Jazz in the tropics

LVMedia

Octubre 4, 2008 06:46 am

Playa del Carmen, MEXICO – The Riviera Maya will host its sixth annual jazz festival at Mamitas Beach this November 27 – 29. The festival is emerging as one of the premiere jazz music events in the Americas, and will showcase an array of international stars.

This year, the festival will draw crowds on the white sandy beach of Playa del Carmen, as it will host such jazz greats as Billy Cobham, Earl Klugh, David Sanborn, Hector Infanzon and others, all performing under a star-filled Riviera Maya sky.

On the opening night, Thursday, November 27, the best of Mexican jazz will be showcased and represented by Beaujean sisters from Mexico City, and followed by Jose ”Pepe” Moran, the son of the great trumpeter Chilo Moran. Mr. Moran’s performance will be dedicated to his father’s music.

Continuing into the evening will be the local host band, Aguamala group, led by Fernando Toussaint, the creator and Director of the Riviera Maya’s Jazz Festival and one of the region’s own local stars, who has performed during past five festivals. The closing of this first night will be completed with the music of Hector Infazon, one of the best Mexican pianists, who will perform with a quartet.

On Friday, November 28, the Festival will start with the performance of Iraida Noriega, who is regarded as one of the best voices of contemporary jazz and will be presenting her new solo album.

Iraida’s opening performance will be followed by the Grammy award winning Earl Klugh, a pioneer of contemporary jazz, who has been opening new paths for jazz for about 30 years. He is also considered to be a follower of George Benson, who performed at the last year’s festival. Mr. Klugh is a virtuoso on acoustic guitar, whose style can be described as eclectic, mixing classical music, blues and jazz.

The evening will come to a close with a performance by David Sanborn, who also has about 40 years of experience, and has collaborated with other celebrity musicians such as Stevie Wonder and David Bowie. Sanborn is one of the most influential saxophonists of all times.

On the last night of the festival, Playa del Carmen will heat up once again with even hotter jazz sounds. Gianluca Littera will open the concert accompanied by Sacbe band and the Toussaint brothers. Mr. Littera is known for being the only musician performing classical music with a harmonica, and he has been playing in philharmonic halls of London and Milan. Sacbe has over thirty years of jazz experience and the three Toussaint brothers, who make up the band, are responsible for creating the first jazz record label in Mexico. This legendary jazz band, known throughout the country and the US, has been representing the Riviera Maya’s Jazz Festival in both Montreal’s and Haiti’s Jazz Festivals.

Their performance will be followed by Billy Cobham, a Panamanian American jazz drummer, composer and bandleader, who is regarded as one of the best drummers of all times, and who has created a new drumming style by blending rock and jazz rhythms into a harmonious fusion. He came into prominence in the ‘70s together with Miles Davis.

The closing act of this phenomenal music event will be a performance by Fourplay group, which includes pianist Bob James, bassist Nathan East, guitarist Larry Carlton and drummer Harvey Mason, all of them known individually as some of the best musicians of their particular instrument. For over seventeen years and with ten albums, the group has been stretching and exploring jazz limits, while also appealing to a broad mainstream audience.

Javier Aranda, Director of the Rivera Maya Destination Marketing Office, is convinced that this year’s Festival will be taken to an even higher level, as an aggressive marketing campaign had been initiated earlier this year. Upgrading the Festival’s technical equipment, i.e. installing digital stage screens, was also added to enhance the overall success of annual event.

For more information on the Riviera Maya Jazz Festival visit www.rivieramayajazzfestival.com.

Easily accessible from many cities throughout the U.S., the eighty-one mile stretch known as the Riviera Maya is situated in the state of Quintana Roo, Mexico. Beginning eleven miles south of Cancun International Airport in Puerto Morelos, the Riviera Maya extends to Tulum, one of the most important archeological sites in the Mayan World.

The region features the tranquility of uncrowded beaches, a vast network of underground rivers, over 100 cenotes, the action of eco-adventure sports including kayaking, mountain biking, scuba diving, snorkeling, trekking, bird watching and deep sea fishing, proximity to many of Mexico’s most significant Mayan archeological sites, the varied activities of the eco-archeological parks, plus golf courses, spas, shopping, gourmet dining and a range of accommodations to suit every lifestyle and budget.

The Riviera Maya has been named a Top Destination in Mexico for four consecutive years by Travel Weekly (2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007), one of the hottest beach destinations by Orbitz in 2008 and was also featured in the January 2006 issue of Travel + Leisure as “The Next Riviera.”