Music
The best kept secret in music
Press
“El Eco is a Latin-jazz band that incorporates not only Brazilian rhythms but also elements from the music of Cuba,Uruguay and
Argentina,creating a wonderful and rich mix...the group plays with verve —and when they cook,they cook.”—Fernando González - Jazz writer
"With moods bright and dark, and melodies and rhythms from Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina, 'Two Worlds' makes a sophisticated mix of sambas, tangos, and Afro-Cuban sound uncluttered and compelling." - Bob Young
"The high quotient of both jazz and exotic Latin American rhythms, performed with warmth and deep understanding, makes El Eco's Two Worlds uncommonly attractive." - Mark Holston
"... a persuasive package ... warm and lustrous tones with plenty of space for the listener's thoughts ... big bass, vibrant percussion, and a large dose of South American DNA mixed with the blues and bop that circulate in our air. The cultural complexity, following a long jazz tradition, enliven this set. Nojechowicz plays with decrescendo nicely, making music that ebbs and flows like the body's rhythms." - Karl Stark
"... with his solid ensemble and collection of world class guests such as Claudio Roditi and Cafe', Guillermo Nojechowicz brings them together to make one fine recording replete with Cuban, Afro-Cuban, Bossa Nova, Samba and various funk grooves ... Compositionally speaking, the tunes here, all Nojechowicz originals, are solid ... a strong Latin Jazz recording from a professional collective of musicians." - Cadence Magazine
"One reason that Boston has become a primary home for Latin jazz is the presence of El Eco, a breeding ground for the genre's best young artists for more than a decade." - Grammy Award winning jazz writer
“For many people, Latin music means tango and bossa nova with perhaps a bit of salsa thrown in. But there is a whole other world of distinct music styles and rhythms in Latin America. Nojechowicz explores many of them in his compositions on this excellent release, on which he wrote all the tunes except one. He especially utilizes the complex dance rhythms of Argentina and Uruguay, along with the more lifting sound of Brazil – which he credits as a mayor musical influence. You can hear echoes of the dark sound of Piazolla as he sometimes weaves in and out of different rhythms in the same piece. All this is overlayed with the influence of his long residence in the US. His band, El Eco, has long been active in the jazz circuit and the thriving latin jazz scene in the northeast. Their playing on this CD is tight and assured. This is true world music at its best.”
- Ron Mason
"Guillermo's tunes are fabulous and I love the performances on this disk. El Eco's CD is simply fantastic!"
- World-renowned musician
Discography
EL ECO's "Two Worlds" is out in the US (Dreambox Media). Distributed by NorthCountry. Cadence Building. Redwood, NY 13679
The CD is also out in Japan (JVC). Available at selected record stores and at www.amazon.com
EL ECO's "Two Worlds" is getting air play on jazz radio stations like KPFA (Berkley, CA); KPFK (Beverly Hills, CA); WBGO (Newark, NJ); WDNA (Miami, FL); WGBH (Boston, MA); Jazz After Hours, Jim Wilke; FM 89.9 LA ISLA, Nano Herrera (Buenos Aires, Argentina); "RadioMontaje" FM 88.7, Jorge Freytag (BA, Argentina); Radio Ardzagank FM 103.5, Yerevan Armenia; CHUO-FM, Randy McElligott (Ottawa,Canada); CIUT-FM, Toronto, Canada, among others. Several publications in the US, Canada and Japan, have written articles on EL ECO such as The Philadelphia Inquirer, Boston Herald, Yamano Music (Japan), Jazziz, Kansai Time Out (Japan), AllAboutjazz.com, Jazz Times, Cadence Magazine, LatinoJazznet.com, etc.
Photos
Feeling a bit camera shy
Bio
NEWS UPDATE: EL ECO had a major breakthrough this year, and is now getting national and international attention following a performance on NPR's Jazz Set recently broadcast nationwide. This program repeats the week of Aug 14th 2006! Check your local NPR station for the schedule.
EL ECO recently performed at Telluride Jazz Celebration, Colorado (US) with guest Airto Moreira (Chick Corea). On the same show: Herbie Hancock, Terence Blanchard, Airto-Flora Purim, Neena Freelon.
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EL ECO - BAND DESCRIPTION
El Eco features 2005 Grammy winner Kim Nazarian of New York Voices. The band performed recently at the Curacao International Jazz Festival in the Netherland Antilles. The Argentinean jazz ensemble EL ECO, based in Boston and New York City, offers true world music at its best. Their material is strikingly original, delivered with strong vocals, percussive drive, and real lyric focus. "The high quotient of both jazz and exotic Latin American rhythms, performed with warmth and deep understanding, makes EL ECO's CD, Two Worlds, uncommonly attractive." --Jazziz
The updated jazz-Brazilian mix EL ECO delivers is driven by leader and composer Guillermo Nojechowicz, whose original tunes fill their sets, with a few gorgeously covered standards thrown in for good measure. The sextet combines the warm and lustrous sounds of samba and candombe with the tighter lines of bebop and straight-ahead jazz, darkened by echoes of Piazolla. A drummer, Nojechowicz writes from the beat, delivering a complex mix of Cuban, Afro-Cuban, Bossa Nova, and Funk rhythms.
EL ECO's sound is both intimate and explosive, driven by the freedom of musicians who have performed together for years. These world class players (Helio Alves-piano; Itaiguara Brandao-bass; Dino Govoni-tenor sax; Nojechowicz-drums; Joe Magnarelli-trumpet; and Kim Nazarian-vocals) know each other's vibes, moods, and moves. With solo work and improvisation that excites and surprises, EL ECO offers music that crosses frontiers. The "transparently beautiful scat work" (Bounce Magazine/Japan) of Kim Nazarian completes the very sophisticated and urban sound of EL ECO.
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BIO - Guillermo Nojechowicz: band leader
Guillermo Nojechowicz (NO-HAY-CHO-WEES) is a composer, drummer and producer. The son of an actress and a painter, he was born in a Eastern European Jewish household in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He was raised surrounded by the tango of Astor Piazzolla, the rock songs of Luis Alberto Spinetta, and the jazz of Oscar Peterson.
While in Argentina, he played with many well known artists and recorded for CBS with the rock group Rayuela. He then attended the National Conservatory of Music Lopez Buchardo. A Fullbright scolarship recipient, he moved to the US in 1980 to study at Berklee College of Music where he received a degree in Film Scoring.
In 1987 he formed his own group EL ECO recently featured on National Public Radio's Jazz Set with Dee Dee Bridgewater (Tony and Grammy winner vocalist). His band has performed at many venues and festivals including the Montreal Jazz Festival in Canada, Freihofer Jazz Festival in Saratoga Springs, NY and at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and is now getting national attention. In 2006 EL ECO performed at Telluride Jazz Celebration in Colorado with Airto Moreira and at the Curacao Jazz Festival, Netherlands Antilles.
From 1987 to 1993, Guillermo was an artist in residence at the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge,MA where he worked with film composer Elliot Goldenthal (Frida) and directors Andrei Serban and Ron Daniels. Most recently he wrote original music for a documentary film for the New England Aquarium in Boston (US) called "Paradise Found: Phoenix Islands," directed by Kate Raisz. Guillermo has performed with Kim Nazarian, Claudio Roditi (Dizzy Gillespie), Jon Faddis, Danilo Perez, Airto Moreira, Tiger Okoshi, Cafe, Romero Lubambo, Walter Vanderlei and Pedro Aznar (Pat Metheny), among others. He has also taught at the New England Conservatory in Boston, MA. He now teaches drums out of his Drum Studio. Guillermo has studied with Charlie Banacos, Herb Pomeroy, Gary Chaffee and Portinho.
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