Otilio Galíndez

Last Saturday I went to a concert by the great venezuelan composer and performer Otilio Galíndez. He is in his seventies and is responsible for a large sample of the repertoire of venezuelan folk music. Many of the best known songs are his compositions. Otilio doesn't consider himself a real performer but people love to see him on stage. He is a living historical figure!
At the concert I was able to get past security and even get up on stage to take these photos.

Musical evenings...

I went to see my friend Jorge Glem's trio on Friday and after the concert we went to a friend's house to meet other musicians (bassists Rodner Padilla and David Carpio, clarinetist Cheché Requena) and composer and mandolinist Mao Fermín who lives in Madrid was there too. I've been meaning to transcribe several of his compositions that I've heard on CD so it was great to meet him and tell him about the book of transcriptions I'm working on. He was enthusiastic about the idea and promised to email me some of his compositions to add to the book. This saves me some transcription time!
On both evenings dawn came as we were wrapping up a long night of good music and some very interesting conversations.

In Paris and Vienna, July 2005

I just found these photos of some performances I did a couple of years ago at the Vienna Jazz Festival with singer and cuatro player Marta Topferova. We also played in Paris at the New Morning jazz club.
:-)

Cumaná, June '07

After our concert with Cecilia Todd in Cumaná (in June) we shared some wonderful moments with the great joropo singer María Rodriguez. After the concert Chuito and I went to a friend's house where two great cuatro players were going to play. Alfonzo Moreno and Jorge Glem, both from Cumaná. Toward the end, Jorge played a 10 minute solo that left me speechless. One of the most impressive musical moments I have ever witnessed. Here are some photos of that day.

Trip to Cumaná postponed...

With all the trouble the government has made for itself by closing the largest and oldest TV station here in Venezuela we have had to postpone the trip to Cumaná that I wrote about previously. We also can't get in touch with Morocho Fuentes to verify that he was still expecting us, so I'm stuck in Caracas this weekend. Not all bad though, because I just got a couple of calls to play bass and I need to get my bass chops back in shape and figure out the new music. Three concerts with the singer Cecilia Todd and a concert with my friend Alfredo Naranjo. Right after that I go back to NY for several months to teach. Funny though, one of Cecilia's concerts is in Cumaná!

transcriptions

I've been working on some new transcriptions for the book and I've found several books that have given me ideas of tunes to include. I've also met some musicians that have new music that is appropriate. Pianist Gonzalo Grau added a merengue of his that I like a lot, and Alfonzo Moreno has a waltz, and even Nene Quintero has a tune he wants to show me.
I just finished creating a database in Filemaker to organize all the transcriptions. This is very helpful to see what I already have and what I still need to work on.
The response to this idea of putting all these tunes in one book has been overwhelmingly positive and it gives me the motivation to continue.

Musicians from Cumaná

A couple of days ago I met Remigio "Morocho" Fuentes and Alfonzo Moreno from Cumaná. Morocho is a phenomenal mandolin player and alfonzo a superb cuatro player. They live in Sucre state and they reflect the musical styles of their region. I had the chance to hear them play at an intimate gathering at a friend's house, accompanied by David Peña on bass. Morocho specializes in what we call eastern style joropos. These often mix both rhythmic styles of joropo, the 3/4 and the 6/8, changing seamlessly between them. He is a very talented composer too. I recorded a song of his entitled "El Cumanés" on Beatriz López' CD, but at the time no one knew who the composer was so we labeled it anonymous. Since Morocho lives way out in the "country" as it were, communication is difficult and establishing authorship is often a matter of hearsay. On the next edition of Beatriz' CD I will make sure to correct that mistake. Morocho is an expert and fluid improvisor and seems to have an endless array of melodies in his mind. He gave me his new CD on which he plays 12 of his own compositions. I'll be working on writing these out soon.
Alfonzo Moreno is the current reference when it comes to the eastern style of cuatro playing. This style is reflected in the right hand movements and rhythms as he strums the strings. This is something I cannot describe with words. You must see him do it to understand. It is so rhythmically sophisticated and loose that it is quite impossible to grasp without many years of observation and study. He tells me he started to play the cuatro as a child and he only figured it out in his late twenties.
Morocho has made an invitation to visit him early in June for a celebration that the town now has electricity! Imagine how remote it is and how unpolluted by modernity. He promised that many of the great eastern musicians will be there including the legendary María Rodriguez. I've already made travel plans and packed my portable recorder, camera, and my sax.
:-)

La Siembra del Cuatro

La Siembra del Cuatro is a competition for cuatro players here in Venezuela
and it literally means "The Sowing of the Cuatro". Like planting the seads for future harvests. And that's exactly the result of Cheo Hurtado's project. Cheo is the greatest and certainly most influential cuatro player ever. He organized this competition to stimulate his students and bring musicians together who otherwise would not know each other. There have been cuatro players from all over Venezuela and even Colombia. There is a lot of respect and good vibes between all of them and the ground is very fertile for cross pollenization of styles and techniques. I attended the showcase concert for the cuatro players involved in the previous competitions and was amazed at the level of playing. It was so good that I followed them to Valencia (3 hours away from Caracas) for the evening concert.
Congratulations to Cheo (and the other members of Ensamble Gurrufío who generously accompanied the cuatro players) for a fantastic idea! It is exactly what we need in Venezuela right now to promote the local culture and give support to the upcoming talent.

Still...

I had imagined that by April I would be moving along with the transcriptions and rehearsals of my music. But no... My mom stayed for two months in the USA and I've been busy taking care of my dad and making improvements on the house. Last week I contacted a couple of people who have information I can use for the book, and pretty soon I will start to get together with some friends to try out the new music.
:-)

update...

So, I've been here in Caracas for almost two weeks now and I'm having a hard time trying to figure out where to begin with all the things I want to do! I sent my mom on vacation for a month and a half so I'm taking care of my dad on my own. In other words I can't get out much. But slowly I'm going to try to get started with the transcriptions and get a practice schedule happening.
I've gone to a couple of nice concerts recently. I heard C4 trio and today Alberto José Requena had a concert promoting his new CD. It's so nice to be able to go out and hear the interesting things people are doing with venezuelan music and meet new musicians. I need to get a band of my own! I have enough original music for two cds and I can't wait to try it out!

Finally!

After a year and a half, I'm finally in Caracas! I'll probably spend the next week trying to organize all the stuff I have sent here and create a work schedule. It's going to be so different to not have a regular job.
I see that in NYC the temperature is 10 degrees. Here it's 70F. What a relief!
:-)

one week left in NY...

In a week I finally leave to Caracas. I've been super busy trying to arrange all the stuff I have to take and fixing up the NY apartment. It seems like everything is going to work out fine. I just need a couple more friends to visit NY to help me take stuff to Vzla!
My good friend David Peña (bassist for Ensamble Gurrufio) is here visiting and we've been out listening to good music and enjoying long overdue conversations. We're planning some good music projects for when we get back to Caracas!
;-)

Messenger Bass!!

I'm getting my new Messenger bass just before I leave! If you play bass and haven't seen these, you need to check them out: www.messengerbass.com The builder is my friend John Knutson who lives in California. He's an amazing craftsman and has designed the best electric upright bass out there. The perfection in construction detail only matches the outstanding upright bass tone! It feels just like an upright and when amplified sounds just like one too! I've recommended these basses to 5 of my professional bass playing friends in Venezuela and they are extremely happy with their basses. These guys just happen to be the top bass players in Venezuela too, so they're no neophytes. I'd be glad to show mine to anyone in the NY area that is interested. Since John doesn't advertise and has no "show" instruments, this is the only way to play one.
Check it out and if you buy, tell him Mark Brown sent you. I like him to know how much I appreciate his phenomenal work.

two weeks...

My plane ticket is for February 18th. I've already arranged my leave at the school where I've been teaching, and I have someone to take care of my apartment in NY. Now I just need to figure out what to do with all my stuff when I leave.
I'm really looking forward to making progress on my transcriptions when I get to Caracas. I'm going to be busy contacting composers and other musicians who might be able to help or give me ideas. I really need to get a group and start playing too! I've waited way too long and it's eating at me. I have several dozen compositions that I want to try out when I find the right people to play them with. My friends have been great in helping me get my instruments (and other stuff) to Venezuela. Guys like Roberto Koch, Jose Perez, Henry Linarez, Julio Andrade, Pedro Quintero, and David Peña have all helped in carrying some heavy luggage for me! Much appreciated!
:-)