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When it comes to creative liaisons, Paquito D’Rivera has few peers in the breadth and range of his musical interests, collaborations, and restless curiosity. But even by his stylistically expansive track record, D’Rivera’s new album “Panamericana Suite” is an extraordinary musical journey for one of jazz’s most acclaimed and popular artists.
Paquito D'Rivera - Panamericana Suite
Paquito D’Rivera -][- Panamericana Suite – [MCG Jazz, 2010]
Few jazz artists have been as musically omnivorous—and dazzingly accomplished—as the Cuban-born alto saxophone and clarinet virtuoso Paquito D’Rivera. Equally at home performing bebop, tango, and classical as well as Afro-Cuban styles, D’Rivera displays his mastery of many genres on his new CD, “Panamericana Suite,” which will be released by the MCG Jazz label on November 2.
Recorded live at Pittsburgh’s Manchester Craftsmen’s Guild for MCG Jazz in April 2008, “Panamericana Suite” takes its name from a piece commissioned by Jazz at Lincoln Center that D’Rivera premiered in 2000. A stunning cultural synthesis encompassing North, Central, and South America leavened with a Caribbean rhythmic sensibility, the project reflects D’Rivera’s embracing musical vision.
“I am an eclectic person,” D’Rivera says. “I grew up the son of a classical saxophone player who loved jazz. He loved to put on Heifetz and Mario Lanza, and then listen to Benny Goodman and the Duke Ellington Orchestra. Growing up in Havana, Latin American music was in the air.” Continue reading
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