Palmieri & Barretto @ JVC Jazz Fest In NYC.

It’s a good thing that producers George Wein and Ralph Mercado are so cool, because they have put together one fiery night of Latin music at the 2005 JVC Jazz Festival – New York on Saturday, June 25, at 8:00 p. m. at Carnegie Hall, 57th Street and 7th Avenue. Salsa Meets Jazz stars Eddie Palmieri Y La Perfecta II featuring Herman Olivera and The 2 Worlds of Ray Barretto featuring Adalberto Santiago with special guest jazz soloists Randy Brecker and Ronnie Cuber.

The Harlem-born, seven-time Grammy winning Eddie Palmieri has been lauded as one of the foremost Latin pianists of the last half- century. In fact, this year marks his 50th anniversary in the music business. His ability to fuse the rhythms of his Hispanic heritage with straight- ahead jazz influences made him an immediate hit at the famed Palladium Ballroom in the 50s and 60s. He continued to offer up innovative music over the years, creating classic Tico albums and later mixing salsa with R & B, pop, rock, Spanish vocals and jazz improvisation. The bandleader/pianist takes “a salsified, mambo-rific trip down memory lane” with his Concord Picante releases La Perfecta II and Ritmo Caliente. The albums bring an updated twist to the renowned 1960s ensemble while glorifying the spirit of La Perfecta with deeper excursions into Latin forms. He began playing piano and drums at age eight and studied classical piano, and his early love for classical music shines creatively throughout his work.

In 2001, singer Herman Olivera received long overdue props as featured vocalist on three tracks of the Grammy-winning CD, Masterpiece/Obra Maestra (RMM) by Palmieri and Tito Puente. With a smooth resonate high tenor voice, the self-taught vocalist has contributed great interpretations and improvisations to numerous tunes and his stints with Palmieri and the Machito Orchestra have helped him become a world- class salsa singer.

In the early 50s, young Ray Barretto was playing his congas at the renowned Apollo Theater in Harlem; and when he walked out later that night, he had impressed and performed with the legendary Charlie Parker. Since that evening of cubop, a mixture of bop and Latin rhythms, he has become a leading force in two worlds Latin music and jazz. Unlike most Latino percussionists, he came to Latin music from jazz, instead of from Latin music to jazz. He attributes this musical path to his originality and believes it’s one of the reasons why he has been sought after by so many legends of jazz. He has performed with Dizzy Gillespie, Wes Montgomery, Lou Donaldson, Roy Haynes, Donald Byrd, Max Roach and other jazz greats. While leading his own stellar Latin jazz bands, his congas have graced more recording sessions than any other conguero. His latest CD, Time was – Time is, is soon to be released.

No doubt before the night is up, fans will hear Adalberto Santiago proclaim Que Viva La Música Nuestra! (May Latin Music Live On!) Born in Ciales, Puerto Rico, he was influenced and inspired by the vocal styles of Beny Moré, Chapottin, Pancho Alonso and Miguelito Cuni. These free-style singers helped him form a method of singing that has turned him into one of the most popular vocalists of Latin music. He became the lead vocalist for Barretto’s Orchestra in 1966 and captivated audiences with a string of hits. Once nicknamed “The Puerto Rican Elvis Presley,” he will easily do his part to make sure the music lives on.

Randy Brecker has been helping to shape the sound of jazz, R&B and rock for more than three decades. His trumpet and flugelhorn have been heard on hundreds of albums by a wide range of artists including James Taylor, Bruce Springsteen, Chaka Khan, George Benson, Parliament- Funkadelic, Horace Silver, Blood, Sweat & Tears, Frank Sinatra, David Sanborn and Jaco Pastorious. He and his brother Michael formed the Brecker Brothers, one of the most innovative and successful jazz-funk fusion group of all times. He is currently co-leading Soulbop, a new electric jazz band with saxophonist Bill Evans

Ronnie Cuber, born December 25, 1941, in Brooklyn, has been composing, arranging and leading his own groups since 1959. He is acknowledged to be one of the greats among baritone saxophonists, with a sound that is an amalgam of straight-ahead jazz, hard bop, soul, R& B, and Latin. He performs regularly with the Mingus Big Band, created the Baritone Saxophone Band Tribute to Gerry Mulligan and has spent summers touring with blues artist Dr. John, for whose band he has written numerous large horn section arrangements for tour and television performances.

The concert is produced in association with RMP Productions and is in honor of Art D’Lugoff, creator of the Salsa Meets Jazz nights at the Village Gate, and in memory of promoter Jack Hooke.

For more information at http://www.festivalproductions.net