David Dalle
Thursday April 23rd, 2020 with David Dalle
Chucho Valdes live in concert, a brand new album from Esma's Band, formed from members of the late Esma Redzepova's Ensemble Teodosievski, lots of trumpets and other goodies from Hungary, Poland, France and elsewhere.

Looking back at an incredible concert recording from Chucho Valdes and forward to a brand new release by Esma's Band Next Generation. This band refers to the late, great Macedonian Roma singer Esma Redzepova. Who with her bandleader husband Stevo Teodosievski fostered 47 children and adopted five. All of these children received musical instruction and many were members of Esma's band Ensemble Teodosievski. This included Esma's adopted daughter and protégé Eleonora Mustafovska. She is now the lead singer for Esma's Band - Next Generation, which is formed exclusively from Esma's foster and adopted children. They honour the late singer with this wonderful new album. However we start the program with a superb concert recording from Chucho Valdes. In 2015 he toured with a new band of mostly young musicians in a tribute to his famed band Irakere. They performed music from Irakere's repertoire and in the same vein, even though most of the band were too young to remember Irakere in its heyday. The performance recorded live at the Jazz festival in Marciac, France in 2015. Chucho Valdes is fantastic with his improvisational brilliance, the band was electrifying, and the music as a whole constantly surprises with sudden and dramatic changes. I have not featured the concert in its entirety and I think it would be very welcome during this otherwise sad and stressful week.