Roberto Lopez

With his explosive soloing and inventive five conga patterns, Cuban musician Miguel "Angá" Díaz was one of the world's great congueros. Echu Mingua, his debut album as a bandleader, is an innovative set. Angá saw this project as representing his journey in music—from learning at the feet of traditional rumba masters in his rural village, to joining the foremost experimental band in Cuba Irakere, his sojourns with innovative US jazz musicians Steve Coleman and Roy Hargrove, then back to his roots with the Afro-Cuban All Stars, Rubén González, and opening doors with the great Cuban bassist Cachaíto López.

This 2000 big band date re-imagines many of Salvador’s most famous compositions through the pen of arranger Juan Manuel Ceruto and the performances of several Cuban jazz icons. Ceruto brings Salvador’s compositions into a contemporary setting, maintaining their initial integrity while adding slick arrangements and modern performance concepts. In some ways the arrangements lean more towards the refined aesthetics of modern Cuban timba than the rougher exploratory nature of 1970s Cuban jazz, but if offers an opportunity to see the songs through different eyes. Numerous major names in the current Cuban jazz scene jumped at the opportunity to recognize Salvador’s influence on the music; saxophonist German Velazco, trombonist Juan Pablo Torres, vocalist Issac Delgado, bassist Roberto Riberon, drummer Raul Pineda, and conguero Tata Guines all participate in this heavy session.