunday, March 24 and in Miami, Naples, Coral Gables, Fort Lauderdale, and Miami Beach.

The collaboration between Valenzuela and Seraphic Fire originated from the 52-year-old Mexican-American conductor ‘s fascination with Baroque music and the respect he says he feels for Seraphic Fire. This South Florida-based, Grammy-nominated ensemble brings together professional vocal and instrumental artists from throughout the world to perform and record a repertoire ranging from medieval chant and Baroque masterpieces to commissions by leading contemporary composers.

“I believe that this synergy and my admiration for the work and quality of Seraphic Fire have ultimately led to this collaboration that feels very organic,” says Valenzuela.

For his part, Quigley believes that the decision to invite Valenzuela will have an impactful reception among the South Florida audience. “Rubén is one of the leading American lights in the field of Baroque music. His programming is exciting, his interpretations are fresh, his point of view is invigorating.”

The premiere of “The Fountains of Israel,” with its emotive renditions of texts from the Lutheran Bible, offers the local audience a window into Schein’s genius: his exquisite combination of elements of Italian Baroque and German traditions.

“Schein is one of the big names of the Baroque and certainly of the 18th century. I wanted to create a program that would illustrate the river of ideas that shapes Baroque music and leads to Bach’s greatness,” says Valenzuela.

For Quigley, this type of program is important for the evolution and overall development of his company’s repertoire. “Seraphic Fire has had a special relationship with the Baroque period since its founding, and we are always interested in performing new works and composers for us, which are often also new to the South Florida region. Both ‘The Fountains of Israel’ and Johann Schein debut with the company in this program.”

A century before Bach, the music of northern Germany came under the influence of a powerful new musical language originating in Italy and perfected by Claudio Monteverdi. Obsessed with eloquence, rhetoric, and the union of text with music, the Italian madrigal was the musical form par excellence of the time.

“The Fountains of Israel”—the highlight of Seraphic Fire’s program—”is Schein’s most important collection in the vocal realm, often described as spiritual, magical. People tend to think of (his madrigals) as secular music, but undoubtedly they are a very interesting combination of something sacred and secular at the same time,” explains Valenzuela, who is also a musicologist and keyboardist.

Accompanying Schein’s masterpiece in Seraphic Fire’s program is the music of Johann Christoph Bach, another significant figure of the Baroque era and cousin of J.S. Bach. “We are performing music from earlier members of the Bach family, (in this case) from Johann Christoph Bach. And this was my way of making people understand that someone like Johann Sebastian Bach is not someone who fell from the sky,” says Valenzuela.

The conductor explains that this program, because of its concentration on Baroque, is one of the most accessible even for audiences who shy away from classical music.

“. . . Because of the intention (since Monteverdi) that this music exaggerates everything: gestures of anger, sadness, sorrow, and peace, all of these things are very obvious in the Baroque . . .”

Quigley says that Miami audiences are accustomed to the music of Johann Sebastian Bach and the composer’s familiarity.

“But his music does not exist in a vacuum,” explains Quigley. “In fact, J.S. Bach was one among a long list of fantastic musicians who were part of the remarkable environment of Leipzig, Germany, during the 17th and 18th centuries. It is an honor for Seraphic Fire to (present) ‘The Fountains of Israel’ by Johann Schein, which truly shows the genius of one of Bach’s predecessors,” he says.

The invitation for Valenzuela to premiere “The Fountains of Israel” alongside Seraphic Fire is a part of the group’s guest conductor program that Quigley says offers something not only to the performers but to the audience.

“Every season, Seraphic Fire invites two or three conductors with a specific specialty, both to offer the public a new perspective and to work with our musicians in a way that is different from that of our artistic director and associate director. The guest conductor program has been very successful . . .”

WHAT: Seraphic Fire presents “The Fountains of Israel” with guest conductor Ruben Valenzuela 

WHEN AND WHERE: 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, March 20, St. Sophia Greek Orthodox, 2401 SW 3rd Ave., Miami; 7 p.m.,  Thursday, March 21, Vanderbilt Presbyterian, 1225 Piper Blvd., Naples; 7:30 p.m., Friday, March 22, St. Philip’s Episcopal, 1121 Andalusia Ave., Coral Gables; 7:30 p.m., March 23, All Saints Episcopal, 333 Tarpon Drive, Ft. Lauderdale; Sunday, March 24, All Souls Episcopal, 4025 Pine Tree Drive, Miami Beach.

COST: $53, general admission, free for students with valid ID

INFORMATION: 305-285-9060 or  seraphicfire.org 

RELATED EVENT: A pre-concert is one hour before each concert discussing the work with soprano Molly Quinn. 

Eliades Ochoa Goes Beyond Buena Vista At 26th Afro Roots Fest

Eliades Ochoa, a founding member of Buena Vista Social Club, headlines this year’s Afro Roots Fest on Saturday, March 16, at the Miami Beach Bandshell. (Photo courtesy of Massi Giorgeschi)

Singer, guitarist, and songwriter Eliades Ochoa may be a traditionalist in music but does not trade in nostalgia.

He achieved international fame as a charter member and key figure of Buena Vista Social Club, a Grammy-winning 1997 album featuring fresh interpretations of traditional Cuban songs and styles by artists such as singers Omara Portuondo, Pio Leyva, and Ibrahim Ferrer, singer and guitarist Compay Segundo, and pianist Ruben Gonzalez, among others.

It became a global phenomenon.

Ochoa, who had been playing from a very young age and was 50 years old at the time of Buena Vista, rode the wave but kept moving. He still is. And as the headliner of the Afro Roots Fest opening concert at the Miami Beach Bandshell on Saturday, March 16, Ochoa will present his most recent album, “Guajiro” (“Peasant”). The recording marks yet another turn in his long career as it showcases his work as a composer and expands the sound of his customary quartet.

“I wanted to make this new album a little more contemporary,” says Ochoa, speaking in Spanish, freshly arrived from Madrid, where he resides. “There are boleros, a habanera, guaracha, changüí, sones, but I wanted to have different melodies, different harmonies, and you’ll also hear a saxophone and a trumpet, something very different from what I have been doing for a long time.” At the Bandshell event, Ochoa will be backed by a quintet including saxophone and trumpet.

The album, “Guajiro,” also features collaborations with Panamanian singer Ruben Blades, singer and songwriter Joan As Police Woman (Joan Wasser), and old friend, harmonica master Charlie Musselwhite.

Ochoa has a history of collaborating not only across musical styles but cultural traditions. He believes that music opens the doors to both cultures and emphasizes that there aren’t borders around music.

In its 26th year, Afro Roots Fest celebrates root African culture and its synergies with Western cultural traditions.

Ochoa has long embraced those encounters. Perhaps most notably, he has recorded albums such as “CubAfrica” (1996), a collaboration with the late Cameroonian saxophonist Manu Dibango, and the Grammy-nominated “AfroCubism” (2010), which documents a meeting of Cuban and Malian musicians, including masters kora player Toumani Diabate.

Oumu Sangaré, a transcendent vocalist and feminist icon from Mali, headlines the Afro Roots Fest concert at the Miami Beach Bandshell on Saturday, March 30. Sangaré, who burst onto the world music scene with “Moussoulou” (1989), has long become a global superstar. She will present her new album, “Timbuktu,” in which she blends traditional rhythms and singing from her native Wassoulou region in southern Mali with elements of blues and contemporary world music.

Meanwhile, even a cursory look at Ochoa’s extensive recording career would confirm his choice of being an interpreter for some of Cuba’s great songwriters. But in “Guajiro,” Ochoa claims his place as a composer.

“I had in mind that if Pepe Sanchez (regarded as the father of bolero) had made such a beautiful bolero, why would I make another one that was not as good?” says Ochoa modestly.

“But then, my partner (author) Grisel Sande and my daughter, Evora Vicents, insisted that I could not think that way, that I had many boleros that were good, beautiful songs. Until then, when I made a record, I would include one of my songs, maybe two, but not always. I thought there was already a lot of beautiful music and no need to include my songs. But they took that idea out of my head, and I started to play them.”

More than half of the tracks in “Guajiro” are his.

The subjects and the styles cover a lot of ground, from the optimistic opening track “Vamos a Alegrar el Mundo” (“Let’s Make the World a Happier Place”), the poetic “Abrazo de Luz” (“Embrace of Light”) and “Creo en la Naturaleza,” (“I Believe in Nature”) sung with Wasser, alternating Spanish and English lyrics, to “West,” his collaboration with bluesman Musselwhite.

He wrote ‘Abrazo de Luz” while looking out a window while enduring the COVID-19 confinement.

“I was locked inside the house, and I saw that first light of the sun announcing a new day, and I just wrote down what I was thinking,” says Ochoa.

Meanwhile, “West” is partly a tribute to his childhood in Santiago de Cuba, when he saw “three Western movies for 10 cents. All those shootouts,” he says. “At first, the song was like a Western instrumental music. Cowboys on horseback would come to my mind — and later, I came up with the lyrics. Well, that’s where this thing of cowboy hats and boots comes from. I have always liked to walk with boots, and now it’s my image.”

Ochoa is one of only a handful of survivors of the Buena Vista Social recordings, and more than 25 years later, even after answering a question he was likely asked a few hundred times, he still sounds surprised by the enduring impact of those sessions.

“If one of us, one of the founders of the Buena Vista Social Club, says he knew what was going to happen, he is lying,” he says. “What we did know was that we were working for an Englishman (Nick Gold, the CEO of World Circuit Records) and an American (guitarist, composer, and producer Ry Cooder) and that what we were doing, we were doing it with respect and love. Did we think it was going to be a good record? Yes. Did we know this would be a home run with the bases full in the ninth inning? Nah. Nobody knew that.”

Looking back has its rewards, but for Ochoa, there is nothing like discussing his present.

“I feel very happy when I’m on stage and see the audience and a lot of young people,” says Ochoa. “I hear them singing the choruses of the songs on the recent albums, and you realize that they know what they are going to hear, and I like that a lot.”

WHAT: 26th Afro Roots Fest 

WHERE: Miami Beach Bandshell, 7275 Collins Ave., Miami Beach

WHEN: 8 p.m., Saturday, March 16, 8 p.m., Saturday, March 30

TICKETS: $50.47, general admission (Eliades Ochoa), $48.41, general admission (Oumou Sangaré)

INFORMATION:   (786) 453-2897 or miamibeachbandshell.com and AfroRootsFest.com

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com.

Can ‘Conversations’ Get Audiences To Classical Concerts? Arsht Hopes So

The Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra with chief conductor Lahav Shani performs as part of the Knight Masterworks Classical Music series at the Adrienne Arsht Center, Miami, on Thursday, March 7. The Arsht Center is hosting a “Classical Conversations” pre-talk before each concert in its classical series for free. (Photo courtesy of Guido Pijper)

In today’s world, where the allure of classical music sometimes struggles to resonate with modern audiences, the Adrienne Arsht Center is attempting to help ignite a new passion for the timeless art form. As it prepares for its second concert in its Knight Masterworks Classical Music series, the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra on Thursday, March 7, the Arsht faces the daunting task like most producers of classical music working hard to get new generations interested in what many consider to be a dying genre.

Recognizing the need to bridge the gap between the classical repertoire and contemporary listeners, the Arsht Center is hosting “Classical Conversations.” Scheduled one hour before each performance inside the Peacock Foundation Education Center inside the Knight Concert Hall, the speaker sessions are designed to offer insights into the music, composers, and historical context behind the pieces to be performed. Lakeisha Frith, director of education at the Adrienne Arsht Center, says maybe even a little bit of gossip.

Scott Flavin, lecturer in violin performance and chamber music and resident conductor for the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music’s Henry Mancini Institute will lead the conversation before the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra’s performance. Flavin has an optimistic perspective on the current state of classical music.

“I think that the notion that the audience is getting older and older and dying off — I just don’t see that. I think there are more orchestras than there have ever been, but that is not to say that we shouldn’t be engaging younger people. Historically it does attract an older audience but that’s not to say that there isn’t room to welcome a younger audience,” says Flavin.

Pamela Smitter, DMA, who was principal trumpet with the West Michigan Symphony for two decades and now performs with the Miami Symphony Orchestra and Orchestra, was the first speaker in the series when the Detroit Symphony Orchestra played the Knight on Thursday, Feb. 15.

She was particularly excited about Elgar’s Cello Concerto and told audiences in her pre-concert conversation that the piece was an “expressive, soulful piece of music,” and gave insight that Elgar composed the piece in the wake of World War writing the composition near the end of his life.

Frith says that’s precisely the idea behind the “Conversations” series.

“When the guests come, they will learn a little bit about what’s being performed, the ensemble that’s performing, and then a little bit of the gossip — who the composers were, was there an affair, was there something steamy that happened?”

The “Classical Conversations” series is free and open to the public and it isn’t necessary to have a purchased ticket to attend the pre-show talks, according to the Arsht.

Flavin, who works closely with a younger demographic at University of Miami’s Frost School of Music, highlighted new and innovative ways in which orchestras have been using to engage audiences.

“It’s an amazing time for classical music,” says Flavin, citing the success of the popular “Candlelight” concert series. In 2020, Flavin began performing as a musician in intimate events that are held in various venues illuminated by seas of candlelight and produced by a commercial company, Fever, that puts on shows around the United States. They typically feature a string quartet or a small jazz band performing the hit songs of popular musicians like Nirvana, Queen, Fleetwood Mac, Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran as well as some concerts that feature classical composers such as Vivaldi or contemporary film score composers like Hans Zimmer. Venues range from Pinecrest Gardens to the Coral Gables Congregational Church.

Smitter says younger audiences are looking for something else and has hopes the Arsht conversations can help bring people in.

“The thing that’s saving (the orchestra) right now is Harry Potter movie screens. People are going to the symphony to watch a movie with live music and are realizing the power of it,” says Smitter.

Flavin says it’s the perception that needs to change.

“I think it’s important that we break the stereotype that this is old music, this is dead music, and it’s boring. I love these conversations because I talk a bit about the music and the composer that wrote it but then (I talk) also about the performers because they are the ones that make this music come alive,” says Flavin, who adds that includes time for a question-and-answer session at the end of his talk to further the conversation.

Flavin will host the Arsht Center’s “Classic Conversations” on Thursday, March 21, before the performance by the Academy of St Martin in the Fields. He says he spent time previously with the orchestra and Bell when they came to Miami to work with his students at the Frost School of Music. (“It is) one of the great orchestras.”

Jorge Mejia, president and CEO for Sony Music Publishing Latin America, will be on hand on Tuesday, April 16 before the performance of pianist Lang Lang in a recital that features selected works from Chopin, Schumann, and Fauré. A pianist himself, Mejia says he’ll concentrate on the craft of performance when he speaks to the before-show audience to give them an understanding of the person behind the performance and, in this case, Lang Lang’s years of dedication.

Mejia believes that the key to inspiring a love of classical music is simply exposure.

“When young people are exposed to this music, for the most part, I think they can’t help but at least be intrigued, if not fall in love with this music. I think the key is to have people exposed to the music and then the music does what it needs to do.”

WHAT:  Knight Masterworks Classical Conversations

WHERE: Peacock Foundation Education Center inside the Knight Concert Hall, Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, 1300 Biscayne Blvd., Miami

WHEN: 7 p.m. Thursday, March 7 prior to the performances by the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra; Thursday, March 21, Academy of St Martin in the Fields with Joshua Bell, and on Tuesday, April 16 pre-show before Lang Lang

COST:  Free admission to Classical Conversations (ticket for performance not a requirement)

INFORMATION: 305-949-6722 or arshtcenter.org

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com.

Swiss-born Montreux brings its brand of jazz to Miami for the first time

Jon Batiste headlines two nights at the Montreux Jazz Festival Miami on Friday, March 1 and Saturday, March 2. On Sunday, March 3, Daryl Hall is the draw at The Hangar at Regatta Harbour in Coconut Grove. (Photo by David Needleman, courtesy of Montreaux Jazz Festival Miami)

For the first time in its history, Switzerland’s Montreux Jazz Festival, which has kept the summers on chilly Lake Geneva hot for nearly 60 years, is expanding to the subtropics. Montreux Jazz Festival Miami holds its inaugural event bayside in Coconut Grove from Friday, March 1 through Sunday, March 3, showcasing a lineup that speaks fluent “Miami” and is as eclectic as the original’s.

Held in The Hangar at Regatta Harbour, the performances will be a relatively intimate affair, with only 1,500 tickets sold per day. The hangar used to house Pan Am’s famous Flying Clippers, which thousands would flock to Dinner Key to watch take off and land in the waters of Biscayne Bay in the 1930s and ’40s. Made for storing seaplanes and repurposed for performances, art shows and the like by the Breakwater Hospitality Group, there will be seating only for VIP ticket holders at the jazz festival, with general admission guests standing.

Given the draw of headliners like jazz’s man-of-the-hour Jon Batiste, rocker Daryl Hall, Brazilian pop star Daniela Mercury or the legendary reggae group The Wailers, an audience of just 1,500 might seem downright cozy. Miami natives like multi-instrumentalist Emily Estefan and jazz chanteuse and MacArthur Genius Fellow Cécile McLorin Salvant will also be on hand to show off the area’s homegrown talent.

Estefan, who plays with her band on Sunday, is a true daughter of Miami. In a telephone interview, she called the move by Montreux as exciting for her home city as it is fitting for the festival’s evolution. “Miami is that kind of a city where so many different cultures and people come to fuse that it’s the perfect home for music, too, to be able to do that,” she says.

The original Montreux started small but mushroomed, spreading the gospel of great music to over 200,000 visitors a year. Estefan hopes for something similar for its new offshoot.

“The importance of these festivals moving around is to keep these seeds growing around the world,” she says. “I love the fact that music and art is malleable, and it changes and it grows and expands.” Her prediction for Montreux Miami? “It’s going to be the beginning of something big.”

With artists from many different styles on the bill, Montreux Miami, like its namesake, takes an expansive view of jazz that may have purists scratching their heads.

“Jazz is influenced by so many other genres,” explains Estefan, “but still comes together in the end, which is why we have a lineup like Cimafunk, Corey Henry, me, Daryl Hall, Jon Batiste, because we’re all connecting to jazz but in our unique way.”

Cimafunk, who plays the festival on Saturday, comes to jazz through its African roots and through the funk it helped to birth. The singer is one of Cuba’s most joyous, raucous and imaginative exports in recent memory. In chunky sunglasses, a black crushed velvet shirt or a big fake fur coat, Cimafunk has the style of a 21st century Sly Stone. His sound owes more to Prince, James Brown or George Clinton (Clinton, one of Cima’s idols, recorded the song “Funk Aspirin” with him in 2021).

The artist’s name plays on different aspects of his musical heritage. Cima comes from “cimarron,” the Spanish term for those who escaped from slavery to form palenques, independent, hidden communities deep in the mountains of Cuba.

“All these people with different sounds and different rhythms, from all these different parts of Africa, were hiding in the mountains together,” says Cima. “It’s the base of the Afro-Cuban essence.”

The fusion of African cultures that explains Cuban music’s magnetic pull also happened here in the United States. It was from that mixing, he says, that funk eventually evolved, drinking from deep taproots in the blues, soul and jazz.

“I’m in love with the funk,” says Cima, a fact that locals who saw him perform at his own event, Cimafest, last December in Wynwood, can easily attest to. Cima’s all-Cuban band provides its star with a brilliant setting, including a female horn section and percussionists driving the distinctive funk beat. And their upcoming show at Montreux?

“It’s gonna be fire,” Cima says simply.

And while city fathers – and mothers – may have been seeing dollar signs when they heard of this world-class event making its second home in Miami, Cimafunk and the other artists I spoke to seemed more in tune with the spirit than with the wallet. Jazz, after all, has always had a place at the table for both the sacred and the profane.

“It’s going to be medicine for the heart and soul,” he says. “It’s going to be hours of groove just hitting you in the chest. It’s going to be really healing and it’s going to bring a lot of happiness.”

Like Cima, Estefan finds a special power in people uniting to experience live music together. “I mean it’s frequency vibration, right?” she says. “With multiple people playing multiple things and the frequencies uniting and then going to your ears in the audience, that just can’t be matched with, you know, playing a song over speaker.”

Aston Barrett Jr., bandleader for The Wailers, agrees. Barrett, who plays his father, Aston Barrett Sr., in the new film “Bob Marley: One Love,” spoke to me less than a week after his namesake passed away at 77. Side by side with Marley, “Family-Man” Barrett was one of the most important creators of reggae and an integral part of a group whose artistic output moved the entire world. Sunday’s concert at Montreux will be his first since his father’s death.

“The first show that we do with the band is going to be very emotional,” he says. “Before, I wanted to push so my father could see everything . . . now, he’s still going to see everything, just in the spiritual realm, you know?” And spirit is what The Wailers’ music is all about, Barrett says. He is intent on continuing the job his father and Marley started.

“Reggae music is the people’s music,” says Barrett. “It’s the music that brings peace to the Earth. Reggae music is for the soul reggae music is from the heaven . . . and Wailers music is the root of reggae music.”

Barrett Jr. says his father continued the legacy of the Wailers after Marley passed away from cancer at the age of 36  in 1981.

“(My father) taught me everything, and I don’t want it to die. I want to make sure it lives on forever,” he says. “I’m still doing my own legacy, but I respect my father so highly, and I will continue to preserve his legacy.”

The first Montreux Jazz Festival Miami is an important step on that journey and perhaps will create yet another legacy: having Miami gain recognition as a world-class destination for music lovers.

WHAT: Inaugural Montreux Jazz Festival Miami

WHEN: Doors open at 5 p.m., Friday,  March 1:  Jon Batiste, Cécile McLorin Salvant, Israel Houghton, Justin Kauflin and ELEW; 5 p.m., Saturday, March 2: Jon Batiste (second night added due to Seu Jorge cancellation) with Lia de Itamaracá, Daniela Mercury, Cimafunk, Adrian Cota & the Winston House Band; Doors open at 4:30 p.m., Sunday, March 3: Daryl Hall, The Wailers, Cory Henry, Emily Estefan and Mathis Picard.

WHERE: The Hangar at Regatta Harbour, 3385 Pan American Drive, Coconut Grove

COST: $199 per day, general admission, no seating, $259 general admission and jam session; $719 VIP, includes seating, jam session entry, and extras; three-day passes for general admission and VIP sold out; $99, jam session only (11 p.m. after the main show).

INFORMATION: montreuxjazzfestivalmiami.com

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com

Pianist, composer Omar Sosa embodies Global Cuba Fest

Global Cuba Fest 2024 features Omar Sosa, above, at the Miami Beach Bandshell on Saturday, March 2, and pianists Ernán López Nussa and Rolando Luna, on Saturday, March 9 at the Miami-Dade County Auditorium. (Photo courtesy of David Sproule)

Cuban pianist and composer Omar Sosa embodies the spirit and ambition of Global Cuba Fest, an annual event by FUNDarte and the Miami Light Project celebrating the Cuban diaspora’s rhythms, music, and culture. Sosa is the headliner for the Saturday, March 2 show at the Miami Beach Bandshell. (Two other exceptional Cuban pianists, Ernán López Nussa and Rolando Luna, headline the second event of Global Cuba Fest on Saturday, March 9 at the Miami Dade County Auditorium.)

For Sosa, who will appear with his new Quarteto Americanos, his identity as a Cuban of African descent remains a starting point for exploring a pan-African culture without borders.

His career spans 30 years and has been documented in 35 releases thus far, and his work has been recognized with four Grammy Awards and three Latin Grammy Award nominations. He continues collaborating with an impressive list of North American, African, Arabic, European, Indian, and Latin musicians, treating post-bop jazz and cha-cha-chá, hip hop, rhythms of the Moroccan Gnawa tradition, or ritual music of the Orisha religion as different expressions of shared African roots.

By connecting seemingly disparate sources and exploring old traditions with a contemporary approach, he often suggests conversations among long-lost relatives.

The results then are not just surprising but illuminating.

For his appearance at Global Cuba Fest, his first in Miami since 2018, Sosa will lead a quartet featuring multi-reed player Sheldon Brown, bassist Ernesto Mazar Kindelán, and drummer Josh Jones.

“Every project has different music, and every project gives me something,” says the pianist in a conversation in Spanish from his home in Barcelona. “And being on the move keeps me awake, alert — and a lot of times a little bit scared too. If we expect that what happened yesterday will happen today, well, forget it,” he says before breaking into a laugh.

But for Sosa, who will be 59 in April, “the concept remains the same. What has changed sometimes over the years is the form. But the idea of the unity of culture and sharing remains. And when I say ‘sharing,’ I don’t mean it only from the musical point of view but also from a human point of view. You give me something of yours, I give you something of mine, and together, we will create something that perhaps will have two words from you and one from me, and perhaps it will be positive for everyone.”

Born in Camaguey, after finishing his studies at the National School of Music and the Higher Institute of Art in Havana, he traveled with his first group to Angola, Congo, Ethiopia, and Nicaragua. In 1993, he moved to Quito, Ecuador, and two years later, to the Bay Area in California. He has since settled in Barcelona, Spain.

While he has consistently said that he does not consider himself a jazz pianist, he calls himself a jazzman.

“Jazz, for me, is a philosophy of life, and that philosophy allows you to feel free to express yourself,” says Sosa. “That openness is why jazz works with all kinds of music. That’s why it’s a global music. I don’t play bebop, and maybe I know one jazz standard, that’s it, nothing more. But for me, jazz is freedom, and in those terms, I consider myself a jazzman.”

He is an expressive, imaginative pianist with a rich vocabulary, capable of remarkably lyrical flights and forceful grooves. But Sosa trained initially as a percussionist and still approaches the piano as “88 well-tuned drums.” The idea serves as the title of the documentary on Sosa’s music and life, directed by Soren Sorensen, a filmmaker in Worcester, Mass., who focuses on documentaries with an emphasis on social and cultural issues. The film had its world premiere at the 2022 USA Film Festival in Dallas and has since appeared at more than 30 film  festivals.

“Omar Sosa’s 88 Well-Tuned Drums” will be released on Video On Demand platforms such as Amazon, GooglePlay, and Tubi in the United States on Friday, March 15 and will be out on Blu-ray in April 2024.

As it turns out, Sorensen met Sosa at one of his shows in New York. He “found the work interesting, a bit different from what it was being played at the time, but he didn’t know anything about what I had been doing,” says Sosa. “So he started to search and listen, and we connected on this message of pluriculturality.”

For Sosa, it’s a concept that has shaped his approach to life and, inevitably, as a result, his music.

“Living with other cultures makes me more open-minded. This is what I’ve been expressing in my work all these years, and, at this point in my life, it’s what I’ll die doing,” says Sosa. “It’s what gives me pleasure — and makes me grow as a person.”

WHAT: Global Cuba Fest 2024: Omar Sosa Quarteto Americanos and Piano Marathon Cubano featuring.Ernán López-Nussa and Rolando Luna

WHERE: Miami Beach Bandshell, 7275 Collins Ave., Miami Beach; Mid Stage Miami-Dade County Auditorium, 2901 W Flagler St., Miami

WHEN: 8 p.m., Saturday, March 2; 7 p.m., March 9

COST: $40, $25 for seniors and students

INFORMATION:  305-576-4350 and miamilightproject.com

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com

 

Carmen Lundy back in her Miami hometown to sing Mary Lou Williams with New World Symphony

Jazz vocalist-composer Carmen Lundy, pictured in her Woodland Hills, Calif., library beneath an original print of “Bird Now,” a film about jazz saxophonist Charlie Parker, will sing compositions by Mary Lou Williams in the New World Symphony’s “The Soundworld of Mary Lou Williams” on Saturday, Feb. 24 and Sunday, Feb. 25 at the New World Center, Miami Beach. (Photo courtesy of Janet Van Ham)

Carmen Lundy attributes the breath between each note she sings to growing up in Florida. She recalls that someone once told her that the sound of her voice “had the wind in it, the air, the humidity.”

The Miami-born jazz vocalist and composer says it was South Florida that shaped her. Memories flood out of her like a tropical rainfall. A conversation with the singer focuses on the present and the past. First, it’s her upcoming concerts with New World Symphony, the grand finale of its annual “I Dream a World” festival. This year, the focus has been on the “first lady of jazz,” legendary pianist and composer Mary Lou Williams.

“So, here I am, returning to South Beach to perform the music of one of the greatest composers of the 20th century, (an artist) who people are still learning about and I’m excited about that,” says Lundy.

Now in its third year, New World’s “I Dream a World” series takes place each February during Black History Month, aiming to introduce its audience to Black music and artists that are not as widely known. This year, it’s Williams, whom New World’s tagline references as “a jazz woman in a jazzman’s world.” Williams was born in Atlanta in 1910 and died in Durham, N.C., when she was 71 in 1981.

Lundy holds an esteemed distinction in the realm of Williams’ music. She was chosen by the pianist and composer’s manager and executor of Williams’ foundation to carry out an important assignment.

“In 1982 or ’83 — by this time I was living in New York City — I got a telephone call from Father Peter O’Brien. He saw this story about me in the “Village Voice” and called me up and asked me if I would be part of a tribute concert to Mary Lou. That was my first time singing one of her compositions. He was her manager for the last 17 years of her life,” says Lundy, adding that O’Brien managed her career for a short time, too.

She says she only saw Williams play live once. “. . . Maybe my first or second year of living in New York City at the Jazzmobile (New York City’s longest-running live jazz concert series).”

But the importance of honoring Williams’ legacy would become even more life-changing for Lundy.

“Upon her passing, (O’Brien) continued the Mary Lou Williams Foundation, which was meant to expose her music to young generations coming up,” recalls Lundy.

He requested that she go to some of Manhattan’s parochial schools – Williams had converted to Catholicism in the 1970s – and teach children Williams’ composition of what’s now known as “Mary Lou’s Mass.”

“Mary Lou’s Mass” will close New World Symphony’s “The Soundworld of Mary Lou Williams,” at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 24 and 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 25 at the New World Center in Miami Beach.

In the program, Lundy will perform Williams’ “Ghost of Love” and “What’s Your Story, Morning Glory?” with the Aaron Diehl Trio. On the same program, Diehl will perform selections from Williams’ “Zodiac Suite,” for which he received a Grammy nomination this year in the category of “Best Classical Compendium” and which has brought new attention to the “Zodiac Suite.” The series of 12 pieces was inspired by the composer’s musical friends and colleagues and their zodiac signs: for example, “Aries” for Billie Holiday and “Taurus” for Duke Ellington.

Of Williams, Lundy says: “I’ve been representing her music for years now and whenever there’s an opportunity where I’m asked to join, I can’t say ‘no’ really. It’s kind of a responsibility. I may just be exposing you to her music through my little offering vocally. That’s my job, to represent her to the highest level that I can in my small way.”

Now living in the Woodland Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, Lundy is coming back to Miami for the second time in three months. She performed at the grand opening of the University of Miami’s Frost School’s Knight Center for Music Innovation in early November.

“I sang a song written for Miami called ‘Miami,’ ” a jazzy tribute to her hometown composed for the occasion. The UM alumna was  presented with a Centennial Medal from the school awarded to “exceptional alumni.”

Enough of the present. She’s ready to dig right into the scrapbook of her life growing up in Richmond Heights. “I went to preschool, grade school, middle school, high school – Miami Killian class of ’72 – and the University of Miami,” says Lundy, spilling out the references like the fast tempos in a jazz improvisation.

The oldest of seven, she was influenced early in her life by the Apostolic Singers of Miami, her mother Oveida’s gospel group. Now at 69, composer, arranger and singer, dipped her hand in moviemaking during the pandemic. She created a documentary, “Nothing But The Blood: The True Story Of The Apostolic Singers of Miami,” which she directed, filmed and edited about the group’s history. It won the Downtown LA Film Festival’s Best Music Documentary in 2022.

“I was a little girl watching my mother rehearse with this group in the house when I was four or five. And I would pluck out those melodies on the piano because every house we ever lived in had a piano. I thought I was going to be a piano player,” recalls Lundy.

When she was thirteen, she began performing as part of a vocal duo, “Steph and Tret.”

“When we were juniors in high school, Stephanie (Patterson) and I did a record at Criteria Recording Studios (in North Miami), one of the famous recording studios in modern music. Aretha Franklin recorded there and James Brown and a whole bunch of others including Gloria Estefan. And we did two songs and we had our little record and we were just so proud of ourselves.”

She says it was a year later when she “broke out on my own and began my performance career.”

Lundy says she worked her way through getting her bachelor’s degree in music from the University of Miami performing with her band. “My classmates were Pat Metheny, my pianist was Bruce Hornsby.”

When asked for stories of the venues she played, she says: “Venues? You want venues?” And then lists some of the most famous Miami music rooms of the 1970s.

“People who are Miamians will remember names like the Checkmate Lounge, the Traveler’s Lounge by the airport, they’ll remember the Peacock Room at the Coconut Grove Playhouse, the Village Inn on Commodore Plaza in the heart of Coconut Grove. . . (Wolf Hanau’s) Le Jardin restaurant. Hornsby was in my band then. I played all those venues.”

She goes on to say: “My story began on Miami Beach. I used to open the small rooms when all the major acts came through at the Eden Roc. I performed music from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. six nights a week while in college. Somewhere in Miami, I was singing.”

In 1978 she headed for New York City and, she says, “never looked back” with a clear idea about what she wanted to get out of New York. “I walked right onto the stage, literally.”

She immediately began performing at Jazzmania, bass clarinetist Mike Morgenstern’s fourth‐floor walkup jazz room at 14 East 23rd St.

In 1985, Lundy released her first solo album on the independent label, Black Hawk. Entitled “Good Morning Kiss,” the album claimed the No. 3 spot on Billboard’s Jazz Chart for 23 weeks. She now has 16 albums and has published over 150 songs. Her compositions have been recorded by artists like Kenny Barron, Ernie Watts, Terri Lyne Carrington, and Regina Carter. In 2005, she launched the Afrasia Productions music label with producer Elisabeth Oei.

“We have been very successful with our own efforts – pursuing this career as a composer as well as a jazz singer with two Grammy nominations.” The last nomination was in 2023 in the Best Jazz Vocal Album category for “Fade To Black,” her 16th record release.

In 1991, she moved to Los Angeles for a television pilot, and has made California her home ever since.

“Thank goodness (the pilot) didn’t get picked up because I don’t know what my life would have been if I hadn’t stayed grounded and rooted in my jazz.”

Lundy’s continuing dedication to Williams as a jazz influence is essential, she says, to getting her music to a wider audience, to her own approach as a woman in the music business, and as a female performer.

“We have to remember that for our culture to represent certain artistic endeavors and having an impact on the world, we have to include the female – you can’t exclude the female. The presence of the female has always had an integral role in shaping cultural expressions over time. (Mary Lou Williams) had an impact on every decade of jazz music until she passed away in the 1980s. That’s phenomenal.”

WHAT: New World Symphony: “The Soundworld of Mary Lou Williams”

WHERE: New World Center, Michael Tilson Thomas Performance Hall, 500 17th St., Miami Beach.

WHEN: 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 24 and 2 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 25 

COST: $40-$140; free Wallcast outdoors, Saturday, Feb. 24 only, on the New World Center’s 7,000-square-foot projection wall in SoundScape Park.

INFORMATION: 305-673-3331 or 800-597-3331, also nws.edu

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com.

Trio of Titans Reunite to Celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Afro-Cuban Jazz Band Irakere

Chucho Valdés and saxophonist Paquito D’Rivera onstage at the Knight Concert Hall, co-headlining the June 2022 concert that heralded the end of a four-decade professional and personal separation. Now they are back joined for a celebration of the 50th anniversary of Irakere. (Photo by Daniel Azoulay/courtesy of the Adrienne Arsht Center)

If the ground trembles a bit around the Adrienne Arsht Center on Friday, Feb. 9, don’t blame the State Road 836 construction project down the street. With an as-of-now sold-out house and a trio of true titans of the Afro-Cuban jazz pantheon playing together for the first time in 40 years, how could the earth but shake?

Pianist Chucho Valdés, trumpeter Arturo Sandoval and multi-reedist Paquito d’Rivera will reunite in celebration of the 50th anniversary of Irakere, the iconic band that the three, together with other young musicians, began in Cuba in 1973. They will be joined by special guest Luis Enrique and accompanied by bassist José A. Gola, drummer Horacio Hernández, percussionist Roberto Jr. Vizcaíno Torre, trumpeters Eddy de Armas Jr. and Osvaldo Fleites, saxophonists Carlos Averhoff Jr. and Luis Beltrán and vocalist Ramón Álvarez.

As Miami music maven and WDNA-FM “Cubaneando” host Viviam María López notes, the time was ripe for such an auspicious reunion.

“It’s like, when something as awesome as this is happening all the stars have to align and I think they did.”

Irakere, says Valdés in Spanish in a telephone interview, was a group project from the get-go. He, Sandoval and Rivera had been playing together for years in the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna, but they wanted to shake up the Havana music scene with contemporary sounds and a more expansive notion of what Latin jazz could be. Like a band of pioneers steered by the boldness and energy of youth, Irakere’s founders would set out together for territories teeming with unexplored grooves both electronic and ancestral.

“We were a generation of very restless young people, who wanted to change and do different things,” says Valdés, as he elaborates on how the decision was made to form a band that would come to mark such an inflection point in the history of Latin jazz.

“It is an idea that I had, but it was collective,” says Valdés. “Really, one of the things that inspired me the most was dance music, apart from Afro-Cuban jazz music, to which we added all the elements of African drums, etc. and also enriched a lot with the elements of jazz. But we also thought that we could enrich dance music by adding a little more harmony, breaking structures that were already created and opening a new path. And that new path was opened by Irakere.”

Like his father, legendary pianist Bebo Valdés, had done before him, Chucho Valdés would use traditional African drums such as the batá to add to the uniquely Afro-Cuban feel of his compositions.

In addition to infusing their new brand of jazz with the traditional drums of their forebearers, Irakere would also look to their peers in the worlds of funk and rock and roll for their innovative sonic elements.

“We started using electronic keyboards,” explains Valdés, “a variety of electronic keyboards, the guitar or the guitar with sound effects, right? Like the wah-wah, which was used a lot in those days, which is a pedal, right? … And the fuzz distorter, which is a guitar melody distorter . . . That, joined with the African drum part, with that rhythm that was more from funk and Cuban son plus the harmonies that the winds and brass were doing, those lines that were more from jazz.”

The sound was revolutionary for Cuba and revelatory for the Americans who would hear them on the band’s first tour here in 1979.

“Obviously it’s super important that their debut album in ‘79 got the Grammy Award,” notes López, “which really is a recognition that I think elevated them and Afro-Cuban jazz to a global audience.”

She cites it as an impactful moment in history.

. . . In musical history, Cuban musical history, and jazz as well,” she says, “where they break barriers, modernizing, if you may, Afro-Cuban jazz.

 And as Valdés himself points out, “The generation of young people now says that you can talk about a before and an after Irakere.”

But long before Irakere was even an idea, Valdés remembers how the extraordinary Cuban music scene of the ‘40s and ‘50s had trained his ear and fed his musical imagination.

“The music was incredible,” he says, mentioning the many Havana nightclubs where international stars would appear on the regular, and cabarets like the iconic Tropicana, where his father, the legendary pianist Bebo Valdés, was musical director.

“I think it was the golden era of Cuban music, with artists like Celia Cruz, Benny Moré, Barbarito Diez. Well, there were hundreds of top-level artists, right? And the radio had great programs where the most important figures appeared, Cuban and foreign . . . The list is endless, really, of people, of great musicians. Not only good musicians, but all of them great.” Among those greats, it was Chucho Valdés’s father who was his role model in chief.

“Everything I know about music,” says Valdés, “my dad taught me. I was Bebo’s first fan.”

Like Sandoval and d’Rivera, Valdés found his passion for his instrument early. And like his two compatriots, his creative curiosity and gusto for seeking out new challenges and ways of playing have been the throughline from his days as a musical prodigy to his place now as a respected elder statesman of Afro-Cuban jazz.

Valdés is as upbeat, down-to-earth and sincere in an interview as he is onstage, where his megawatt smile looks as though it could light up a small city. And why should an 82-year-old man simply walk to the piano when he can strut, amble, or even dance his way over? I asked him the source of his energy and positivity.

“I was always very happy, very happy,” says Valdés. “But of course, I have been achieving results . . . with my work. I feel very happy making music and that is reflected in the smile, in the attitude, in the very positive part, in the desire to continue investigating and doing things,” he explains.

As long as artists like Valdés, d’Rivera and Sandoval keep breaking new ground with virtuosity and passion, discerning jazz audiences will continue to listen. And if the earth shakes a little bit, well—follow Chucho’s lead and just shake with it.

WHAT: Jazz Roots presents Chucho Valdés: Irakere 50 with special guests Paquito d’Rivera, Arturo Sandoval, Luis Enrique and Francisco Céspedes

 WHEN:  8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 9, 2024

 WHERE:  Knight Concert Hall at the Adrienne Arsht Center, 1300 Biscayne Blvd, Miami

 COST: $45-$125. (At this time, tickets for this show are sold out).

 UP NEXT: The Jazz Roots series continues with “Artistry & Soul: An Evening with Singer-Songwriter Gregory Porter” on Friday, Feb. 23.

 INFORMATION: 305-949-6722 and arshtcenter.org

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com. 

Heritage Fest Kicks Off Black History Arts Events in Miami Dade County

Above, the 2020 edition of the Adrienne Arsht Center’s Heritage Fest. This year, the fest is on Sunday, Feb. 4, with a free day of activities and a ticketed evening concert. (Photo courtesy of Amanda Smith Photography)

This year, Miami-Dade County will mark Black History Month with an array of events. Highlights include the Arsht Center’s 5th annual Heritage Fest, the Dranoff 2 Piano’s annual West African Beats concert series, and the Hampton House’s Greatest Weekend.

The Arsht Center will kick off Black History Month with its 5th annual Heritage Fest on Sunday, Feb. 4. 

Lakeisha Frith, director of education at the Arsht Center, explains that Heritage Fest in South Florida was initiated by a team of Arsht Center staff members with the goal of honoring Black heritage and uplifting Black voices within the community.

 “That idea turned into what is now, an annual tradition of art, music, food, and cultural celebrations every February,” says Frith, noting that the festival initially began on a small scale but has steadily grown and expanded over the past four years.

 This season, she continues, it is anticipated to host nearly 30 Black-owned business vendors. The event will also feature live music from DJ Cardi, performances by the Miami street dance crew Live in Color, workshops, a reading nook provided by Books & Books, and showcases by the Miami Carol City Middle and Senior High School Marching Band. Additionally, there’s music from Chadwick and Britanny Watkins, the husband-and-wife duo known as “The W’s,” who perform a mix of soul, rock, R&B, dance and pop. Also on the bill is jazz saxophonist, flutist and vocalist, Johnny James Dr J.

“With all the noise and chaos in the world, our passion is connecting with people, through song and conversation, and finding ways to tell stories that entertain, suspend reality, giving them an escape through music and entertainment,” says Chadwick Watkins, explaining that the duo met performing in a band.  “(The band) only played together for a very short period. Fast forward thousands of shows together, 9 years of marriage and living through the experiences of some of the songs we sing whether they are covers or our originals,” says Watkins. 

He says that the upcoming show holds personal significance for him. It marks his return to performing after experiencing a health scare in 2022 after a cardiac arrest. “After 20 months of recovery, I am joining my wife and the team again. Feels good. Thankful to my Creator. We have something to celebrate.”

The festival is expanding across the Arsht Center’s campus this year, covering both indoor and outdoor spaces, including its Thompson Plaza, as shared by Frith. With Heritage Fest offering diverse cultural experiences such as hip-hop, musical theater, dance, painting, and yoga workshops, the Arsht Center’s Director of Education emphasizes the importance of storytelling and amplifying Black voices as part of the Arsht Center’s mission. The festival concludes with a concert featuring Talib Kweli and DJ LS One at the Arsht’s Knight Concert Hall at 7:30 p.m

From Miami to Miami Beach, the Black History Month celebrations continue with the Dranoff 2 Piano’s annual West African Beats concert series.

Returning to the Miami Beach Bandshell on Sunday, Feb. 11, the event has been a significant part of Miami Dade Public Schools’ programming for 20 years, according to Carlene Sawyer, the executive director of Dranoff 2 Piano.

She explains that the “West African Beats” series was launched in 2021 as part of the AWARE grant program and aims to promote diversity in the performing arts.

“Working with performance artists of different heritages brought more and more artists and composers to Dranoff programming in 2021. The Funding Arts Network put out an anniversary grant program called AWARE: Artist Working Reimagine Equity. West African Beats was proposed as a successful project,” says Sawyer, one of the creators of the project with Artistic Director Martin Bejerano.

Sawyer says that West African Beats not only showcases performances by top artists but also educates audiences about the music, songs, and rhythms that were brought to the Americas aboard slave ships. She emphasizes the importance of understanding the history and culture of different diasporas, particularly highlighting the Haitian population in Miami and its contributions to the city’s cultural landscape.

This year, West African Beats features Haitian American trumpeter Jean Caze.

Caze says his joy is in being able to fully express himself through his compositions, incorporating rhythms from Haiti into his work. “I fuse them with my love for all genres, especially jazz. Being Haitian-American, I find it truly liberating to fully express myself this way.”

The trumpeter also reflects on his experiences performing alongside artists like Herbie Hancock, Aretha Franklin, and Michael Bublé. “Sharing the stage with Aretha Franklin influenced my approach because (she) had a way of centering herself . . .owning her space. Herbie Hancock is a master of being in the moment and accepting what is happening all around him. And Michael Bublé is a professional. Always brings his very best effort while making it look effortless.”

For the upcoming performance, Caze will be accompanied by Latin Grammy-nominee Martin Bejerano and the West African Percussion Jazz Ensemble.

The celebration of Black History Month extends from South Beach to Brownsville, culminating in the Greatest Weekend at Historic Hampton House taking place from Friday, Feb. 23, to Sunday, Feb. 25. The final day of the event commemorates Muhammad Ali’s victory over Sonny Liston on Feb. 25, 1964, in Miami Beach. Ali’s win solidified his status as the world heavyweight boxing champion.

Historic Hampton House is gearing up to celebrate the legacy of the athlete, nicknamed “The Greatest.”  Jacqui Colyer, the executive director and former board chair of Historic Hampton House, explains that the event was initiated in 2020 to honor and commemorate the fighter, an iconic figure who frequented the Hampton House alongside luminaries like Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, and jazz singers and musicians such as Sammy Davis Jr., Nancy Sue Wilson, Delores LaVern Baker, and Julian Edwin “Cannonball” Adderley.

This year’s Greatest Weekend will feature a concert by jazzman Bill Bandfield, a soul brunch, a food and wine festival, and a play titled “The Last Sun of the Hampton House” by South Florida author, director and actor Keith C. Wade.

Reflecting on Ali’s presence at the Hampton House, Colyer recalls, “Cassius Clay was one of the people who lived and stayed here. He used to stand in the lobby, greeting people.” During the inaugural year of the Greatest Weekend, Colyer explains that an actual boxing ring was set up at the Hampton House, where simulated boxing matches took place with real boxers and referees.

(Above: ArtSpeak Introduction to the Hampton House)

Visitors to the Historic Hampton House will see iconic photographs capturing moments like Malcolm X photographing Muhammad Ali, taken by Bob Gomel. Additionally, they can visit the room where Ali once stayed, where memorabilia such as replica boxing gloves and a boxing ring bell are on display. The museum and cultural center’s walls are adorned with portraits of Black icons, including James Brown, Harry Belafonte, Aretha Franklin, Marvin Gaye, Ella Fitzgerald, and Stevie Wonder.

Colyer declares this will be the last year dedicated to celebrating Ali. “Every year, it’s really about Cassius Clay, what he did and how he became really ‘The Greatest.’ In the future, we’re looking to do more greats like the greatest football players, the greatest runners or the greatest tennis players like Serena Williams.”

WHAT: Arsht Center’s 5th annual Heritage Fest, Dranoff 2 Piano’s West African Beats concert series,  and  Historic Hampton House’s Greatest Weekend.

WHERE: Heritage Fest at the Thomson Plaza for the Arts and Talib Kweli and DJ LS at the Arsht’s Knight Concert Hall, 1300 Biscayne Blvd, Miami; Dranoff 2 Piano’s West African Beats, North Beach Bandshell, 7275 Collins Ave., Miami Beach, and The Greatest Weekend at the Historic Hampton House, 4240 NW 27th Ave, Miami. 

WHEN: Heritage Fest, 3 to 7 p.m.,  Talib Kweli, 7:30 p.m., Sunday, Feb. 4, West African Beats, doors open at 4 p.m., show at 5 pm., Sunday, Feb 11;  The Greatest Weekend: Historic Hampton House: 7 p.m., Friday through Sunday, Feb. 23 to 25.

COST: Heritage Fest and The Greatest Weekend, both free admission. Talib Kweli concert, $30, $50, $65, West African Beats, from $30.90 to $200.85.

INFORMATION: 305-949-6722 and arshtcenter.org; 305-572-9900 and dranoff2piano. org; 305-638-5800 and eventbrite.com.

ArtburstMiami.com is a nonprofit media source for the arts featuring fresh and original stories by writers dedicated to theater, dance, visual arts, film, music and more. Don’t miss a story at www.artburstmiami.com