Sonando

Pianist Fred Hoadley's Afro-Cuban band, Sonando, which plays the Lock 'n' Keel, has a new release, too, called "Tres," after the six-string Cuban stringed instrument, which Hoadley plays on the album. I love his stately arrangement of the tune "Delilah." Sonando is a vastly underappreciated Seattle band with a mature style and comprehensive knowledge of Cuban music.
- 2006 - Paul de Barros - Seattle

SONANDO
Tres (CD Origin Records)
Category: LATIN JAZZ; LATIN JAZZ
***EditorsPick: Latin music meets Steve Reich, on the first track, where the motoric elements in both musics meet and are accentuated. The rest of the music here, played by a Seattle based Latin jazz group, blends all sorts of stuff, including cuban religious percussion, played by Michael Spiro among others, with a jazz and descarga sensibility. The band does some cool stuff, including
harmonizing the dianas on "Donde Estabas Anoche," the piece by Ignacio Piñiero. Fred Hoadley plays the tres on the tunes; he moves to piano for Abdullah Ibrahim's "Bombella," a tune that brings out the Tyner/Coltrane in the band; the band sounds pretty comfortable doing it too. There's a sweetness to the whole project that is its main strength. Highly Recommended.
- 2006

Editors Pick: "A fine second release by Sonando, Seattle's shining star of latin jazz"
- 1998 - Peter Watrous, Bruce Polin - NYC

To know what to expect from Sonando’s Tres, you need to take the 1-2-3-4 punch combination! That is, just let the band swing at you with their first four tracks and you will understand completely what producer/arranger/composer/pianist Fred Hoadley (busy musician!) and his talented band want you to experience throughout this compelling collection of Latin Jazz.

Track one (“Canción del Rio part 1”) is so warm and engaging you’ll feel like you’re on a sailing adventure in the tropics. Fred Hoadley sets this tone with his flowing undercurrent on the piano while the horn section (trumpet, saxes, trombone) plays an enticing melody propelling you forward with their relaxing winds.Then trombonist Chris Stover and pianist Hoadley take turns expressing their contentment with flowing on the river, in the warm wind, under the tropical sun. All kept moving by the ubiquitous Latin rhythms provided by the nimble Sonando percussionists.

But on track two (“Canción del Rio part 2”), just so you won’t be lulled into thinking this is simply another breezy collection of surf and sand music, composer Hoadley suddenly hits your sleepy shoreline with a huge wave of hard bop energy breaking on the edge of free jazz. All the horn players express themselves forcefully on top of a driving Latin beat, pushing and overlapping their musical statements for an extended period until what sounds like a furious squall over the water suddenly drops into the peace and quiet of a few lingering piano notes. Sonando surely flows, but they can definitely storm, too.

Track three (Donde Estabas Anoche”), takes us into a more sensuously traditional Latin band sound featuring the distinctive timbre of the tres, a Cuban stringed instrument similar to the mandolin but with a much richer resonance of steel being plucked and vibrated. It’s a stimulation sound that clearly proclaims this band’s Latin roots, especially in Cuban musical forms and instrumentation. Highly danceable, beautifully rigorous – you feel refreshed by the time their musical energy slowly fades away.

Finally, track four (“Bombella”), comes on strong with a hard bop jazz punch. Sonando can swing with authority! Impassioned soloing starts with Hoadley on the piano followed by Jim Coile on tenor saxophone. Then Richard Cole uses his supple soprano sax to thrust his musical energy forward to the climax in a fine flourish of high notes. All on an agile foundation of rhythmic and melodic lines from the horn and percussion sections. A driving arrangement of this fine jazz composition by Abdullah Ibrahim.

Sonando flows, rages, dances and swings. Four eloquent punches indicative of what you can expect in various combinations and blends during the rest of Tres. An impressive achievement by Fred Hoadley and his stellar band members that should not be missed.

Carter Pock 2006
- Carter Pock - Seattle

SONANDO Platter Chatter
The word that comes to mind when you begin listening to the Latin flavored jazz of Seattle's sonorous Sonando is "class". Once that concept of great style and quality sinks in, a number of other words rise up as you listen further: refined, elegant, polished, purified, tasteful. This group knows how to express musical ideas and moods effectively without being intrusive (wonderful music to work to). Sonando performs with an exquisite vitality that creates an atmosphere of clarified energy for the listener. Congratulations go to every member of the band for outstanding performance and group interaction.
Producer/pianist Fred Hoadley deserves recognition for his seamless balance of all the intricate elements involved in this project. From the high spirited Latin rhythms and choruses to the manicured jazz solos and arrangements, no beat is out of place. Also, the mix is always perfectly coordinated between solo, accompaniment, and rhythm. Although you can easily hear this when listening through headphones, the flawless balance in the mix is just as obvious coming through your speakers. What a testament to the talent and effort applied by Hoadley and those who assisted him in shaping the sound. Sonando is a brilliant accomplishment that will easily captivate jazz fans and Latin music aficionados alike. In this case, the whole is not greater than the sum of it's parts because all the parts are just as great as the whole - and the whole thing is magnificent. - 1995

- Carter Pock - Seattle

Waxin' Your Ears - SONANDO Earshot Jazz
Somewhere in Seattle, far from the workaday world, lies an island paradise. Palm trees grow there. People sing and dance, filling their homes with joy. From this enchanted place comes the music of Sonando.
Those who know Sonando will rejoice at the release of this CD. Those who don't, will be swayed by it's Latin American rhythms, strong horn work, engaging original songs and artful arrangements.
Fred Hoadley (piano), Miguel Garrido (bass) and percussionists Tom Bergersen, Lary Barilleau and Junior Medina provide a solid yet fluidly shifting rhythmic base for the melodic forays of multi-instrumentalists Jay Thomas and Jim Coile, who bring the colors of trumpet, soprano sax, flugelhorn, tenor and alto saxes, flute, piccolo and alto flute to the music. With the occasional addition of Scott Brown's trombone and Denny Stern's congas, Sonando weaves a tapestry of sound, always tasteful and bright, never garish.
Thomas provides most of the firepower with an extroverted, brilliant trumpet sound and graceful lines. Coile's sax work tends toward introspection but stands tall with Thomas at the front line; his flute work and a delightful piccolo solo treat the listener to the lighter side of his nature. Hoadley plays conservatively and sparsely but acquits himself with some lively, if not passionate, solos.
Special kudos are due Miguel Garrido. Never in the spotlight, his perfectly and subtly accented bass lines nevertheless infuse with much of it's Latin spirit and provide a rhythmic anchor for his band mates, soloists and rhythmists alike. The band would not click without him.
Of the originals, standouts are Hoadley's "Pupi," with great horn lines and drama, and Barilleau's enchanting "Carmen's Mambo." "Sequoya," one of two pieces by Thomas, approaches greatness with it's unexpected, turn-on- a- dime mood shifts-a perfect summer day suddenly obscured by a micro-thunderburst, just as suddenly crowned with a glorious rainbow. Such is life.
Come to the island. More pleasures await you. It's only as far as a trip to your local record store. Life is sweet there.
-1995 - Ernie Saylor - Seattle

Here's an interesting item. A Latin jazz release from Seattle. What makes it interesting is that Sonando is able to incorporate both the idioms of Latin jazz and the subtlety and grace that's fast becoming the hallmark of the Northwest jazz scene. The pieces here are a mix of originals and pieces from around the jazz world (Wayne Shorter, Horace Silver, Abdullah Ibrahim), rearranged as needed to fit the desired style. It's the seamless combination that makes it complete here though. There's no screaming horn section, no overpowering congas, but the horns are most certainly there, the congas ever present. Instead of the same tropical piano playing in every Latin release, there's a well-designed modern jazz piano solo. Instead of the blaring frontline, there's a post-bop sensibility in the horns. They can show off speed and skill in their solos, but ever so fleetingly and in service to the larger work. It's understated Latin jazz, punched-up post-bop, not something you'll find everyday. But certainly something worth finding.
- 2006 - Adam Greenberg - Ann Arbor

Sonando is known for their interesting blend of Afro-Cuban Music with Modern Jazz. Their third release Tres exemplifies this blend completely. If hard hitting and diversified percussion is what you fancy in Latin music, then Sonando’s Tres is for you.

Why have a simple drum set when you can have an assortment of congas, bongos, timbales, and other various auxiliary percussion instruments to add more layers to the music. Sonando does this very well in each one of their songs. Not only is the percussion masterfully done, but there are also superb solos too. The trombone player has a gracious tone similar to that of the great Bebop trombonist, JJ Johnson. The saxes and the trumpets made a good touch with their solos.

The solos were a very diverse assortment of Latin that is consistent with the general sound and percussion of the beat, all the way to Modern Jazz that you would hear today. One of the things that set Sonando off from many other Jazz bands is their interesting assortment of instruments. The tres, which is a guitar like instrument adds a good touch to the Latin theme. There are also many percussion instruments not used in conventional Jazz music. All the songs for the most part were very well made and well played. Sonando’s Tres definitely represents Latin music and Jazz music very well, and should be picked up by any Latin fan, or percussion buff.
- 2006
- Andrew Mahan - Milwaukee

Sonando is a huge hit with our on air hosts and listeners,and is currently in heavy rotation. Another good one from Fred and crew......
- 2006

Arturo Gómez
Music Director, jazz89-KUVO
The Oasis In The City
Colorado's First HD FM Radio Station
Celebrating 10 Years of Live Performances!
- Arturo Gómez - Denver

Sonando is our top spinning CD. Can you please send 2 more?
- 2006

Best; GGV ---- Gary G.Vercelli
Jazz Music Director
Capital Public Radio, Inc.
7055 Folsom Blvd.
Sacramento, CA 95826 - Gary G. Vercelli - Sacramento

"By far, Latin jazz artists delivered more innovative and creative music throughout the year, compared to salsa artists who chose to go the "cover" route in many instances. This year, some of the best originals were Son Sublime's Bailando Con Son Sublime, Sonando’s Tres, Tránsito’s La Nueva Generación, Peruchín Jr.’s Sobre Blancas y Negras, Conjunto Clasico’s Si Ella Estuviera, Tiempo Libre’s Lo Que Esperabas, Samuel Torres’ Skin Tones, Conexión Salsera’s Salseros Por Sentimiento, Micheal Stuart’s Back In Da Hood, Bobby Matos’ Charanga Changó, Brian Lynch Latin Jazz Sextet’s Con Clave, Luis Mangual’s Fuego, Fire, Candela, Pete Rodríguez’s Mind Trip, Son de Madre’s Rumberos, Rigo y su Obra Maestra’s Rumba Pa’ Rumberos and Carlos Sarduy’s Charly En La Habana.
- Dec 2006

"Sonando continues to expand it's reputation with one good release after another and it's latest CD Tres is no exception. Band leader/pianist Fred Hoadley also struts his stuff on the tres for a unique new Sonando."
- Sept 2006

"Love the Latin Jazz sound of the Seattle band Sonando produced by Fred Hoadley and titled La Rumba Esta Buena."
- 1998
- Nelson Rodriguez - Los Angeles