Gonzalo Rubalcaba - Biography
Gonzalo Rubalcaba may be the best pianist Cuba has ever produced. His ability to fuse the traditional Afro-Cuban roots of his homeland with the free-flowing improvisations of American jazz is unmatched. His style combines a fierce left hand percussive attack with an amazingly dexterous right hand that showers musical sparks onto the tinder of his performances to create a smoldering, jaw-dropping virtuosity. He’s been an internationally celebrated musician since the release of his earliest recordings on the German Messidor label in the late 1980s.
Rubalcaba was born in Havana, Cuba to the famous Cuban pianist Guillermo Rubalcaba, who played with Enrique Jorrín, creator the cha-cha-cha. Jorrín, Frank Emilio, Peruchin, Felipe Dulzaides, Juan Formell (of Los Van Van), and Omara Portuondo (of the Buena Vista Social Club) were frequent visitors to Gonzalo’s boyhood home. He played piano and drums early, and started classical music training at the Manuel Saumell Conservatory when he was just nine years old. He went on to the Amadeo Roldan Conservatory and graduated with a degree in music composition from Havana’s Institute of Fine Arts in 1983. At home he listened to the forbidden records in his father’s collection, sides by Thelonius Monk, Bud Powell, Oscar Peterson, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Art Blakey. They fed his growing musical curiosity. While he was in school, he played professionally with the famous Orquesta Aragon. He started his own band, Grupo Projecto, shortly after graduating from the Institute. While still in school, he recorded a number of albums for the Cuban national record company Egrem, which were slowly re-released as he become a star. These albums include Gonzalo Rubalcaba (1986 Egrem Cuba), the live Concierto Negro (1995 Egrem Cuba), the sizzling small band album Concatenacion (1995 Egrem Cuba), and an album of early solo piano work called Inicio (2001 Egrem Cuba).
Rubalcaba’s first internationally released albums caused a sensation in the Latin jazz community. 1987’s Mi Gran Pasion (Messidor Germany) features his Cuban band Grupo Projecto playing in the style of the 1950s, but Rubalcaba’s improvisations jump out of the mix with their playful energy and musical finesse. Live in Havana (Messidor Germany), released in 1989, is another amazing session that shreds the existing templates for Latin jazz. 1990’s Giraldilla (Messidor Germany) continues to push the envelope with more amazing keyboard work. Later in 1990, Rubalcaba played the Montreux Jazz Festival at the invitation of bassist Charlie Hayden. His set with Hayden and drummer Paul Motian was released as Discovery: Live at Montreux (1990 Blue Note) that year and won Rubalcaba the adoration of jazz fans with its smooth Latin jazz fusion. He followed up in the next three years with four more classic sets: The Blessing (1991 Blue Note) with Hayden and Jack DeJohnette; Suite 4 y 20 (1992 Blue Note) with his regular Cuban band; Rapsodia (1992 Blue Note); and Imagine (1993 Blue Note), which is culled from various live and studio dates.
In 1994, Rubalcaba moved to the Dominican Republic and applied for a US visa. In 1995, he moved to Miami, where he still lives with his wife and children. He continued to astound listeners with his 1993 post-bop outing Diz (Blue Note), featuring Ron Carter on bass and Julio Baretto on drums; 1998’s Antiguo (1998Blue Note), Rubalcaba’s first recording on synthesizer; 1999’s Inner Voyage (Blue Note), another post-bop workout with Michael Brecker on sax and bass man Jeff Chambers; 2001’s Supernova (Blue Note), a return to a more traditional Cuban style of playing without sacrificing any of his impressive improvisational skill; and Nocturne (Verve), a contemplative set with Charlie Haden featuring slow romantic boleros, which was also released in 2001.
For 2004’s Paseo (Blue Note), Rubalcaba introduces a new, younger quartet with Ignacio Berroa on drums, Luis Felipe Lamoglia on sax, and electric bass player Jose Armando Gola. That same year, Charlie Haden’s tribute to Mexican composer Jose Sabre Marroquin, Land of The Sun (Blue Note), allows Rubalcaba to show off a contemplative side, which he continues on 2006’s Solo (Blue Note). Avatar (Blue Note), released in 2008, shows him returning to his incendiary improvisations with a group that includes Cuban sax player Yosvany Terry and drummer Marcus Gilmore. Avatar has been hailed as one of Rubalcaba’s best albums.
