Long known as a hybrid music of
the Caribbean, the Bomba and Plena are rhythms that developed
in the island of Puerto Rico. And like most rhythms of the Caribbean,
Bomba and Plena are representative of the African Diaspora--indicative
of the black religion experience of that region. Maintaining
a percussive source, the Bomba and Plena stride in a medium to
fast tempo--each with unique character accentuated by the call
and response of voice and singular dance movements--making them
an integral part of the rich and long standing traditions and
culture of Puerto Rico.
What may be considered rare these days--at least widespread
within the Americana culture--is a fusion of these specific rhythms
with Jazz. However, for those that have maintained a fine ear
to the development of Jazz especially in the last five years,
these rhythms have emerged within the Jazz spectrum in the capable
hands of Nuyorican bandleader/trombonist and composer William
Cepeda, who has affectionately named it "Afrorican Jazz",
and percussionist Ralph Irrizary and his band Timbalaye. It is
also important to mention that one of the first documented examples
of experimentation in the fusion of progressive Jazz elements
with Bomba and Plena was successfully accomplished by Rafael
Cortijo in the mid 70's with his release entitled "Time
Machine."
Also joining the ranks of these formidable musicians is musician
bassist Leslie Lopez and his new CD release titled "Bomba
Moderna." The interesting thing about Lopez who was born
in Puerto Rico is that he makes his home in Holland. In his CD,
Leslie explains his concept of "Bomba Moderna" as a
blueprint that encompasses a variety of rhythm structures. "Bomba
Moderna is about bringing together the arranging concepts of
different styles of music such as funk, soul, Jazz, Brazilian,
rhythm, blues and pop music, and mixing in new rhythmic patterns
based on Bomba, Pambiche, Guaguanco and other Afro-Caribbean
rhythms and musical traditions", explains Leslie Lopez.
"Bomba Moderna is highly influenced by salsa formulas but
its creative force is constantly looking for new forms of musical
expressions."
Joining forces with Lopez is a group of fine musicians--including:
Ramon Valle on piano, Liber Torriente on drums and timbales,
percussionists Nils Fisher and Gerardo Rosales, lead vocals and
chorus by Beatriz Aguilar, Miguel Montenegro and Mirian Jurado,
also Win Both, Joe Rivera and David Rockkefeller on trumpets,
the saxes include Benjamin Hernan and Gerritjan Binkhorst, and
rounding out the crew is trombonist David Rothschild.
From the first note of the title track "Bomba Moderna",
the band cooks with an infectious rhythm that seem to call to
dancing feet. Sometimes on acoustic or electric, Lopez produces
a deep tone on his bass. His style is stead, calm and pleasant
to the ear. But wait, Lopez is also a composer and able arranger
as evident in most of the tracks. The band maintains a refreshing
groove with ensemble horn parts, vocals and much improvisation.
The last three track present the traditional side of Bomba and
Plena with "Pa' Tumbar La Caña/Caramelero Santo",
"El Bombon De Elena/Te Quiero Ver" and "Alegria
Bomba E'/Ton Ton Canelo."
No doubt, Leslie is a high caliber musician. His CD might
be considered too commercial within some Latin Jazz circle. However,
Lopez and crew manage to add enough improvisation and variety
to make this musical work interesting to a wider audience.
To purchase a copy of Leslie Lopez and his "Bomba Moderan"
inquire at: les.lopez@worldonline.nl
review by John Davis
JDavis@latnjazzclub.com
Contributing writer
LatinJazzClub Magazine
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