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The David Valdez Latin Jazz Ensemble kicks off the PDX Jazz @ The Mission Theater Fall season on Thursday, September 19 at 7:00PM in a program dedicated to the "Latin Side of Cannonball Adderley." This special one-time performance will feature trumpeter Tom Barber, bassist Dave Captein, drummer Todd Strait, percussionist Mario Sandoval, and out front on alto sax, David Valdez.
"Julian 'Cannonball' Adderley was one of the most important alto saxophonists in jazz, and a musician who had a profound impact on my musical concept," states Valdez. "When I was younger, Cannonball was a more obvious influence in my sound, and later on his influence remained as an energetic approach to the instrument. From my perspective, he was one of the only altoists who approached Bird's level of technical mastery and fluidity. Cannonball had total mastery of his instrument, but his playing was also full of raw emotion - a rare combination. There is a distinctly freewheeling and boisterous quality to his music, but he could also change gears and sound highly refined and romantic."
"Throughout his career," Valdez continues, "Adderley seemed to always understand how to connect with audiences, this was due in part to his deep grounding in the blues. He brought an earthy bluesy approach to everything he played, which was a perfect balance to Coltrane's rarified improvisations with the Miles Davis Quintet of the late fifties. 1962 was a busy year for Adderley; he released four albums for Riverside Records, including Cannonball's Bossa Nova, which featured an established group of L.A. based Brazilian studio musicians, among them pianist, Sergio Mendes. This was at the height of the Bossa Nova craze, and quite possibly Riverside was instrumental in encouraging Adderley to follow in the footsteps of Stan Getz. Whatever the motivations for this new musical direction were, Ball's approach mixed elegance and a fiery energy that many similar recordings of this era lacked."
Valdez has selected a vast body of Adderley's works including: "Stars Fell on Alabama," "Joyce's Samba," "Lolita," "Heads Up! Feet Down!," "Goodbye," "Minha Suadade," "Clouds," "Lisa," and "I Concentrate On You," among others.
David Valdez & The Latin Side of Cannonball Adderley
Thursday, September 19 @ 7:00PM
David Valdez - alto saxophone
Tom Barber - trumpet
George Colligan-piano
Dave Captein - bass
Mario Sandoval - percussion
Todd Strait - drums
Tickets $15 in advance and at the door.
Please note new starting time of 7:00PM
