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miércoles, 14 de mayo de 2025

Venezuelan-born violinist and composer Alí Bello embraces his beloved charanga jazz form with Ali Bello & The Charanga Syndicate

 


Ali Bello & The Charanga Syndicate


Musicians: Ali Bello (acoustic and baritone violins, bandleader); David Santiago Jr. (flute); Alec Castro, Cesar Orozco, Marcus Persianim Gabriel Chakargi (keyboards); Abraham Saenz (baby bass); Luis Mangual (congas); Manuel Marquez (timbales, percussion); Luis Rosas, Alejandro (vocal 1, 3); special guests: Arturo O'Farrill (keyboards 4); Eddy Zervigon (flute 1); Jeremy Bosch (lead vocal 1); Manolo Mairena (lead vocals 3,5); Silvano Monasterios (keyboards 2, 5, 8)

Tracks List: Guaripumpe; Son de la Loma; Gina's Groove; Emiliando; Tres (Y Dos); Amadeus' Rhumba; Bilongo; La Comparsa Influenciada; El Manisero

Alí Bello & The Charanga Syndicate is the tradition-forward, life-affirming new offering from Venezuelan-born violinist and composer Alí Bello, born of his passionate dedication to the traditional Cuban charanga ensemble style.

Joined by special guests in keyboardists Arturo O’Farrill and Silvano Monasterios, vocalists Jeremy Bosch and Manolo Mairena, flutist Eddy Zervigon, the Charanga Syndicate consists of Bello on acoustic and baritone violins, flutist David Santiago Jr.; keyboardists Alec CastroCésar OrozcoMarcus Persiani, and Gabriel Chakarji; baby bassist Abraham Sáenzconguero  Luis Mangual, multi-percussionist Manuel Márquez, and vocalists Luis Rosas and Alessandro Bello.

Ali Bello & The Charanga Syndicate will be released May 9, 2025 via Circle 9 Records, a hybrid, subscriber-supported independent label run by Grammy-winning trombonist and bandleader Doug Beavers. Splitting the difference between classics, like the rousing dance favorite “Gauripumpé,” and originals, like the rousing “Gina’s Groove,” this nine-song collection breathes new life into the charanga tradition for new audiences.

Lively, dynamic, and brimming with brash energy, charanga is a flute-and-violin–driven Cuban dance style that fused Spanish danzón with African influences before finding renewed force in New York’s Afro-Caribbean scene, evolving in symbiosis with Latin jazz and salsa.

The album kicks off with the aforementioned “Gauripumpé,” which demonstrates Bello’s facility in recasting the violin for roles traditionally assigned to the horn. Composed by Miguel Matamoras, the iconic son cubano song “Son De La Loma” is adorned with a buoyant arrangement from Cuban pianist Sonny Bravo; in tandem with Bello’s sonorous catgut, Santiago’s jubilant flute flutters like birdsong. The cha-cha “Gina’s Groove” is a piquant tribute to Bello’s wife, in all her idiosyncrasies and sides. Multi-hyphenate O’Farrill lends his talents to “Emiliando,” which brilliantly accentuates the Latin jazz side of charanga’s equation.

Tres (Y Dos),” featuring Mairena on vocals, is a contrafact of Cuban guitarist Guillermo Castillo’s “Tres Lindas Cubanas.” The title refers to the foundational clave rhythm: three beats in the first measure, two in the second. Another original keeps it in the family, “Amadeus’ Rhumba” reconstitutes elements of Chick Corea’s “Armando’s Rhumba” into an homage to Bello’s son. The Charanga Syndicate then tackles Cuban singer, guitarist, and composer Guillermo Rodríguez Fiffe’s 1937 hit “Bilongo,” featuring a truly dynamite solo from Bello. Featuring Monasterios on the mic, their take on Ernesto Lecuona’s “La Comparsa” splices musical DNA from Chucho Valdés’ “Mambo Influenciado is La Comparsa Influenciada.” Alí Bello & The Charanga Syndicate touches down with Moisés Simons’ “El Manisero,” — generally known as a son, recast in 7/8 that skips like a stone.




Ali Bello:

Venezuelan born Alí Bello has become one of the most dazzling and sought after violinists, distinguishing himself for his versatility among different music styles in addition to his well-found classical training and multidimensional improvisational skills. Since his surge from El Sistema, the musical education program of his country, and after building upon years of experience in New York, he has become a Latin jazz music figure to be reckoned with. During his career, Alí has collaborated and performed with such figures as Johnny Pacheco, Eddie Palmieri, and Paquito D’Rivera. He has also recorded with bands of great tradition such as Orquesta Broadway and Africando as well as modern fusion bands like Alfredo Naranjo y El Guajeo, La Clave Secreta, and Los Jóvenes del Barrio. It is much beyond the amazing Afro Latin rhythms that Alí’s strings reach. He has become a sultry sound in tango, regularly performing with Grammy winner bandoneonist Raul Jaurena, and a regular collaborator on scores with flamenco guitarist Pedro Cortés. His repertoire expands even further to include gypsy jazz and American folk music, as a member of the touring quintet Doc Severinsen & El Ritmo De La Vida. He has also infused the violin into the popular rhythms of R&B, performing live with The Roots, Beyoncé, and Jay-Z. Alí can be heard arranging and collaborating dance beats with Grammy winner producer Louie Vega and artists Anané and Luisito Quintero, as well as recording with award winning groups Aventura and Don Omar. His violin has backed up amazing singers of the stature of Mercedes Sosa, Susana Baca, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Alejandro Fernández, and Cheo Feliciano among others. From international performances to innovative recording sessions, from tropical Afro-Caribbean beats to swing and jazz, from arrangements in salsa to collaborations in Middle Eastern music, , and from güajiro folkloric phrases to electric funk grooves, Alí Bello has proven himself as a musician with an exceptionally skillful repertoire and much more to come.

Alí Bello & The Sweet Wire Band Captivating audiences with an invigorating and fresh perspective of Latin jazz, Alí Bello and The Sweet Wire Band presents a fusion of Latin jazz with many different Afro-Venezuelan and Caribbean musical styles, including an array of Venezuelan percussion like Quitiplás, Culo'e Puyas, and Cumacos drummings among others.

Most recently, his new album Connection Caracas - New York, under the New York music label Zoho Music, has been reviewed as one of the Top 50 Jazz CD’s of 2013 by JazzTimes Magazine.

The album has been ranked 4th among The Best CDs Released in 2013 and has also been named Album Of The Week by the Latin Jazz Network, among other reviews. The album’s many musical colors and textures create canvases of musical intermixtures in which Ali’s virtuosic violin, and it’s very distinctive palette of sounds and timbre, is the protagonist.

Viva The Latin Jazz!!

www.jazzcaribe.blogspot.com

jazzcaribe2001@yahoo.com

Note:  Musicologist and educator Luis Raul Montell's bestselling book, "The Bible of Latin Jazz," is now available on Amazon.


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