Manicero

Chucho Valdés's first recorded sessions as a leader took place in late January 1964 in the Areíto Studios of Havana (former Panart studios) owned by the newly formed EGREM. These early sessions included Paquito D'Rivera on alto saxophone and clarinet, Alberto Giral on trombone, Julio Vento on flute, Carlos Emilio Morales on guitar, Kike Hernández on double bass, Emilio del Monte on drums and Óscar Valdés Jr. on congas. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, these would be the members of his jazz combo, whose lineup would often change, sometimes including bassists Cachaíto and later Carlos del Puerto, and drummers Guillermo Barreto and later Enrique Plá.

Since 1999, three "Klazz Brothers" Kilian Forster (bass), Bruno Böhmer Camacho (piano) and Tim Hahn (drums) have stood for a refreshing and innovative fusion of classical music with jazz and world music. For their albums "Classic meets Cuba" and "Mozart meets Cuba", which were recorded with the Duo Cuba Percussion, the Klazz Brothers from Dresden received the ECHO Prize in the category "Klassik ohne Grenzen" several times. With their new CD "Christmas meets Cuba 2", the five musicians are following up on the success album "Christmas meets Cuba", released in 2010, which brought international and German Christmas carols to new musical life. With a mixture of jazz swing and Latin feeling, spirited zest for life, Cuban serenity and moody melancholy, the Klazz Brothers and Cuba Percussion have recorded such classics as "White Christmas", "Silent Night" and George Michaels "Last Christmas". And here and there, prominent guest singers such as Olvido Ruiz and Tom Gaebel give the songs another special flair.

The legendary Preservation Hall Jazz Band present the soundtrack to A Tuba to Cuba, the critically acclaimed documentary directed by T.G. Herrington and Danny Clinch. The film follows Ben Jaffe of New Orleans’ famed Preservation Hall Jazz Band as he seeks to fulfill his late father's dream of retracing their musical roots to the shores of Cuba in search of the indigenous music that gave birth to New Orleans jazz. A Tuba to Cuba celebrates the triumph of the human spirit expressed through the universal language of music and challenges us to resolve to build bridges, not walls.

For those who prefer their Latin jazz to lean a bit more heavily to the jazz side, Cuban pianist Gonzalo Rubalcaba ranks among the best of the modern composer/arrangers, with a style that pays tribute to the African, Caribbean, and European influences of his native country while updating them for today's jazz audience. Though nowhere near as traditional as, say, Buena Vista Social Club, Supernova is far more true to his Cuban heritage than anything he's recorded before, with compositions that run the gamut from cool and smooth to blazing hot. The opening "Supernova 1," for instance, unveils a complex, syncopated theme, then allows each member of the trio to strut their stuff before breaking it all down with dazzling stop-start time signatures that shift constantly…