By Tammy Scileppi
Manuel Valera can romance a jazz tune like a Latin lover serenading his amorcita.
The Havana-born pianist-composer’s rich progressive signature style — a blend of Latin music with jazz harmony and improvisation — evolved from his love of jazz, and was inspired by the Cuban boleros, the slow-tempo Latin music that he grew up with.
“My music in general… I feel that it bridges a gap between Cuban music, American popular music and jazz in a way that hasn’t been done too often. I feel that I, because of my background, also bridge those gaps,” said Valera. “Composition is a huge part of my musicianship. I enjoy it as much as playing the piano.”
Over the next few weeks music fans in Queens will have a couple of chances to check out Valera when he performs with the Samuel Torres Duo at Terraza 7 in Elmhurst.
“Being from Cuba and then studying and living in New York City has helped me and my playing be more rounded and versatile,” said Valera.
In 2012 he and his band released a new CD, “New Cuban Express” (Mavo Records), with Yosvany Terry on saxophone, John Benitez on bass, Tom Guarna on guitar, Eric Doob on drums and percussionist Mauricio Herrera. This recording earned them a nomination for the 2013 Grammy Award for Best Latin Jazz Album.
“The Grammy nomination was an amazing thing for me. You can’t buy that kind of exposure,” said Valera. “It was for our first recording with NCX and it actually helped launch the band. It gave us a lot of performing/tour opportunities, as well as the possibility of recording two more records with the group. It has been an amazing ride since the nomination.”
This year has been a very busy one for the pianist. In the spring he released his first solo piano album, and his eighth as a leader, “Self Portrait.”
“This is a very personal project because playing solo piano, everything is exposed and it gives the listener a good insight into my playing and compositions,” Valera explained.
In September, he released another recording with New Cuban Express (on the Criss Cross Jazz label from Holland). “In Motion” is the third record, and his ninth as a leader. “It features the ensemble in a more acoustic setting than the previous records,” said Valera, 34, who arrived in Miami in 1995.
“My family left Cuba because the situation there was very bad at the time. The inflation of the dollar and the collapse of the USSR had made living in Cuba impossible,” he recalled. “The time around the mid-’90s is called Periodo Especial. My grandparents were the first to leave and then we followed. I was 14 and my mother felt that there wasn’t much of a future for us there. I’m glad they made that decision. I don’t know what I would be doing had I stayed in Cuba.”
When he was 9, the musician was enrolled at a conservatory in Havana called Manuel Saumell. “At the time, I was playing classical saxophone. It wasn’t until I was 12 or 13 that I decided that the piano was my instrument. Now I only play piano and other forms of keyboard instruments, such as Fender Rhodes, synthesizers, etc.,” said Valera, who has been performing for almost 20 years and says he’s been fortunate to travel the world doing what he loves.
He just got back from a tour in Germany.
“My music is inspired by many things. The first and most obvious one is the music that has come before me, the history. Both North American music and Cuban music have had a big part in shaping me as a musician,” he said. “There are also other things that inspired me, such as my surroundings, the musicians I work with and definitely, my family — they are a huge part of everything I do.”
If You Go
Manuel Valera and Samuel Torres Duo
When: Thursday, Oct. 9 and Friday, Oct. 17
Where: Terraza 7, 40-19 Gleane St., Elmhurst
Contact: (718) 803-9602
Website: www.manuelvalera.com
