Flamenco

Like it happens so often, catalan drummer Marc Miralta discovered that he was a flamenco aficionado while living outside of Spain. He gathered his favourite musicians from both sides of the Atlantic and projected this recording which is another proof of flamenco's influence in contemporany jazz.

Mario Escudero (October 11, 1928 – November 19, 2004), was one of a handful of Spanish flamenco guitar virtuosos who, following on the footsteps of Ramon Montoya, helped spread flamenco beyond their Spanish homeland when they migrated to the United States in the early 1950s. Along with others such as Sabicas, Carlos Montoya and Juan Serrano, Escudero helped forge the viability of solo flamenco guitar as a concert instrument, with lauded performances at New York's Carnegie Hall, Town Hall, and other venues. Invited to perform at the White House for President John F. Kennedy, Escudero was counted among the best in his era; Ramón Montoya called him "the best flamenco guitarist of this new generation."

Forceful and mystic, with a beauty and intensity that reminded him of his first hearings of Miles, Mingus, or Monk, Belgian bassist & composer Piet Verbist was pulled into his deep study of Flamenco culture several years ago through a grant from the Royal Conservatory of Antwerp. After a dozen immersive trips to Andalusia to study, perform, and develop a repertoire, Piet presented concerts in Belgium and Málaga with his joint Spanish/Belgian ensemble, recording this album live in Antwerp at the end of 2023. Featuring Carmelo Muriel on the Bansuriney (a Muriel-designed wooden flute), Carlos Cortés on percussion and flamenco guitar, and Juan Sainz on drums, with Belgians Tom Van Dyck on saxophones, and Verbist's son, Milan Verbist on piano, the Flamenco Jazz Summit paints a sonic portrait both exotic and popular at first sight, but the dual cultural melting-pot conceived traditions of jazz and flamenco actually combine to prove deep and inimitable.