{"id":9519,"date":"2022-02-07T00:00:36","date_gmt":"2022-02-07T05:00:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/magazineampm.com\/?p=9519"},"modified":"2022-03-22T19:33:46","modified_gmt":"2022-03-22T23:33:46","slug":"dando-la-nota-gregoriando-i-ii","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/magazineampm.com\/en\/dando-la-nota-gregoriando-i-ii\/","title":{"rendered":"Gregory I &amp; II"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For two decades, Jos\u00e9 Miguel Crego&#039;s group, El Greco for the musicians and the public, remains one of the strongest pillars of Cuban jazz and its presence is almost essential at the Jazz Plaza festivals in Havana, the Jazz Caf\u00e9 , La Zorra y el Cuervo or the radio and television musical spaces. If we ask ourselves in what lies the ubiquity and popularity of El Greco, apart from his consistent virtuosity, there are plenty of reasons: good taste, tenacity, perfectionism, innovative spirit, professionalism.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">First line trumpeter, El Greco became known among the jazz audience when he joined the second version of Irakere <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2014<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">who recorded the important LP <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Tierra en trance<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2014<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> where he joined that formidable metal trio with Jorge Varona and Juan Murguia. Later he participated briefly, with other former members of Irakere such as Germ\u00e1n Velazco, Carios Averhoff and Jos\u00e9 Luis Cort\u00e9s, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the coarse<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, in the first edition of NG La Banda, which started the boom of Cuban timba or salsa. But El Greco&#039;s jazz concerns went elsewhere, and we soon heard him at the Jazz Plaza festivals leading his own Top Secret group. Thus began a new stage as a leader.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Recorded at the Halifax Jazz Festival, Canada, this double CD reproduces the live performances of El Greco, with a septet made up of four other Cuban and two Canadian musicians. It is noteworthy here that Jos\u00e9 Miguel Crego expresses a preference for the flugelhorn (fluegelhorn) and the muted trumpet, instruments with which he obtains new sonorities. But, in addition, his dedication to composing and arranging a good part of his repertoire is evident, nuanced with jazz classics, jazz rock, pop, samba or bossa nova. Examples of this are: <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Solar<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> by Miles Davis, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mr PC<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> by John Coltrane, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">night and day<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> by Cole Porter, and <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The girl from Ipanema<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> by Antonio Carlos Jobim. Other numbers performed in Halifax are by El Greco.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"video-container\"><iframe title=\"Spotify Embed: Gregoriando (Volume I)\" style=\"border-radius: 12px\" width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/album\/3LbLYDnCl2FhV2RzBRCXvo?si=lA5k2ciCR_u1ZJdpKRRlMw&#038;utm_source=oembed\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sometimes El Greco makes us evoke the Miles Davis of the period 1957-1967 with his introspective and fresh (and sometimes explosive) style, either in the one with the flugelhorn or in <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">lover song<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (bossa) or on the trumpet with mute on <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Solar<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, precisely from Miles himself. and in the ballad <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Song for Maggie<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> we associate him rather with Chet Baker, the most lyrical of jazz trumpeters. Whereas in <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Joy<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> with jazz rock passages and the \u201copen\u201d trumpet (without mute), we recall the vibrant and fierce style of the Irakere times. A musician who uses his impeccable technique based on expressiveness, El Greco also does not resist a practice that American jazz critics never quite understand and that is a tradition among Cubans: that of quoting or &quot;interpolating&quot; fragments of other numbers, with skill and ease. Here El Greco cites pieces of popular classics such as <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Fascinatin&#039; Rhythm<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Laura<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Tequila<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Taste of me<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">hey jude<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Straight<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">not chaser<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">out of tune<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">plains soul<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">cute little sky<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">take the train <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">and others, with considerable precision.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The ensemble work of the septet surprises us with its richness and perfection, sometimes using unison between flugelhorn tenor sax-guitar, or the three harmonized voices, and often counterpoint. Without losing its stylistic unity, each number receives a different treatment, and each new audition brings us surprises and subtleties that we had not noticed. A good example is the whole part where you go from bossa nova rhythm and tempo to a ballad and then to the original <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">soft little thing<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, perfect combination of mambo and <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">latin<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> jazz. follows him <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">night and day<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, with the classic bass of <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">swing<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to four beats (<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">walking bass<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">), to close with the move <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Samba Faldvel<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"video-container\"><iframe title=\"Spotify Embed: Gregoriando (Volume II)\" style=\"border-radius: 12px\" width=\"100%\" height=\"352\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen allow=\"autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; fullscreen; picture-in-picture\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/embed\/album\/6w1wpzFVGhZOReg9wdSQTk?si=ouXD5OqHSKqPBwPCyU1-Rg&#038;utm_source=oembed\"><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the second part, with <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Solar<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Joy<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mr PC<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Y <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The girl from Ipanema<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, the changes of rhythm and tempo become more elaborate, as well as the counterpoints between the soloists and the constant <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">interplay<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> or interaction between soloists and rhythmic accompaniment. Let us highlight the work of Jeff Good Speed, who shared the musical direction with El Greco, brilliant in the post-Coltrane style and sound tenor sax, his execution of the soprano sax and the flute practically triples the orchestral and timbre possibilities of the group. No less impressive is the participation of Jorge Vald\u00e9s Chicoy, one of the most phenomenal Cuban jazz guitarists (a veteran of the Felipe Dulzaides, Arturo Sandoval and Hilario Dur\u00e1n groups).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another soloist of surprising virtuosity is the pianist Bernardo Antonio (Tony) Rodr\u00edguez, who in more than one aspect reminds us of Emiliano Salvador, today a Latin jazz legend. No less effective is bassist Ra\u00fal Tob\u00edas Gil (Aby), both in his solos and in the rhythm section completed by Canadian drummer Tom Roch and percussionist Eugenio Arango; together, they drive the group with incredible cohesion, which fosters immediate communication with the public. With complex structures and harmonies, varied rhythms, virtuosity and, above all, original expressive ideas, this septet brought together by El Greco ensures that the two CDs are fully enjoyed from beginning to end and not only by initiates, but by the most diverse audiences and likes. more with each new audition. We would say, suggesting the definition of the pianist and composer Horace Silver, that this is achieved by bringing together the essential elements of all good jazz, energy, emotion and intellect. Which, added to relaxation and good taste, constitutes a combination that can never fail.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-note\"  style=\"border-color:#e5e54c;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><div class=\"su-note-inner su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" style=\"background-color:#FFFF66;border-color:#ffffff;color:#333333;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\">\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Trumpets and flugelhorns: Jos\u00e9 Miguel Crego <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">El Greco<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Piano: Bernardo Antonio Rodr\u00edguez M\u00e9ndez<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Guitar: Jorge Luis Valdes Chicoy<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bass: Raul Tobias Gil <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">abby<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Soprano, tenor and flute sax: Jeff Good Speed (Canada)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Drum: Tom Roach (Canada)<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Percussion: Eugenio Arango<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Musical production: Jos\u00e9 Miguel Crego <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">El Greco<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \/ Eduardo Ramos\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Musical Direction: Jos\u00e9 Miguel Crego <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">El Greco<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \/ Jeff GoodSpeed<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Recording: Engineer Don Chapman, Halifax<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mixing and mastering: Enrique Gonz\u00e1lez, Don Chapman, Halifax<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Graphic design: albertomedinape\u00f1a<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Photos: Eros Quinta<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All topics: Jos\u00e9 Miguel Crego El Greco&#039;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lectern Musical Editions \/ Abdala Productions<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Recorded by the CD Productions company in Halifax on July 11 and 12 as part of the Halifax Jazz Festival 2001.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Mixing and mastering at Estudios Abdala. City of Havana, Cuba, in 2003.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The instruments used by Jos\u00e9 Miguel Crego <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">El Greco<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> They are Jean Baptiste and Lebland.<\/span><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A first-class trumpeter, El Greco became known among the jazz audience when he joined the second version of Irakere, where he joined that formidable brass trio together with Jorge Varona and Juan Murguia. Today we remember this important Cuban musician, who passed away at the end of last year with these notes from the great Leonardo Acosta. <\/p>","protected":false},"author":1462,"featured_media":9520,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1039,8906],"tags":[8777,8779,8780,8778],"coauthors":[6488],"class_list":["post-9519","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dando-la-nota","category-variaciones","tag-el-greco","tag-gregoriando","tag-jazz-cubano","tag-jose-miguel-crego"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/magazineampm.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/El-Greco-_-portada.jpg?fit=1520%2C695&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazineampm.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9519","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazineampm.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazineampm.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazineampm.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1462"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazineampm.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9519"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/magazineampm.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9519\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10488,"href":"https:\/\/magazineampm.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9519\/revisions\/10488"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazineampm.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9520"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/magazineampm.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9519"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazineampm.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9519"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazineampm.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9519"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/magazineampm.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=9519"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}