Diego Schissi - Tongos - COMPACT DISCS [CD]

There is only one way to enhance one's performance and that is to practice until there is a level of confidence in act, and pride in the outcomes. Guitarist and composer Diego Barber seeks new challenges relentlessly. His pursuit of excellence in all his endeavors has led him to the extreme heights of classical guitar technique, contemporary composition and long-distance running, all of these requiring grueling regimens of focused study. // For his new recording, Drago, Barber departs from his recent focus on blending contemporary classical music and jazz to focus on electronic music, utilizing elements from both the classical and dancefloor models. A two-year long study of Logic music programming has led the fleet fingered string specialist to eschew the guitar for the most part to focus on composing pieces in a new and highly personal way. // The incredible music on Diego Barber's Drago is a departure from his typical output but it also shows the development of an artist who accepts musical challenges and finds exhilaration in chasing the unknown.

Diego Urcola's new record, Viva, features the Grammy nominated trumpeter leading an all-star lineup. InchI wanted to put together my dream band,Inch said Urcola. The core group of Edward Simon, Avishai Cohen, Antonio Sanchez, and Pernel Saturnino are joined by guests, Paquito d'Rivera, Jimmy Heath, Dave Samuels and Conrad Herwig. InchI wouldn't be here if it weren't for Paquito,Inch Urcola says. InchHe gave me my first big break, and I got to meet a lot of people through him, including Dave, with whom I've been working in the Caribbean Jazz Project for the last three years.Inch Heath was Urcola's advisor for his master's degree at CUNY/City College-Queens College and later an employer in his big band and quintet, while Herwig is a friend via the United Nations Orchestra. Viva features four Urcola originals; two from fellow Argentine composer/big bandleader Guillermo Klein; a pair from another Argentine composer and one of Urcola's best friends, Juan Raffo; a piece by Heath, and the Astor Piazzola classic, InchAdios Nonino,Inch a sublime melody the bandoneon master wrote for his father. InchI love this tune,Inch says Urcola. InchI wrote this arrangement a few years ago for a concert I did with Paquito.Inch on Viva, a sensibility of experimentation is vibrantly apparent throughout. So too is Urcola's aim to integrate his homeland's voice into the jazz idiom. InchI like to bring the tango flavor from my country into the mix,Inch he says, then adds, InchBut foremost I'm a jazz musician.Inch

2017 . Barber's work utilizes his dual affinities for classical music and jazz. Having come from a strict classical guitar background, Barber's jazz playing has really blossomed since moving to New York. His composing bears witness to passions, as he writes in a classical style with jazz elements, creating a poetic blend of highly composed lyrical pieces that open up for the expressionism of jazz improvisation. For One Minute Later, Barber recruited an incredible rhythm section in bassist Ben Williams and drummer Eric Harland. Both musicians are incredible technicians and fantastic accompanists. Harland has made a name for himself as one of the most exciting and expressive drummers in jazz, while Williams has become a force because of his ultra clean tone and incredible groove. It was Barber's discovery of wunderkind percussionist Alejandro Coello that drove Barber to make this recording. Barber was introduced to Coello by friend and virtuoso classical guitarist Ricardo Gallén. Barber was astounded by the proficiency of the 25 year old from Salamanca, who had just begun to teach at Hochschule für Musik Franz Liszt in Weimar, Germany (the youngest person to have done so).