Ralph A. Miriello, Contributor
Freelance Jazz Journalist
01/04/2018 04:28 pm ET
There is something very stirring about a big band playing Afro-Cuban jazz. The music has a rhythmic core that is the armature upon which the horn and reed arrangements just swirl. Cuban born drummer Dafnis Prieto has been on his own personal musical adventure, utilizing his formidable rhythmic skills to create a unique vision for his Afro-Cuban inspired jazz. Since arriving from Cuba back in 1999, Prieto has brought an energy and flare to the music that is all his own.
In 2011 his gift for being able to incorporate multi-rhythmic variations into his music was recognized by his receipt of the prestigious MacArthur ‘genius” grant. The drummer has taken his music a step further, writing and arranging a suite of big band charts that both pays homage to those who have inspired him while also blazing a trail forward into explosive new ground. The sound he creates is both imaginative and a primer of what we can expect further from this percussive hurricane.
Set to be released the first week of April ,Back to the Sunset is the culmination of his most recent energies. It features a suite of nine compositions played by the Dafnis Prieto Big Band and featuring some special guest soloists. Anchored and directed by a distinctly Latin rhythm section, the band includes Prieto on drums, fellow Cuban pianist extraordinaire Manuel Valera, the Puerto Rican bassist Rickey Rodríguez and the Venezuelan percussionist Robert Quintero on congas and percussion.
There is an all American trombone section of Tim Albright, Alan Ferber, Jacob Garchik and Jeff Nelson; a trumpet section of Americans Michael Rodríguez, Nathan Eklund and Josh Deutsch and Russian born Alex Sipiagin and a reed section containing fellow Cuban Román Filíu, and Americans Michael Thomas, Peter Apfelbaum, Joel Frahm and Chris Cheek. This is one talented group and under Prieto’s direction and drive they make magic.
read more at: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/cuban-drumming-phenom-dafnis-prieto-scores-big-band_us_5a4e99a9e4b0f9b24bf315b7
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