Yesterday (August 28) my good friend and colleague Jesús (Chuíto) Rengel offered a concert at La estancia in Caracas with his group "Carey" and invited me to play sax on several pieces including two of my favorites "El Cumanés" (Joropo oriental) and "El Melitón" (merengue). It was a great pleasure to participate and I got to meet a couple of outstanding musicians I wasn't acquainted with: Manuel Alejandro Rangel (maracas) and David Carpio (bass).
Manuel is a phenomenal maraca player in the style of the great innovator Juan Ernesto Laya who regularly plays in my band. He's also an accomplished classical guitarist, which might come in handy eventually when Laya can't make a gig. I've been wanting to add more guitar since David Peña accompanied us on guitar back in March. The guitar adds harmonic depth and helps with the groove. David Carpio is an exceptional bass player who has not only great technique on his instrument, but also a vast knowledge of traditional Venezuelan music. I'm looking forward to working with both of them in the future. The other musicians were Luis Pino on cuatro (who recorded on my CD along with the great Cheo Hurtado), Cheché Requena on Clarinet, and of course Chuíto on mandolin and bandola. When I wasn't playing I took some photos of the guys that can be seen on my website (marchingbear.com, then click the "galeria" button and find the date 8/28/2005).
It was lots of fun to play and I got to meet some really nice people after the concert that were very supportive of the ideas that I have been trying to develop with Venezuelan music. I sold a bunch of my CDs too! Concerts at La Estancia are always well attended and the audience is always respectful and enthusiastic. I have to play there again soon
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