Though central Pennsylvania is far from Africa and Latin America, Chucho Valdes and the Afro-Cuban Messengers promise to bring those sounds and influences here.
Valdes will perform at Eisenhower Auditorium on Jan. 31 as part of a tour supporting the album “Chucho’s Steps,” which won the Grammy for best Latin jazz album. In a recent interview, Valdes said the audience can expect material from that album, along with new songs he’s been writing over the past few months.
“We’re planning to record in July and will be trying out some new material at concert,” Valdes said through a translator. “We hope our fondness of Cuban music with come through in the performance.”
Valdes was born in Cuba to a musical family; his father, Bebo, was a fellow pianist and director of the Tropicana nightclub in Havana. He founded the group Irakere, one of Cuba’s best known jazz bands.
In addition to the Grammy for “Chucho’s Steps,” Valdes also has taken home the award for his “Live at the Village Vanguard” and “Live at Newport” albums, and for his contributions to works by other artists.
As the name suggests, the Afro-Cuban Messengers blend a African and Cuban rhythms with more traditional jazz arrangements. Valdes said the multi-cultural influence allows the group to have more rhythmic freedom and experiment with meter.
If they do it right, the audience should be able to tell the difference. Valdes said the intricate rhythms should also appeal to any Penn State music students in the audience.
“We mix it with jazz and colorful music, we want to show and the Cuban rhythm comes with us,” he said. “We would like to show the public and make them feel the difference between Cuban music and Latin jazz.”
Looking ahead to the rest of 2012, Valdes will head into the studio this summer to record a new album that will feature songs with the Afro-Cuban messengers, as well as a few special guests. He also plans to continue humanitarian work as a Goodwill Ambassador for the Food Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, a position he’s held since 2006.
“I’m all the time working on that and playing music to relieve and give to the others some help,” he said. “That’s my main work, just doing what I know how to do, play music, and I hope that people can get some benefit from that.”
Chucho Valdes and the Afro-Cuban Messengers will perform at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 31 at Eisenhower Auditorium, University Park. Call 800-ARTS-TIX or visit www.cpa.psu.edu for more information.
