Yasser Tejeda & Palotre

Focusing The Spotlight: A Little Bit More About Yasser Tejeda & Palotre And Free MP3!

Our current Spotlight Artist Yasser Tejeda brings the best of several musical worlds into one engaging mix that touches upon Dominican tradition, reaches deeply into modern rock and fusion sounds, and stretches the idea of Latin Jazz to the further reaches of its boundaries. Their use of merengue, palo, and more Dominican rhythms brings a refreshing edge into the Latin Jazz world rarely touched upon by most musicians. Their use of the rhythms goes beyond the simple placement of a merengue underneath some jazz changes; they creatively blend each style with a combination of rock energy and jazz sophistication. The group cleverly finds connections between the traditional music of their heritage and the current music of their generation, delivering an intoxicating mix with a wide appeal that’s not afraid to challenge the listener. They approach this mix with an interesting balance of respect and no holds barred musicality that resonates with an unmistakable identity and charges forward with a passionate drive to express that distinct personality. Tejeda’s ingenious songwriting and solid guitar skills lead the group with style, guiding the ensemble with a clean crisp sound at times while roaring into a chaotic sense of forward motion full of distorted shredding elsewhere. Tejeda’s musicians follow his lead with confidence and commitment, even taking the charge to push their leader to greater heights.

Tejeda has obviously put extensive thought and time into the development of his musical identity, and fortunately he puts the same type of energy into promoting it, so you can find him extensively online. You can become friends with Tejeda at his MySpace page and check out the extensive streaming music and live videos. If you’d like to listen to some of Tejeda’s music, join his street team, check out photos, or become a fan, take a spin over to his Reverb Nation page and get the full scoop. Maybe you’d like to hire Tejeda and Palotre, so you need more information - you can find it all at his Sonic Bids page, including photos, video, audio, and bio. You might want to make a more personal connection with Tejeda, so the perfect place would be his Facebook page where you can start a conversation on his wall and stay up to date on the latest news. Get the real time updates from Tejeda about his performances, recordings, and more by following him on Twitter - check out his Twitter page HERE. You can watch Tejeda and Palotre in action on his YouTube page, and stream videos from their studio session as well as some of Tejeda’s performances with the group Untapped. There’s plenty of possibilities to learn more about Tejeda online, so take advantage of the links and dive into Tejeda’s music.

There’s no better way to get closer to an artist than to carry their music with you though, and Tejeda is allowing you the possibility to do just that - he has generously contributed the track “Mezclansa” to the LJC Listening Center! Head over to the Listening Center now, download the track, load it onto your iPod, and get a feel for this exciting music. Once you do, you’re going to want to hear more; then it’s time to pick up the full album - believe me, you’ll be glad that you did! So head over the LJC Listening Center and check out “Mezclansa” - it’s Tejeda’s gift to you. Enjoy it!

After you download “Mezclansa” from the LJC Listening Center, take a look below to learn more about Tejeda and Palotre. I’ve included some biographical information Tejeda, and then some background information about the group as well as a quote about the album. Beneath that, you’ll find a video of the group performing the song “Coconut Grove” from the album. There’s a lot to like here, so take the opportunity to hear it all - enjoy!

Yasser Tejeda & Palotre
Yasser Tejeda was born in 1985 and raised in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. At the age of 11, he began lessons with a private teacher. After a few years he enrolled in the National Conservatory of Music in Santo Domingo and in 2004 took private lessons with David Fiuczynski. At the age of 17 he began his musical career doing gigs, recordings and concerts outside the Dominican Republic in venues such as Carnegie Hall, Shea Stadium, and United Palace. He has played with numerous famous artists from the Dominican Republic such as Grupo Negros, Ilegales, Panky y Los Manolos, Luis Dias, Xiomara Fortuna, Tony Vicioso, Irka Mateo, Jose Duluc, Roldan Marmol and Marassa. In January 2007 he was awarded the World Scholarship Tour from Berklee College of Music. Entering the school a year after, in the Spring of 2008, Yasser Tejeda has performed with Skip Smith, Jetro Da Silva, Ron Madhi, David Fiuczynski, Jovol Bell, Kyle Miles, Tim Turner and others. Most recently, he has been working toward the release of his first album as a composer, arranger and producer: Mezclansa, recorded in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Dec 07 Jan 08

Equally well-versed in Caribbean roots, popular and jazz musical idioms, Palotre is without a doubt one of the most exciting musical projects to emerge out of the contemporary Caribbean. These young Dominican musicians have successfully undertaken the difficult task of fusing a wide variety of genres and taking them to a new level. Their focus on the traditional and popular music of the Dominican Republic, such as palos, gagá and merengue, is particularly refreshing, given that the Dominican Republic is a nation of great musical complexity and achievements that has remained undeservedly marginalized on the world music stage. Also significant—for cultural as well as political reasons—is Palotre’s musical exploration of the porous boundaries between the Dominican Republic and Haiti, sister nations that have a long tragic history of conflict. Members of the youngest generation of a venerable lineage of Dominican musical giants like Xiomara Fortuna, Luis Dias, Juan Luis Guerra, Tavito Vasquez, Tony Vicioso, Duluc, Irka Mateo and Michel Camilo, Palotre honors their elder’s trajectories and innovations and at the same time forge a path of their own.

Bill Milkowski On Yasser Tejeda & Palotre New Album Mezclansa
Palotre invigorates the bachata and merengue tradition with a post-Hendrix, post-Jaco, post-Bob Marley aesthetic that is positively brimming with hip ideas and an edgy electric quality while remaining fundamentally rooted in groove. Led by the exciting guitarist-composer Yasser Tejeda, a talent worthy of wider recognition, this accomplished band from the Dominican Republic carves out some fresh new territory on the modern jazz scene with Mezclansa

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Yasser Tejeda & Palotre Performing “Coconut Grove”
- Chip Boaz

-Mezclansa
Yasser Tejeda & Palotre

At its very essence, the word jazz is an imprecise term; although it implies a single stylistic approach, it rarely follows that path. People sometimes describe the term with a narrow-minded definition, but insightful musicians understand the reality of the situation. Jazz is a flexible and ever adapting term that has bent itself to meet the demands and expectations of each new generation. Musicians constantly find new rhythmic elements and performance approaches that reflect their cultural aesthetics, and they naturally bring those ideas into jazz improvisation. At every turn, jazz reflects history, but also remains forward-looking. Any intelligent jazz musician studies the music’s history and understands their elders; from there they integrate their lessons and move into new territory. It’s a word that implies certain musical elements, but is never limited by them. Most musicians see these defined portions as a foundation, and they liberally build upon the established musical elements. In it’s purest sense, the word jazz is all about contradictions and finding compromises between those contradictions. The ways that musicians balance these opposing forces becomes the essence of their voice, and it stands as the most interesting part of their music. Dominican guitarist Yasser Tejeda and his group Palotre thrive upon the apparent contradictions in the jazz world on Mezclansa, bringing opposing ideas together into an innovative mix.

-Drawing Upon Merengue As A Foundation
The group keeps a close connection to their roots with a collection of songs that draw upon merengue rhythms as a foundation. Tejeda assertively places syncopated chords over a steady percussion groove on “El Merenguito” before the rhythm section flies into an up-tempo merengue for the main melody. As the rhythm section alternates between these two opposing feels, Tejeda constructs an engaging statement that combines catchy ideas with grungy flights of rock energy. The group falls back into the original vamp as percussionist Juamy Fernández Acosta stretches original conga ideas across the tense background. A straight-ahead guitar vamp becomes a polyrhythmic playing field as drummer Otoniel Nicolás enters with a powerful fill on “Mezclansa” before the group jumps into a merengue rhythm for contrast. Guest accordion player José Fermín vamps along with the band, opening into a flying improvisation full of quick runs that gives way to a solo full of strong themes from Tejeda. The band shrinks to the drummers, providing an opportunity for Acosta to demonstrate some inventive percussion work until Nicolás takes center stage with a virtuosic güira solo. A strong horn lick leads into a medium tempo reggae feel on “Ají Tití” before the rhythm section explodes into a double time merengue, pushing the horns players into a frenzied melody. The band leaps between these two worlds before trumpet player Rhoden Santos and tenor saxophonist Abreu Tejada take quick improvisations. A furious stream of melodic ideas serves as an interlude between solos as trombonist Patricio Bonilla eases into a creative solo, climaxing into a virtuosic statement matches the brisk tempo. Tejeda and the band find inventive ways to integrate merengue into their contemporary setting, finding arrangements that both showcase their unique voice and utilize merengue in a nature way.

Diving Into Rock And Jazz Rhythms
The band displays an expansive range with a series of tracks that dive deeply into jazz and rock rhythms. The band charges into a heavy rock groove with the power of a fusion band on “Lenyazz” before placing the melody over a bubbly funk groove. Tejeda turns on his wah wah pedal as he builds a distinctive idea, providing some modern phrasing that connects the seventies with modern music. His range and insight come into full view when the band leaps into a swing rhythm and Tejeda’s phrasing changes completely, reflecting the influence of bebop and swing players. The group calms into a modern waltz setting on “Tres Por Uno” as Tejeda reflectively shapes a melody around chordal ideas and lyrical phrases. Tejeda playfully prods the rhythm section with melodic ideas and short rhythmic attacks, eventually pushing them into a double time swing behind his masterful statement. Bassist Virgilio Feliz Jr. weaves clever lines as the band eases back into the waltz groove, relying on his keen sense of melodic invention to push his statement. A heavy layer of effects allow Tejeda to create a wall of electronic sounds over Edgar Molina’s didgeridoo on “Motivo,” before an frantic funk drum groove races towards the main melody. The group eventually finds the main theme as Tejeda bursts into an aggressive distorted line, only to be drastically contrasted by an understated bossa nova section. Tejeda plays upon these contrasts with a rock fueled solo that pushes the band to its limits before they all move into a free improvisation, ending the track on an ethereal note. The group travels through different worlds on these pieces, displaying a solid mastery of jazz, rock, and funk styles that stand evenly alongside their skills in a Latin Jazz context.

Finding Links Between Stylistic And Aesthetic Boundaries
Several tracks fearlessly blend various musical worlds together into a unique performance approach. Tejeda presents an unassuming guitar vamp that transitions into a melody over an 11 beat cycle on “Machacando” as the group skillfully shapes the theme with dynamics and textural colors. The rhythm section quiets behind Tejeda as he smartly builds his idea with an understated sense of presence that draws the focus onto his musicianship. The band revisits the main theme dramatically before Tejeda establishes a strong ostinato over the 11 beat groove for a rousing percussion solo from Acosta. Abrupt band hits provide an opportunity for the group to display dynamic range on “Coconut Grove” before the melody floats over a racing funk groove. Feliz reveals an exceptional set of bass chops as the furious groove speeds underneath him, starting with captivating melodies and building into some serious slap work. The group settles into a half time shuffle feel as Tejeda shares his clear passion for the blues until Acosta and Nicolás trade ideas over a frantic series of breaks. A rhythmic interplay between Tejeda and the rest of the band introduces a melody that floats 6/8 groove on “3 Palo Tó,” eventually finding a place over a palo rhythm. Tejeda displays a strong improvisatory voice here, developing a sparse lyrical statement into a roaring wall of sound through a logical and consistent path. The rhythm section displays some ingenious work throughout this track with powerful connections between seemingly disparate grooves and textural variation that both supports and interacts with Tejeda’s work. These pieces find Tejeda and Palotre looking at the music through a big picture view, finding links between stylistic and aesthetic boundaries while expressing themselves clearly and musically.

Proving That Jazz Is Alive And Thriving
Tejeda and Palotre play upon the tension of the jazz world’s multiple meanings on Mezclansa, finding a powerful voice in the space between contrasting elements. The group’s musical concept rips traditional notions of jazz to shreds as it moves aggressively between Dominican styles, hard-edged distorted rock and straight-ahead swing. While Tejeda’s writing finds logical artistic connections between each of these worlds, it never compromises the integrity of any one style. Tejeda includes a healthy dose of “authentic” jazz improvisation, but at the same time, there’s a lot of in your face, aggressive shredding on the guitar. It’s a concept that blends the old and the new, finding a bridge between tradition and innovation. As a guitarist, Tejeda brings a wide range of influences into his work. Modern jazz guitar masters such as John Scofield, Bill Frisell, and Pat Metheny play a big role in his approach. The presence of rock-edged players such as Jimi Hendrix and Scott Henderson also seems apparent as well as some straight ahead lyrical jazz artists like Jim Hall. Without a doubt, Tejeda has done his homework and he understands the guitar’s place in the greater spectrum of the jazz and popular music world. Palotre follows his lead throughout the traveling through each stylistic turn with easy mobility and consistently attacking the music with conviction. Tejeda show us the beauty of the conflicted nature behind jazz on Mezclansa, proving that the word jazz is alive and thriving, making its way into the modern world with a sense of vitality and strength.

By Chip Boaz
The Latin Jazz Corner
http://www.chipboaz.com/blog/2009/09/16/spotlight-mezclansa-yasser-tejeda-palotre/ - Chip Boaz

Palotre invigorates the bachata and merengue tradition with a post-Hendrix, post-Jaco, post-Bob Marley aesthetic that is positively brimming with hip ideas and an edgy electric quality while remaining fundamentally rooted in groove. Led by the exciting guitarist-composer Yasser Tejeda, a talent worthy of wider recognition, this accomplished band from the Dominican Republic carves out some fresh new territory on the modern jazz scene with Mezclansa
Bill Milkowski, Jazz Times

- Bill Milkowski