Miguelito Martinez & CorazonSur
Oakland, California, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2011 | INDIE
Music
Press
The traditional world of Afro-Cuban music has a clearly defined place for the flute, but the contemporary world of Latin Jazz composition requires a much more careful approach. The sharp percussive nature of the instrument made it a perfect lead voice for the charanga orquestas in Cuba; it’s lush middle register complemented the string section nicely while it’s piercing high-end stood toe to tie with the percussionists. Salsa orquestas kept the tradition of the flautist in many places and acoustic Latin Jazz groups often featured outstanding flautists as soloists. As Latin Jazz evolved into a more modern context and instrumentalists incorporated synthesizers, electric instruments, and rock rhythms, the flute’s tile became less defined. Despite a cutting tone, even the most powerful flautist requires amplification in this setting. Phrasing needs to change, different technical demands fall upon the musician, and the flautist needs to find their place in a different type of blend. It’s a world inhabited by trumpets, saxophones, and trombones; the flautist needs to work overtime to find a logical spot in a contemporary Latin Jazz ensemble.
Fortunately the 2009 Latin Jazz Flautist Of The Year Miguel Martinez has the flexibility and musicality to make things work, as he shows clearly on pianist Coto Pincheira’s album The Sonido Moderno Project. A top-notch musician, Martinez stays busy on the San Francisco Bay Area’s Latin music scene, playing salsa with percussionists Karl Perazzo and Michael Spiro in Conjunto Karabali, Mexican-Caribbean fusions with Corazon Sur, Latin Jazz with Pincheira, and much more. Martinez has built chops that move across several different contexts, working around the powerful sound of Pincheira’s band simply draws upon his vast tool kit. He also displays a sensitive musical insight, performing with depth and style on “Danzon For A Night.” Martinez phrases thoughtfully around the understated danzon section before charging through a powerful 6/8 and then improvising enthusiastically over a cha cha cha. It’s a wonderful feature for Martinez and certainly an album highlight moment. Martinez stands as a bright talent in the Bay Area Latin Jazz scene, and his musicality sits on the verge of larger exposure with this 2009 honor.
- The Latin Jazz Corner
Discography
Del Corazon al son 2011
The Mission 2010
The Sonido Modern Project 2009
Photos
Bio
Born in Chiapas, México, Miguelito Martinez studied Music Education and Transversal Flute from the University of Science and Art in Chiapas and La Universidad Veracruzana with trained in Kodaly and Orff. Martinez is the founding director of Corazon Sur a Mexican-Caribbean fusion ensemble and co-director of Balamcoatl, a collaborative project focused on diffusing the rich music and dance traditions of the indigenous people of México. A top-notch musician, Martinez stays busy in the San Francisco Bay Area’s Latin music scene, playing salsa with percussionists Karl Perazzo and Michael Spiro in Conjunto Karabali, El Sonero del Uruguay "Edgardo Cambon" and Tito y su Son de Cuba, Latin Jazz and much more. He has perform and record with Alfredo de la Fe, Orestes Vilato, Karl Perazzo, Juan Carlos Formel, Michael Spiro, Orlando Maraca Valle, Felix Valoy, Ralph Irizarry, Little Johnny Rivero, Ramon Gutierrez from Son de Madera and many more. Martinez has built chops that move across several different contexts as composer, flute player and producer. In 2009 he was selected by the Milagro Foundation to be on the Voces del Cambio show on the Discovery Channel in which he shared his insight on how to utilize music as an instrument for newcomer children from Latin America to integrate into their new community. In the same year he was granted the best Latin Jazz Flautist Of The Year for the Latin Jazz Corner. Martinez was the composer for the Youth in Arts first World Premiere production based on Elisa Kleven's popular Paper Princess book series supported in part by grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the San Francisco Foundation. Besides his busy carrear as a performer Martinez has been a music teacher and multicultural arts educator since 2004 for Youth in Arts .
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