Laura Fernandez – Un Solo Beso (Self Published – 2011)

There is a certain fire that burns with a quietude that, although atypical of the Latin soul, still contains much of the passion that is contained in it. In fact the passion is so contained that the fire actually soars with its very chill. The music of Laura Fernandez “burns” with this cold fire. Much of Miles Davis’ music was “hot” in that sense (that) it burned with a similar quiet fire. Conventional wisdom dictates that Latin music is not meant to be cool but fiery and hot. Still, when music such as that written by an artist such as Fernandez is performed it is still brimful of passion, grace and a cool fire

Laura Fernandez shows, with her albumUn Solo Beso that she is a maturing artist with a fine sense of song form and the poetic image. Being equipped with this artistic intuition she is able to write with a remarkable sense of nuance. Writing about relationships; their growth, maturation and also their decline requires a keen grip of the fine sense of listening to and interpreting emotions as well as reacting to them. Fernandez does all of these things. She then produces songs reflect the narrative of live well lived and felt deeply as if from every pore of the body. Fernandez also imbues these songs with exquisite melody, harmony and a rhythm that beats so close to the human heart that her music is ultimately felt deep within the soul.

Fernandez is unlike most singers. She sings with well-rounded intonation and her pronunciation is impeccable. Moreover her phrasing, especially on tracks such as “A Mi Padre” and “Que Mas Quieres de Mi” is beautifully executed amid expression that is at times aching and bleeding and at other times soaring with joy. This is a sure sign of her individualism and artistry. The fact that she makes the words mean everything they are meant to be and inhabit the emotion of the moment is a sign of how much she lives the songs she writes and sings.

The other remarkable aspect of Fernandez’s music is their beauty of form. She seems to understand the fleeting nature of feelings, tends not to dwell on them too much—which often leads to draining too much out of the emotion. Instead she turns her songs into almost epigrammatic poetic expressions. She also has a gifted feel for melody and surprises with how little she repeats herself as most relatively new songwriters do. Much of her music sound inspired and fresh. The album Un Solo Beso is also richly produced with fine accompaniment from trumpeter Alexis Baró, alto saxophonist Luis Deniz, pianist, Hilario Durán and especially from the hugely talented musician, guitarist and vocalist, Luis Mario Ochoa. A record like this can only whet the appetite for more from an emerging artist such as Laura Fernandez.

Track Listing:

1. Mi Amor
2. Un Solo Beso
3. Junto a Ti
4. A Mi Padre
5. Que Mas Quieres de Mi
6. Inolvidable
7. I Believe in Love
8. Que Linda es La Noche
9. Red Red Bird
10. La Barca

Personnel:

Laura Fernandez: vocals, keyboards (7); Noah Zacharin: guitar (1, 4); Elmer Ferrer: guitar (1, 3, 4, 6, 7 – 9); Luis Mario Ochoa: guitar (1, 5, 10); Duncan Hopkins: bass (1, 5); Paco Luviano: bass (2, 6); Roberto Riverón (9); Yoser Rodríguez: bass (3, 4, 7, 8); Glenda Del Monte Escalante: keyboards (1, 4, 7); Hilario Durán: piano (1, 2, 5, 6, 10); Roberto Linares Brown: keyboards (1, 9); Paul DeLong: drums (1); Rosendo “Chendy” Leon Jr.: drums (5, 8), percussion (9); Frank Durand: drums (2, 6); Shamakah Ali: drums (7); Joaquín Hidalgo: percussion (1, 5, 6); Jalidan Ruiz: percussion (1, 5); Jorge Luis “Papiosco” Torres: percussion (3, 8); Alexis Baró: trumpet (1, 2, 6); Luis Deniz: alto saxophone (2, 6, 7); Jeff King: tenor saxophone (6); Juan Diego De Sedas: accordion (9); Alberto Alberto: vocals (3, 9); Kevin Stock: vocal (9); Verónica Mesa (3); Raquel Olmes: vocal (3); Roberto Linares Brown: programming (7); Billy Bryans: programming (7).

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Laura Fernandez on the web: www.laurafernandezmusic.com

Review written by: Raul da Gama

Hilario Durán Trio – Motion (Alma Records – 2010)

In his much-anticipated follow-up to the Grammy-nominated and Juno Award-winning Latin Big Band recording, From The Heart (Alma Records,2008) the piano master, Hilario Durán brings together a power trio comprising bassist, Roberto Occhipinti and drummer, Mark Kelso. In the process he has created Motion, a memorable, new canvas of sound, unveiled through a palette of vivid tonal colors throughout the album’s eight tracks. The record bustles and breathes with myriad rhythms that are so unique to Hilario Durán’s music. He is a unique pianist, quite without peer in the realm of tumbao, the melodic bass lines that burst out of Durán’s music. This killer tumbao, as it is often called, propels Durán’s piano playing throughout brilliantly crafted ensemble passages where his right hand promotes a gentle simpatico weaving melody into the musical souls of his bandmates, Occhipinti and Kelso. His harmonics are stunning and he enrobes the melodies with these rich tapestries of sound often, with surprising color, to make the songs pirouette like dancers. His solos are always inventive, turning melodies inside out and often coming at them with a sliding, angular attack replete with single notes and ferocious chord clusters, so that they are freshened every time he touches the song.

This memorable set begins with “It’s Only Seven,” a song featuring a complex rhythmic structure that sets the pulse racing with a 7/4 beat. Its melody is alluring and, with bassist Roberto Occhipinti and drummer Mark Kelso in fine form, the song proves to be a true kicker. Occhipinti is sensational as he navigates through the fine rhythms with some propulsive and yet nuanced melodic playing. “Conversation with a Lunatic,” a puckish song vividly suggests a jitterbug-like encounter. Here too, Durán creates whorls of sound with contrapuntal figures that turn this track into one that burns with a bright blue flame. Next, Hilario Durán probes a seemingly familiar melody with refreshing and vigorous new ideas: “Havana City,” is a track filled with a sense of languidness that captures the lilting swagger of the rhythms of that city. The song is long and meandering and meditative. The feeling of emotional longing is heightened by the short opening featuring delicate strings, fluttering percussion and aching vocals atop resonant batás by the incomparable Joaquín Hidalgo. Hilario Durán’s playing here is soft and luscious as it appears to caress an almost feminine persona of Havana. The timely accented splashes of Mark Kelso and Roberto Occhipinti’s remarkable bass playing provide a superb rhythmic backdrop that keeps the song swaying and sashaying throughout.

“For Emiliano,” is an emotional tribute to Durán’s compatriot, pianist, Emiliano Salvador. This burgeoning arrangement has a distinct underpinning of sadness. The elegiac mood has some very thoughtful expansive piano playing and compelling bass work by Occhipinti as they seem to recall the spirit of Emiliano Salvador in a gentle wake full of clave. Kelso enjoys an explosive break here, while Durán comps effortlessly and later takes the song home. The album continues to surprise with “Tango Moruno,” which—as the title suggests—is a proverbial doffing of the hat to a form of music that came from nearby Argentina. Jamey Haddad excels as he manipulates the rhythm with remarkable percussive colorations. “Danza Negra” is a deeper excavation of the African side of Hilario Durán’s music and even though nothing is sung there is a bright mélange of danzón and earthy tones of the conjuring up of Yoruba spirituality as it fades with a flourish.

“Motion” is what the entire new experience of Hilario Durán’s music is all about. The musical roars from out of the starting blocks. Durán drives a labyrinthine rhythm in yet another complex figure of swing and clave. In his sensational and abrupt changes in rhythm Durán displays a new maturity of musicianship. He cajoles Roberto Occhipinti and Mark Kelso to reach deep into themselves to emerge with uniquely expressive ideas. The set ends with “Timba en Trampa,” a new dancing song that puts the proverbial sting of this delightful new record in its tail. This track is based on an angular 6/8 figure. The chopped rhythm—highlighted and enhanced by some excellent conga work by Luis Orbegoso offsets Durán’s flying fingers across the ivory and ebony. Here Durán also shows a fond affection for Thelonious Monk with his creative and architectural compositional style and displays complete mastery over every aspect of the musical process adorning this sublime, unforgettable album.

Tracks: It’s Only Seven; Conversation with a Lunatic; Havana City; For Emiliano; Danza Negra; Timba en Trampa.

Personnel: Hilario Durán: piano; Roberto Occhipinti: bass; Mark Kelso: drums; Joaquín Hidalgo: batá drums and vocal (3); Luis Orbegoso: congas (8); Jamey Haddad: percussion (5); The Pandemonium Strings (3).

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Hilario Durán on the web: www.hilarioduran.com

Review written by: Raul da Gama