The last week of
January, 2016 proved itself to be a week of beginnings at the University of
Miami. While preparations for President Julio Frenk’s two-day inaugural celebration
were underway, the Frost School of Music was happily consumed in a revolution
of its own. Through the work of Andy Stermer, a Masters student in Gary Lindsay’s
Studio Jazz Writing program, the Frost School hosted three incredible candombe musicians from Montevideo, Uruguay
to play with and teach Frost students during a week of rhythmic fusion. On the
night of Thursday, January 28, the Concert Jazz Band presented “Huracándombe: An Exploration of Afro-Uruguayan
Music and Culture,” marking what could be the first time that candombe musicians
have ever played with a big band. And, of course, the energy was immeasurable.
Candombe is as
much a style of drumming as it is a culture—one with which few Frost students
were familiar only one week ago. Is it characterized by the use of three hand drums and the
responsibilities of and interactions that occur between each musician. The chico—the smallest drum—typically plays one
displaced rhythm continuously, establishing a tempo for the entire group. The piano—the largest drum—also works to
establish a strong groove, while the middle drum—the repique—is improvisatory.
I had the
opportunity to play with and spend hours hanging out with these musicians, who
I quickly discovered to be hysterically funny, grateful and kind. I asked them
what they learned while in Miami. Manuel Contrera, an incredible pianist and
composer who studied jazz in Argentina, told me that “I have learned—although I
am not done learning it yet—how to play with a big ensemble. You have to play
in a very different way. The students can just look at the music and play it
right away. It’s very inspiring.” The guitarist Juan Pablo Chapital, affectionately
known to all as Chapa, described how playing with a big band was new to him as
well, being that so much music in Uruguay is learned aurally. “In Uruguay,
there’s no place to learn jazz and popular music. If you get a gig playing pop
covers, somebody sends you YouTube links and you learn the songs that way. It’s
good for your ear, but I’ve learned that I want to get better at reading.”
Alvaro Salas, the repique player,
said, “It’s a tremendous experience to be here. I am always learning, and as a
percussionist I have have the opportunity to play with a lot of people. The
students here have learned to play candombe very quickly, which has made a big
impression on me.”
Manuel, Chapa,
Alvaro, some Frost students and myself piled into 207 for a huge, impromptu
candombe-jazz jam session on Friday afternoon. I looked around the room, which
was packed with at least twenty different instruments, during a repique solo on “Stella,” and found that
everyone was smiling with closed eyes, completely enveloped in the
intoxicating rhythms flying around the room, all playing as one, big drum. I
will not soon forget that day, or any other moment spent with these amazing musicians
learning about Uruguayan culture, history and, most importantly, candombe.
