Chuchito Valdés is doing 9 shows in Trio at the Jazz Showcase in Chicago between Thursday, March 20 and Sunday, March 23.  Musically, Chuchito just keeps getting better as he ages. For complete schedule and tickets, click here. 

Fresh from some concerts in Miami that are getting raves, Yissy Garcia now moves on to New Orleans. On Saturday afternoon, March 21, she will be performing at the Congo Square New World Rhythms festival, and WWOZ will play a recording of her music on Sunday, March 22.  The WWOZ website, which contains the Congo Square lineup as well, is here.  Then, at 8pm the same day (March 22), she will perform at the Snug Harbor Jazz Bistro.  Catch her group, Bandancha, live if you can - it's a live representative of the new wave of Cuban music that I keep shouting about.  If you can't see it live, catch the WWOZ broadcast.   

Finally, in a recent blog entry about Latin on Lex in New York, I mentioned that one of the artistic directors was Brian Lynch.  He is performing with Phil Woods and We Six at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music Jazz Festival in Milwaukee on Friday, March 20.  As best as I can determine, this will be straight-ahead Jazz but very much worth checking out.  This is part of a larger festival that runs from March 19-21.For complete details, click here. 

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ENGLISH: In Havana, Grupo Moncada (their leader, Jorgé Gómez, was in the first few minutes of the Conan O'Brien special about Cuba), frequently gives concerts at the Jardines del 1830, which has become known as a destination for Casino dancers in that city.   
An interesting piece of the story is that Conan's encounter with Moncada also drew the attention of Rolling Stone, not normally known for showing a deep interest in our part of the musical spectrum. You can check out the Rolling Stone item here.   I doubt that this wlll turn all of  its readers into Casineros overnight, but there is no doubt that it  does help the cause...
Finally, to add a Cuban perspective, you can read a communique from the Press Office of the National Center For Popular Music in Cuba here. 

ESPAÑOL:  En La Habana, Grupo Moncada (su líder, Jorge Gómez, aparece en los primeros minutos del episodio especial  de Conan O'Brien sobre Cuba), da conciertos  con frecuencia en los Jardines del 1830, un lugar que se ha conocido como un destino para los bailarines de Casino en esa ciudad. 
Una parte interesante del cuento es que el encuentro de Conan con Moncada también señaló a la atención de la revista Rolling Stone, normalmente no conocida por mostrar un interés profundo en nuestra parte del espectro musical. Puede ver el item de Rolling Stone (en inglés) aquí. Dudo que este articulo transforme a todos sus lectores en casineros de repente, pero no hay duda que es ayuda a la causa ...
Por último, para añadir una perspectiva cubana, puede leer un comunicado de la Oficina de Prensa del Centro Nacional de Música Popular en Cuba aquí.

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SO, if I were in New York, I would be spending the next three nights at 92Y in New York. The poster above shows the tip of the iceberg - Eddie Palmieri takes the first night with the Afro-Caribbean Jazz Octet; the second night is themed New Cuban New York with Yosvany Terry, Gregory Tardy, Manuel Valera, Pedrito Martínez, Hans Glawischnig and Obed Calvaire; the third night, Bolero Meets Jazz, features an all-star 11-piece ensemble (including Xiomara Laugart on vocals and Phil Woods on alto sax)  and a pre-concert talk with Brian Lynch, the Artistic Director of the Festival. Unless there's a power outage, the storm of the decade or an asteroid strike, this should be epic. For complete details and tickets, visit the 92Y event page here. 

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I.  Global Cuba Fest Continues

Yissy García swings into Miami with her new project Bandancha for part 2 of Global Cuba Fest. She'll be at The Light Box at Goldman Warehouse (404 NW 26th St., Miami on Friday, March 13 and Saturday, March 14.  Yissy is part of a new wave of Jazz/Fusion groups in Cuba, and this is a don't- miss if you're able to attend. For more information, visit the Fundarte event page. 

II.  Jorge Luis Pacheco and Aldo López-Gavilán at the Kennedy Center


For those of us who missed Part I of Global Cuba Fest, we can watch two of the pianists playing at the Kennedy Center's  Millennium Stage the next day thanks to their video archive.  To watch the 2-hour concert of Jorge Luis Pacheco and Aldo López-Gavilán, click here. 

III. New Omar Sosa Album

Omar Sosa has released an interesting new album, ilé, that was recently featured on NPR's First Listen.  You can read Bill Tilford's review here, and Omar's team has also published a very nice EPK preview, which you can view below....

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