Paquito D’ Rivera and The Madrid-New York Connection Band

La Fleur de Cayenne

 Sunnyside

Cuban-American woodwind master Paquito D’ Rivera continues to explore new avenues for his music in his mid-seventies. D’ Rivera has lived in the states since the early ‘80s when he became a formidable force on the New York jazz scene, primarily playing alto saxophone. Since then, he splits his time playing that instrument as well as clarinet. He’s also frequently played with his Cuban brethren as well musicians from all over the globe. This work, La Fleur de Cayenne, represents an ensemble of Cuban expatriates and a Colombian vibraphonist who call Spain home, dubbing the group the Madrid-New York Connection Band, a group of musicians that have been playing together for twenty years but are finally making their first album.

The back story is worth sharing. In the late ‘90s D’ Rivera was enjoying an evening at his New Jersey home when a car pulled up nearby. The handful of musicians explained that they were Cuban musicians living in Spain who wanted to see where D’ Rivera lived. That’s when D’ Rivera met Pepe Rivero, a pianist and composer originally from Manzanillo. Their relationship has grown considerably since. Rivero introduced D’Rivera other Cubans living in Spain who make up the core of the ensemble here. They are drummer Georvis Pico, percussionist Yuvisney Aguilar, and bassist Reinier “El Negron” Elizarde. D’ Rivera often played with this group along with vibraphonist Sebastian Laverde when in Spain. In short, it was the Spain crew that sought D’ Rivera out.

They recorded in Madrid in December 2024, a program of original songs from Rivero and D’ Rivera along with other rooted Latin music from Cuban son to Argentinian folk song and tango. D’ Rivera’s title track opens as his clarinet weaves a dance with Laverde’s vibes and the churning percussion in a form called Venezuelan joropo, one where the tempo is constantly shifting. Rivero also gets his soloing opportunity as do the percussionists in the latter half. “Miriam,” by Bebo Valdes, is a ballad that features guest Spanish harmonicist Antonio Serrano as Rivero plays warm, beautiful piano and D’ Rivera spins lyrical lines on his alto over a restrained but harmonic bed of piano and vibes. D’Rivera returns to clarinet on another Argentinian tinged piece, “Paq-Man in La Pampa,” this form called chacarera sways rather romantically, perfect for slow dancing.

D’ Rivera’s “Vals Venesolano” percolates through a myriad of rhythmic changes, setting up challenging turf to navigate for the soloists, managed deftly by Laverde, the leader on clarinet, and Rivero, all convening for a rousing finale. Carlos Aguirre’s “Milonga Gris” is yet another highly lyrical, swaying piece which begins rather calmly before evolving into a steady uptempo groove over which we hear clarinet, vibes, and piano alternating between unison and solos. As in other pieces, there’s an effervescent dialogue between the piano and the vibes. D’ Rivera soars freely throughout. The descending figure that comes just before the emphatic close is simply gorgeous.

The stately, foreboding tones from Rivero’s piano usher in Cuban composer Ernesto Lecuona’s “Ante El Escorial,” written for the imposing San Lorenzo Monastery. D’ Rivera performs on alto, delivering bluesy hues, an indelible characteristic of his playing for five decades now. The piece moves from that somewhat daunting opening into a lively, swinging mode. That same composer also authored “A la Antigua,” a tune with an infectious melody carried by clarinet and vibes over Rivero’s simpatico comping. Close your eyes and easily envision palm trees, beaches, and the colorful murals that define Havana. Serrano returns for the closer from the legendary film composer Ennio Morricone. “Cinema Paradiso” is performed in an unhurried, relaxed way, rather romantic and seductive as the harmonica and clarinet find common ground in a lovely blend of harmonics.

This program could have easily adhered mostly to Cuban music given the background of the players but D’ Rivera is known for his wide embrace of various forms. Thus we not only hear from Cuba and Spain but from Argentina and Caribbean locales as well. By turns vibrant and delicately romantic, remarkable lyricism is the constant throughout.

– Jim Hynes

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