Starfish, Miami Beach
March 31, 2001
Concert Review by Kaysee
Photos by César
Díaz
The beauty and power of music can be uplifting
at moments when we feel we are at our worst. The reality of this
truism came home to me during the March 31st concert of Adalberto
Alvarez y Su Son. Starfish Nightclub in Miami Beach proved
to be well suited to the ambience of this well-loved composer and his
rejuvenating band.
These days I am a jaded regular at
Afro-Cuban concerts in Miami Beach, so I wasn't surprised
by the 12:30 am start. While waiting, I noted with
interest the arrangement of the percussion, with congas
on stands at the left rear of the stage, timbales at
center rear, and bongo at the center of the stage.
The absence of the drum kit signaled this was no timba
band, though the timbales player did have a bass drum
set up at one side.
At that point the band members, made obvious
by the drama of their long black coats and their patent inability to
listen to the DJed music without playing along with a few of the trumpet
licks, made their way onto Starfish's miniscule stage. I'd already
heard rumors about the departure of Adalberto's long time lead
vocalist Aramis Galindo (see CD
Review), but the fresh-faced youthfulness of the musicians
who took his place on the stage led me to believe that Alvarez had changed
more than a singer or two. It turns out that except for Adalberto's
daughter on piano almost all the band members are new.
But I wasn't thinking about their youth or possible
inexperience once the band launched into a rendition of 'Somos el son
de Cuba', immediately engaging the senses of the waiting audience.
The crowd, which was more mature than many I have seen at such concerts,
responded by dancing and waving their arms in the air in time to the
music. 
Fronted
by new singers Donaldo Flores Díaz and José
de Jesus Pelayo, they performed 'Una mulata en la Habana',
one of the songs from Adalberto's recent album "Jugando
con Candela".
I was amused when after this, Adalberto asked,
"what do you want to hear now?" and a woman in the audience
replied 'Guantanamera'. I was even more amused when he turned,
gave the nod, and the band played 'Guantanamera'! But this was
'Guantanamera
as I had never heard it played, with verve and panache.
The solo by the trumpet player from Santiago de Cuba really stood out.
Later, Alvarez' daughter Dogeris acquitted herself
well during her piano solo on 'Caminando la vi', fleshing out the melodic
lines with lots of block chords.
Throughout the two sets Adalberto
Alvarez y Su Son skillfully performed a variety of songs
from their repertoire, consistently providing quality dance music that
moved the body. Whether it was slower paced traditional son or
its more upbeat modern cousin, the rhythm section laid down an effortless
foundation, 
while the rich sound created by the two trumpets and trombones resonated
through the club. Working their way through popular favorites such as
'Dale como es' and 'A bailar el toca toca', the band
drew its listeners towards the powerful finale.
On the stage, Adalberto Alvarez himself
was an unassuming figure. He guided the members of his band with
economical hand motions and the occasional nod, a miniature giant in
a simple black suit. In the final
song of the second set, however, the strength and depth Alvarez brings
to the group was made obvious as he "rapped" to the audience
for several moments. With appeals to the pantheon of Cuban "santos",
Flores Díaz inspired the crowd, and the
moving nature of the song reminded us of Alvarez' position as a babalawo.
Unwilling to release them afterwards, the audience chanted for an encore,
and was rewarded by a lively 'Jugando con candela'.
Even exhausted and worn by the trials of the
previous three days of non-stop activity (a result of my visit to South
Florida), I was struck by the power and beauty of the music created
that evening by Adalberto Alvarez y Su Son. I
could not help but feel uplifted and refreshed by the experience!
(Photos taken at SOB's, New York,
on April 2, 2001)
Read an exclusive SalsaPower
interview with Adalberto Alvarez here.
(English).
Lea una entrevista exclusiva de
SalsaPower con Adalberto Alvarez aquí.
(Español).
Read other SalsaPower Concert Reviews HERE!
